Anthony Cohen returns to the Arboretum to lead a series of guided walks to explore the cross-section in history and culture that combines the story of the Underground Railroad and the natural landscape of the Eastern Shore.

With its forests, thickets, marshes, rivers, and creeks, the Eastern Shore’s natural landscape provided an opportunity for hundreds, and possibly thousands, of slaves to attain freedom, including Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman. Designated as a “Place to Visit” on the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway, the Arboretum reflects the conditions slaves had to travel through en route to freedom, and serves as a dramatic vista to experience the little-known relationship between nature and the Underground Railroad.

The guided walk will be followed by an informal conversation to discuss ongoing opportunities to interpret nature’s role in the Underground Railroad. Light refreshments will be served

Cohen is a historian, author, and explorer of the American past. He has twice walked routes of the Underground Railroad and will chronicle his third journey as a documentary film titled Patrick & Me, to be released in 2011. Cohen has served as consultant to the National Parks Conservation Association, Maryland Public Television, and NASA and trained Oprah Winfrey for her role as Sethe in the film Beloved. He is founder and executive director of The Menare Foundation, Inc., a nonprofit preserving the legacy of the Underground Railroad.

This program is partially funded by a grant from Eastern Shore Heritage Inc. (ESHI), the managing entity of The Stories of the Chesapeake Heritage Area.

Fee: $5 members, $10 general public