Harriet Tubman statue gets six more months on Hilton Head. Why can’t she stay forever?
Enshrined in bronze, Harriet Tubman looks forth with determination as she steps across the Pennsylvania state line. Behind her, a fearful young girl her holds tightly onto Tubman’s arm, the shackles of slavery behind her feet.
The nine-foot bronze sculpture, titled “Journey to Freedom,” has been resting at Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park on Hilton Head Island since December, after traveling the country for nearly five years.
Like many visitors to Hilton Head Island, the statue has ended up staying a little bit longer than planned.
Originally scheduled to depart in May, an anonymous donation is helping to keep the statue at the park through Jan. 1, 2026, spokesperson for Historic Mitchelville Caitlin Lee confirmed Monday.
The statue holds special significance to the Mitchelville, a place that more than 3,000 freed slaves called home during the Civil War.
“We’re thrilled to have her there,” sculptor Wesley Wofford said. “There’s no reason for her to leave if she doesn’t have anywhere to go.”
Although some residents hope the statue could stay permanently, the statue is fated to wander: Wofford said he’s contractually prohibited from selling it.
‘Bound by an NDA’
The statue has a mysterious past, somewhere in the country “The Journey to Freedom” has an identical twin.
In 2017, an anonymous client reached out to sculptor Wesley Wofford to commission a statue that focused on freedom, with Harriet Tubman as the subject.
“I am bound by an NDA not to say who it is or where it is,” Wofford said.
It was Wofford’s first foray into sculpting a historical figure, a genre he’s now become known for. Wofford spent weeks researching Tubman’s life and legacy, reading books, visiting museums, and trying to find as many firsthand accounts as he could. “It’s a deep, emotional dive,” he said.
The non-disclosure agreement barred Wofford from sharing any photos of the statue while it was in progress. When it was finally completed in 2019, the studio shared photos of it on social media, where went “viral,” Wofford said. From there, Wofford got the idea to cast a copy of the statue that could travel the country.
‘The longest she’s ever been anywhere’
For five years, “The Journey to Freedom” has been traveling constantly from place to place, juggling hordes of requests from organizations around the country. To make sure everyone gets a chance, Wofford said he tried to limit the length of time she stayed in once place to three months. The statue arrived on Hilton Head Island in December, with plans to ship her to Vienna, Virginia in May.
In April, Wofford told The Packet he’s seen a “jarring, precipitous drop off of organizations” clamoring for a turn. The plans for Vienna fell through for unknown reasons. Suddenly the statue had no where else to go.
Organizations pay at $3,000 per month stipend to host the statue, plus shipping costs. Finding funding for the exhibition isn’t always easy, especially during a time when many museums report losing federal funding.
An anonymous donor chipped in to help Mitchelville keep the statue onsite through Jan. 1, 2026, with Wofford’s studio also donating a portion.
The yearlong stay means that “Mitchellville is going to have her the longest she’s ever been anywhere,” the sculptor said.
Why can’t the statue stay for good?
The same NDA that bars Wofford from disclosing the location of the original statue also prohibits him from selling a copy, Wofford said.
He can continue renting out “The Journey to Freedom,” but it can never be installed somewhere permanently.
After the lull in requests in the spring, Wofford said requests from other venues have started to trickle in. If requests run dry for good, Wofford said she’ll likely return to the studio, where he and his wife Odyssey Wofford will still try to find ways to get the statue out in a public space.
“She’ll never go to a warehouse,” Wofford said. ”I think we’ll continue to just be creative with how we can spread the message.”
