Charles Nalle

Nalle and another enslaved man, Jim Banks, made their escape from the plantation in October 1858 during an auction.

According to the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, he was arrested and slated to be sent back to slavery in Virginia.

As word got out, a large crowd gathered around the Mutual Building in Troy where he was being held.

[2][3][4] Nalle managed to escape across the Hudson River to West Troy (modern-day Watervliet) during a clash between authorities and the crowd which included Harriet Tubman,[5] but the authorities were waiting for him on the other side and once again arrested him.

Another clash occurred in West Troy, and during this time locals raised enough money for Nalle to be freed.