38 Facts About Samuel Burris

Samuel D Burris was a member of the Underground Railroad.

Samuel Burris had a family, who he moved to Philadelphia for safety and traveled into Maryland and Delaware to guide freedom seekers north along the Underground Railroad to Pennsylvania.

Samuel Burris was caught helping Marie Mathews escape slavery and was acquitted.

Samuel Burris was arrested for enticing slaves to runaway in 1847.

Samuel Burris was sentenced to ten months in jail and a $500 file, after which he was put on the auction block to be sold into slavery.

Samuel Burris still went into Delaware to guide freedom seekers, until a law was passed, naming him, that stated that continued assistance could result in 60 lashes of the whip in addition to being sold into slavery.

Samuel Burris was born in Willow Grove, Kent County, Delaware, on October 14,1813.

Samuel Burris's parents, George and Mary Burrows, were born free and lived in the Willow Grove area, where they owned property.

Samuel Burris worked as a laborer, farmer, and teacher throughout his life.

At some point, Samuel Burris moved his family to Philadelphia for their safety.

Samuel Burris and James were cooks and George was a steward.

Samuel Burris lived in California for the rest of his life.

Samuel Burris was an active member of the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery Society in Philadelphia.

Samuel Burris was an abolitionist who made trips to and from Delaware in the 1840s to free other African Americans from slavery.

Samuel Burris worked on the Underground Railroad as a conductor, guiding Emeline and Samuel Hawkins and other escapees who passed through Camden and Dover.

Samuel Burris is said to have helped hundreds of people in their northbound journey, taking them on secret paths to a network of safe houses.

Samuel Burris worked in conjunction with John Hunn, to help people who made their way through Maryland and Delaware to Pennsylvania.

Samuel Burris helped Marie Mathews escape from the Dover Hundred and they were captured before Samuel Burris and Mathews could get on a steamboat in January 1847.

Samuel Burris helped a young woman and two men named Isaac and Alexander.

Samuel Burris went to jail in Dover, and he remained in jail after his supporters raised his bail money and the authorities increased the bail to $5,000, which was unobtainable.

Samuel Burris was charged with three cases of "enticing away 3 slaves".

Samuel Burris was tried and convicted of two cases of assisting two runaways on November 2,1847.

Samuel Burris was sentenced to ten months in jail, a $500 file, and two seven-year sentences of slavery for a total of 14 years.

Samuel Burris came to Dover with $500 on the day of the auction.

Samuel Burris was put on the auction block in September 1848 on the steps of the Old State House.

Flint claimed to be a slave buyer and he bought Samuel Burris, who was unaware of the plan.

The usual opportunity was given to traders and speculators to thoroughly examine the property on the block, and most skillfully was Samuel Burris examined from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head; legs, arms and body, being handled as horse-jockeys treat horses.

The bids were suddenly checked, and Burris was knocked down to Isaac S Flint.

Once more Samuel Burris found himself in Philadelphia with his wife and children and friends, a stronger opponent than ever of Slavery.

Samuel Burris was mentioned in a law that stipulated that people who tried to abet slaves had 24 hours to leave the state, or they would receive 60 lashes of a whip, which was likely a death sentence.

Samuel Burris was active in the Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church of San Francisco.

Samuel Burris was a fundraiser for education for former slaves.

Samuel Burris helped provide food and shelter for former slaves who were freed by the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Samuel Burris died in San Francisco on December 3,1863, at the age of 50.

Samuel Burris's remains are now interred at Pioneer Mound at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, California.

Samuel Burris helped enslaved people find their pathway to freedom in Philadelphia.

Samuel Burris was imprisoned in accordance with the law and sold into servitude.

Samuel Burris continued to help others gain their freedom by raising funds for the cause until his death in 1863.