The Reverse Underground Railroad: The Pre-American Civil War

The Reverse Underground Railroad was the pre-American Civil War practice of kidnapping free black men in free states and transporting them to slave states to be sold. It was called the Reverse Underground Railroad because it’s purpose was the opposite of what the Underground Railroad tried to achieve, which was a network of abolitionists who smuggled black slaves into free land, generally in Canada. The kidnapping of blacks was considered a dirty business. Kidnappers physically abused and psychologically terrorized their captives into stating that they were slaves. Many were beaten repeatedly for the attempt to try and claim their free status. This was a large part of the reason that kidnapping accounts were not often told. Once kidnappers