The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is pleased to announce its latest exhibition, Sailing to Freedom: The Maritime Dimensions of the Underground Railroad, will open to guests on Friday, Sept. 27, in the Changing Exhibitions Gallery.
Opening during International Underground Railroad month and running through 2025, this special exhibition explores the lesser-known maritime aspects of the Underground Railroad while highlighting stories of enslaved African Americans’ journeys to freedom along Atlantic Coast water routes, including the Chesapeake Bay.
Based upon the 2021 book “Sailing to Freedom,” the exhibition expands the understanding of how freedom was achieved by sea and what the journey looked like for many African Americans. Self-emancipation along the Underground Railroad was not entirely by overland routes. Many enslaved persons made their way to freedom using the Bay and other coastal water routes along the Atlantic seaboard.
CBMM will host an exclusive opening event for CBMM members on Thursday, Sept. 26, beginning at 5:30pm, to explore the exhibition before it opens to all guests the next day. CBMM members can register now at cbmm.org/SailingtoFreedomOpening
