Swing Low, Sweet Chariot!

I was completely astonished to discover that this song was a favorite of Harriet Tubman, an escaped slave who played an important role in the underground railroad. She loved music and loved to sing. She even used music to pass secret messages on to the slaves she was helping escape. This specific song is about the longing of slaves to escape to freedom through the efforts of the underground railroad. The 'Jordan' symbolizes the Ohio or Mississippi Rivers and the 'band of angels' are the workers of the Underground Railroad who came to carry them home to freedom in the North or in Canada.



Swing low, sweet chariot,
Comin' forth to carry me home!

I looked over Jordan and what did I see,
Comin' for to carry me home!
A band of angels comin' after me,
Comin' for to carry me home!

If you get there before I do,
Comin' for to carry me home,
Jess tell my friends that I'm acomin' too,
Comin' for to carry me home.

I'm sometimes up and sometimes down,
Comin' for to carry me home,
But still my soul feels heavenly bound
Comin' for to carry me home!