NEW YORK (AP & WXXI News) — An album containing a rare photograph of 19th century abolitionist and Underground Railroad hero Harriet Tubman has been sold at a New York City auction for $161,000.
Swann Galleries says the circa late 1860s image and other items in the album sold Thursday for a hammer price of $130,000, plus a $31,000 auctioneer fee. The album had an estimated sale price of $20,000 to $30,000.
The winning bid was made by phone by Lion Heart Autographs, a Manhattan-based dealer.
Syracuse.com reports that The Harriet Tubman Home in Auburn raised nearly $29,000 online, but that wasn't enough to obtain the photo for the museum's collection.
The Tubman photo shows her seated on a chair and was taken in Auburn in central New York in 1868 or 1869.
The Maryland-born Tubman led escaped slaves to freedom before and during the Civil War. She settled in Auburn after the war and is buried there.
