Dogs were coerced into becoming slave dogs and were particularly effective, sadistic, dehumanizing implements of racial stratification. The “bay of the bloodhounds” was a harrowing reminder to escaped slaves that their pursuers were never far behind. The many brave resistance of slaves during escape and epochal slave rebellions demonstrated their own humanity, and the depravity of slaveowners, to prominent anti-slavery activists, offering evidence to politically pressure the cessation of slavery.

Slaves could often outrun their human pursuers, but the alarming brutality of quadrapedic foes presented a unique challenge in their relentless stamina and ability to follow wafting scents of fugitives. In the absence of weapons and other materials for self-defense, runaway slaves harnessed products from the earth to evade the bloodhounds.

Favored items for “throwing off the scent” often included pungent vegetables or herbal remedies that obfuscated the bloodhound’s scenting abilities. Some waded through water, stripped off their clothes, or even covered themselves in dirt, and fought with tree branches, rocks, or their bare hands if finally pinned by a pursuing hound.
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Freedom seekers developed ingenious ways to throw off bloodhounds. In North Carolina, they applied turpentine to their shoes, while others in Texas used a paste made from charred bullfrogs. Some escaped into swamps to wash away their scent, with most running under the cover of darkness to avoid capture.

To avoid being caught, many fugitives carried forged free passes, documents proving their freedom. These passes, created by free Black people and enslaved individuals, allowed freedom seekers to travel through dangerous slave states with a semblance of legitimacy, providing them with a vital tool for reaching safety.

Methods for Eluding Bloodhounds:
•Scent Masking:
•Applying turpentine to shoes (common in North Carolina).
•Using a paste made from charred bullfrogs (used in Texas).
•Using other substances like red pepper, wild onions, or even mud from graves to cover scent.

Utilizing the Environment:
•Escaping into swamps where water could wash away scent and the difficult terrain hindered pursuers.
•Using darkness to their advantage by running under the cover of night.
•Hiding in difficult-to-penetrate areas like swamps, mountains, and caves.
•Leading pursuing hounds to water or even alligators, who were known to prey on dogs.
•Forged Free Passes:
•Carrying forged free passes, created by free Black individuals or other enslaved people, offered a semblance of legitimacy when traveling through slave states and helped avoid suspicion.

Effectiveness and Context:
•These strategies highlight the ingenuity and resourcefulness and the immense drive to be free by the freedom seekers in their attempts to achieve liberty and freedom.

•While these methods were not foolproof, they demonstrate the active resistance enslaved individuals engaged in against the brutal system of slavery.

•Escaping slavery was inherently dangerous, and these methods were often attempts to gain valuable time and distance from pursuers.

This information offers a glimpse into the incredible courage and determination of those who sought freedom, showcasing the diverse and often inventive ways they navigated immense life threatening obstacles to break free from white chattel slavery in.

Sources: A Historical Dig Sheds Light on the Food of the Underground Railroad by by Reina Gattuso
October 14, 2020; Underground Railroad-Wikipedia; Introducing “Slave Hounds and Abolition in the Americas” by Dr. Tyler Parry (University of Nevada, Las Vegas) & Dr. Chaz Yingling (University of Louisville)
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About The Paintings: Top painting from PBS NC: Two runaway slaves in a swamp, confronted by three vicious mastiffs, are the subject of this powerful painting by artist Richard Ansdell. The painting, entitled Hunted Slaves, was presented in 1861 at England's Royal Academy, where it was well-received by critics keenly aware of the Civil War taking place in the United States.

The literature accompanying the painting included an excerpt of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1842 anti-slavery poem, "The Dismal Swamp". . .

In dark fens of the Dismal Swamp
The hunted Negro lay;
He saw the fire of the midnight camp,
And heard at times a horse's tramp,
And a bloodhound's distant bay.

Where hardly a human foot could pass,
Or a human heart would dare,
On the quaking turf of the green morass
He crouched in the rank and tangled grass,
Like a wild beast in his lair.
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Bottom painting: "Fugitive Slaves in the Dismal Swamp, Virginia" 1888 by David Edward Cronin. Cronin's painting, depicts a scene of fugitive slaves living in the swamp's maroon communities. This painting is his interpretation of life for Maroons in the Great Dismal Swamp. It shows that the swamp was home to people of all ages and sexes. It also suggests that the constant threat of discovery was a source of anxiety for everyone who lived there. It does not show us what the communities of the swamp looked like, probably because the artist never saw one. The fact that this painting was created 23 years after the end of the Civil War shows that people were still sharing the stories of Maroon societies and were interested in learning about their strong will to be free and liberated long after they had disbanded.

Vocabulary
Great Dismal Swamp: A large marshy area that straddles the eastern section of the border between Virginia and North Carolina.
Maroon: A Black enslaved person who escaped slavery and lived in a hidden community in the wilderness to avoid recapture.
Self-Emancipated: People who have freed themselves from slavery, usually by running away or purchasing their freedom.