(CHURCH CREEK, MD – November 19, 2024) – Governor Wes Moore and Maj. Gen. Janeen L. Birckhead, 31st Adjutant General of Maryland’s Army National Guard, came together this past Veteran’s Day at Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad State Park to posthumously commission Harriet Tubman as a Brigadier General of the Maryland Army National Guard. Tina Wyatt, Harriet Tubman’s great great great grandniece, accepted the honor on behalf of the family.
Harriet Tubman’s Civil War work is vast. She served as a spy, scout, cook, nurse, and leader. In June 1863, Tubman became the first woman to lead a major military operation in the United States when she guided about 300 Union soldiers through the marshy and mine-filled waters on the Combahee River to fire on Confederate forces and raid and burn plantations. Tubman raised her voice in song amongst the chaos as crowds of newly freed women, men, and children rushed Union boats, calming the crowds and leading them to evacuation.
