Allison Smith, seen hear depicting Harriett Tubman, talks about the symbolism in an Underground Railroad quilt during a presentation to the Brookfield Historical Society.
As a teacher, Allison Smith looked for ways to bring history to life. She didn’t want her students to just learn about history from a book.
“I started doing some characters and stories,” said Smith, now retired after teaching in Ashtabula and at the Hope Center for Autism in Warren.
Smith presented one of those characters, Harriett Tubman, to the Brookfield Historical Society on Jan. 9.
Tubman escaped slavery in Maryland and returned to the south many times to free family members and friends, earning the nickname “the Moses of her people.”
Smith’s one-woman show presented Tubman as a devout Christian who sometimes had visions – the possible result of a head injury – that guided her way.
Tubman also was a Civil War nurse and spy who actually led a combat raid in South Carolina to free slaves, recruit soldiers and destroy confederate property.
Tubman settled in Auburn, N.Y., where she helped establish an old-folks home, and fought for women’s rights.
“I think, her courage,” Smith said of what makes Tubman’s story worth remembering. “Being a faithful person and then to know that you can go back and get freedom and no matter what the odds are you aren’t afraid to help others and to serve others. Sometimes it’s just about us, but it was about her and serving others, and that’s why I like that character so much.”
Smith, of Warren, said she strives to make her presentations engaging, without any sense of threat or accusation so as not to offend other cultures.
“You have to get humble enough to be able to do that,” she said.
Smith also allows time for questions so her audience can create a dialogue about Tubman, who was the subject of a recent movie called “Harriett.”
A fiber artist and quilter, Smith showed off a couple of her Underground Railroad quilts and explained the symbolism of the patterns.
“I like serving others,” Smith said. “I think that’s just a way of giving back. And (Tubman) gave back all of her life.”
Historical society member Lois Werner noted that the Underground Railroad came through Brookfield, and the Obermiyer house, across the street from Madasz Chapel – Lane Family Funeral Homes at Warren Sharon Road and Route 7, was a stop. About 60 slaves are known to have come through Brookfield on their way to freedom, Werner said.
