The Mapmaker’s Children by Sarah McCoy (Crown, 2015) is historical fiction based on the life of the daughter of abolitionist Captain John Brown. In this version, Sarah Brown painted maps on dolls to guide enslaved people to freedom along the Underground Railway. Sarah was also an abolitionist and a talented artist and it is true that dolls were used to smuggle information, medicine, and contraband. Quilts were also used to smuggle out codes during that time.
Sarah later became known as a feminist and for her work with orphans. An unsung heroine, (I had never heard of her), she reminds us that we can each do something with our talents and gifts, no matter how simple or ordinary they may seem, to make a difference. It also reminds us that it takes a village to make a change.
The people who ran the Underground Railroad took huge risks and for those fleeing slavery, if caught, faced not only horrible punishments and a return to slavery, but possibly death. To have that degree of dedication to eradicating injustice or to flee into the unknown with little but the hope in the kindness of strangers is incredibly inspiring.