John Webber was born in Vermont late in the 18th Century. He was a medic in the War of 1812. After the war, he settled in Mexico, in what would later become Texas after the Texas Revolution.
Sylvia was born into slavery in 1807 in what is now Louisiana. She later located in what is now Texas. John and Sylvia’s owner were business partners and when John met Sylvia, he fell in love with her. They were married. Interracial marriages were allowed in Mexico. Sylvia was still enslaved at the time of their marriage.
John wanted to buy Sylvia from her owner, but he would only agree if John would give him 2 enslaved children in return. John refused but settled on the forfeiture of what was a large portion of the property he owned. This was property in the vicinity of what is now Austin, Texas.
When Texas became a part of the United States, John and Sylvia struggled with the laws of their new nation. Their marriage was not recognized. Their children were not allowed to attend public schools. The Webbers chose to move to what is now land near the border of Texas and Mexico. Their new community was largely populated by Mexican-American families. They found acceptance and John opened a trading business ferrying goods to Mexico across the Rio Grande River.
John and Sylvia were anti-slavery and used their home as a safe haven for persons of color trying to get to Mexico. John would also help slaves cross the Rio Grande using his ferry boat.
During the Civil War, the Webbers were Union supporters. They provided the North with intelligence on Confederate troop movements. They were forced to live in Mexico for much of the war.
When we think of the Underground Railroad, we think of it as one for slaves who wanted to escape to a northern state or Canada. What the Webbers did was to be a vital part of the Southern Underground Railroad. Sylvia was so invested in this effort that she is referred to as the southern Harriet Tubman.
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“There is only one decision you need to make: You are either working at your Freedom or you are accepting your bondage.”–Robert Adams (spiritual teacher)