Harriet Tubman was born into slavery in Maryland around 1820, and faced whippings as punishment as a child. She demonstrated great courage and abilities in leading over 300 slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad without any money or food, navigating only by the North Star. Tubman went on to work as a nurse and spy for the Union during the Civil War, and later fought for women's suffrage, making important contributions to the abolition of slavery and advancement of civil rights in the United States before her death in 1913.