African American Studies Program

The Underground Railroad Oral History Project

…Carrying the Underground Forward

The Network to Freedom Underground Railroad Oral History Project at UF is now proudly housed within the African American Studies Program at the University of Florida. Initially launched by the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program (SPOHP), the project continues to thrive through SPOHP’s ongoing partnership and support.

Funded by the National Park Service, this initiative documents and preserves the oral histories of descendants and representatives of Underground Railroad freedom seekers and conductors. These narratives offer invaluable insight into the lived experiences of resistance, escape, and liberation that shaped the course of American history.

Under the leadership of African American Studies, the project is expanding its scholarly reach, community engagement, and curricular integration, ensuring that these voices remain central to the study of African American freedom movements and public memory.

Featured Interviews

An Oral History with Ms.Peggy Preacely, descendant of William and Ellen Craft.

Interview with Dr. Bruce Purnell, recorded on location in Church Creek, Maryland, 1-28-2023

An Oral History With Mr. Michael B. Moore, descendant of Robert Smalls. June 7, 2023.

The Underground Railroad Oral History Staff

Riché J. Daniel Barnes

Principle Investigator

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Alyssa P. Cole

Co-PI

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Ronan Hart

Project Coordinator

Kenesma D. John

Assistant Project Coordinator

Deborah Hendrix

Archivist and Technology Coordinator

Chalisa Budhai

Undergraduate Researcher

“This project has helped Black American history come alive for me in ways I never imagined. From learning about the unbelievable life of former slave turned Captain Robert Smalls to rewatching the film Glory and finding renewed meaning and understanding of the grandiosity of what my ancestors and their allies went through, this project has changed the way that I look at the world and the progress that has been made and remains to be seen in Civil Rights activism.”
– Angelica

URP History

At the University of Florida

The Underground Railroad Oral History Project is the culmination of several decades of work preserving and honoring the history of the Underground Railroad.

When Congress passed the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act of 1998, it tasked the National Park Service with protecting sites associated with the Underground Railroad from the “imminent danger of being lost or destroyed,” as well as to “commemorate, honor, and interpret the history of the Underground Railroad.” Since then, the Network to Freedom Program has worked tirelessly to do just that, designating over 700 sites in 39 states, Washington, DC, and the Virgin Islands.

In 2012, the National Park Service invited the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program to the 6^th annual National Underground Railroad conference in St Augustine, Florida. That year’s theme was “Destinations South: The Underground Railroad, Cultural Identity, and Freedom along the Southern Borderlands,” focusing on the escapes of Freedom Seekers to places such as Spanish Florida, the Caribbean Islands, Indian Territory, Texas, and Mexico. It featured several scholars, site stewards, students, and descendants. The SPOHP team, which included director Paul Ortiz, digital humanities coordinator Deborah Hendrix, as well as Ryan Morini, Marna Weston, and Justin Dunavant, conducted 20 interviews with conference goers, focusing primarily on the descendants of Freedom Seekers.

These interviews form the basis of the Underground Railroad Project (URP), which is available through UF Digital Collections.

This project fostered a strong relationship between the Network to Freedom Program and SPOHP, particularly between Paul Ortiz and Diane Miller, the national program manager for the Network to Freedom Program.

In 2023, the Network to Freedom Program and the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program embarked on the Underground Railroad Oral History Project. The original Cooperative agreement between SPOHP and NTF called for 40 interviews with descendants of Freedom Seekers, conductors, and stationmasters, but a 2024 addendum increased that number to 50. When Dr. Paul Ortiz departed the University of Florida in 2024, new leadership was needed for the Underground Railroad Project.

Dr. Riché Daniel Barnes and Dr. Alyssa Cole stepped up to serve as PI and co-PI. [more on PIs] Likewise, Ronan Hart was hired onto the grant after the departure of the previous project coordinator in 2024. In 2025, assistant project coordinator Dr. Kenesma John and student assistant Lauryn Green were hired, completing the team.