Quakerism is a Christian denomination that emphasizes equality between people and preached against slavery. Thomas and Sarah Garrett were among many Quaker couples who provided meals, shelter, and transportation to escaping slaves on the Underground Railroad.

Old Rit and the other slaves are afraid of their loved ones being sold to the “chain gang.” White people referred to this as a drove or coffle, but the slaves called it the chain gang since slaves were chained together in pairs of two and then to a long chain that connected them to other pairs. Slaves would endure these conditions while being marched down to cities such as New Orleans, Louisiana, or Natchez, Mississippi, where they would be sold to plantations in the deep South.

Abolitionists disagreed with the practice of slavery. In addition to Tubman, Petry references many abolitionist activists in her work, such as William Still, John Brown, Nat Turner, and Denmark Vesey. These people agitated for the end of slavery through their writing, speaking, uprisings, or contributions to the Underground Railroad.