Allen County, Indiana Genealogy

Underground Railroad

The Underground Railroad: From Slavery to Freedom by Wilbur Siebert Publication date 1898 on Archive.org

The end of the Civil War brought the end of slavery as a federally-protected policy, and thus eliminated the need for...

Posted by Indiana Historical Bureau on Monday, November 4, 2024

Monday, November 4, 2024 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

The end of the Civil War brought the end of slavery as a federally-protected policy, and thus eliminated the need for fugitive slave laws. Their end brought a larger fulfillment of the Declaration of Independence’s commitment to the proposition that “all men are created equal.” Yet, the history of fugitive slaves often fell into tales of folklore and hyperbole.

The most recent Untold Indiana post looks at a primary source like newspapers to help dispel many of the myths and provide nuance to the controversial subject of human enslavement in the United States. These stories represent a small fraction of the larger narrative about American slavery.

Read it now: Freedom Seekers in Indiana: A Study in Newspaper

Underground Railroad in Indiana premiered March 18, 2021 by ARCH, Inc on YouTube
ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage) has been a leading force for preservation in Fort Wayne and Northeast Indiana since 1975 with monthly programs and more on their website: https://archfw.org/. Recordings of ARCH, Inc. programs are premiered on YouTube.

1. See our African-American People page and Slavery in Indiana section.
2. The only confirmed underground railroad house in Allen County is the 1840 ALEXANDER T. RANKIN HOUSE at 818 Lafayette Street discussed by ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage).
3. The Underground Railroad and the Antislavery Movement in Fort Wayne and Allen County, Indiana 182 page document by Angela M. Quinn ARCH ( Architecture and Community Heritage), Fort Wayne, Indiana 2001 at the National Park Service.
4. The Broun-Leslie house built before 1850 on 1.27 acres on the corner of East State Boulevard and Reed Road, formerly included a glass greenhouse built in 1948. The property is mentioned in history books about the Underground Railroad including a photo on page 155 in Jeanine Michna-Bales’s new book, “Through Darkness to Light,” published March 28, 2017 by Princeton Architectural Press available on Amazon.com. From Underground Railroad property vs. crony capitalism in City of Fort Wayne by Linda Leslie publilshed June 18, 2015 on Frost Illustrated now on the Internet Archive Wayback Machine.

5. 020717 Jeannie Regan Dinius, Indiana DNR, Speaks About Underground RR in Indiana posted February 13, 2017 by Kevin Murphy on YouTube
   Indiana Department of Natural Resources representative, Jeannie Regan-Dinius, proved a detailed account of Indiana's history regarding slavery and the Underground Railroad. Her presentation is especially rich in its emphasis of investigative methodology required to separate mythology from documentable fact, a tutorial that could serve well for any field of investigation.

6. “We actually have correspondents from Levi Coffin, which recommends to someone to go through Fort Wayne because at this time he believes this to be the safest route,” said Connie Haas Zuber, Executive Director of ARCH Incorporated. Copied from ‘We need to know where we came from’: Underground Railroad has ties to northeast Indiana, Jada Jones, October 23, 2023, CBS WANE-TV NewsChannel 15.
7. Page 455 Please receive and forward the same to George D. Baptist, Detroit, Michigan, by way of Camden and Fort Wayne; I consider that to be the safest route. from Reminiscences of Levi Coffin, the Reputed President of the Underground Railroad; Being a Brief History of the Labors of a Lifetime in Behalf of the Slave, with the Stories of Numerous Fugitives, Who Gained Their Freedom Through His Instrumentality, and Many Other Incidents: Electronic Edition. Coffin, Levi, 1798-1877
8. Underground Railroad Sites: Fort Wayne at Underground Railroad Sites in Indiana at Indiana Department of Natural Resources.
9. Levi Coffin: the “President of the Underground Railroad” at Rutherford B. Hayes Presidental Library & Museums.

10. October 28, 2023 post by Ray E. Boomhower on Facebook:

    “I thought it was always safe to do right. The Bible, in bidding us to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, said nothing about color, and I should try to follow out the teachings of that good book.”

    Levi Coffin, born on this day in 1798

    Levi Coffin and "The Grand Central Station of the Underground Railroad"

11. Underground Railroad section of Indiana Historical Bureau on IN.gov.
12. Underground Railroad at the Division of Historic Preservation & Archaeology section of Indiana Department of Natural Resources.
13. Underground Railroad: Indiana State Laws at the USDA Forest Service.
14. The Underground Railroad in Indiana Indiana: Crossroads of Freedom! Find out how Hoosiers played a role in the Underground Railroad in this article for grades 3-12 at Education National Geographic.org.
15. Underground Railroad in Indiana at Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.

16. Catharine Coffin, an antislavery activist who opened her Indiana home to help freedom-seekers on the Underground Railroad, has been honored with a new Forever stamp issued by the U.S. Postal Service.

    Posted by The Journal Gazette on Thursday, March 21, 2024

    Thursday, March 21, 2024 post by The Journal Gazette on Facebook:

    Catharine Coffin, an antislavery activist who opened her Indiana home to help freedom-seekers on the Underground Railroad, has been honored with a new Forever stamp issued by the U.S. Postal Service.

    Antislavery activist from Indiana honored with Forever Stamp

17. Unveiling Catharine Coffin's Stamp

    Tonight we're proud to unveil the new Underground Railroad Forever stamp series featuring Catharine Coffin! One of 10 stamps in the series from the US Postal Service, it honors the work Catharine did to provide shelter, food and guidance for freedom-seekers. We have a limited amount of stamps available for purchase in our gift shop. Stop by and get yours!

    Posted by Levi and Catharine Coffin House State Historic Site on Thursday, March 21, 2024

    Thursday, March 21, 2024 post by the Levi and Catharine Coffin House State Historic Site on Facebook:

    Tonight we're proud to unveil the new Underground Railroad Forever stamp series featuring Catharine Coffin! One of 10 stamps in the series from the US Postal Service, it honors the work Catharine did to provide shelter, food and guidance for freedom-seekers.

    We have a limited amount of stamps available for purchase in our gift shop. Stop by and get yours!