What did they have to do in the underground railroad?

Answer 1

The "underground railroad" was neither a railroad, nor was it underground.

In the same sense of the French Underground in World War II, the Underground Railroad was a secret group, composed of anti-slavery sympathizers in the North and South before the US Civil War. The group helped escaped slaves to reach freedom and safety, usually in non-slavery states of the North. At that time, slave owners would often pursue slaves who fled North, and the "railroad" frequently provided new identities to protect slaves from organized slave hunters.

Beginning in the areas where the slaves escaped, farmers or townspeople would provide food, new clothing, and hiding places for the slaves. Then , usually at night, they would be moved to safe locations farther north, or to ships on the coast. So it commonly took several days to weeks for slaves to complete their journey. Once in the North, they would be provided homes, jobs, and often new names.