Underground Railroad

Lawrence River out our back window

My favorite route back to Indiana is US Hwy 52 along the north side of the Ohio River. It's mostly a winding two lane road past historic homes and barns with the river in view. This year we are in Kentucky on the southern side along Route 8. The camper is backed up within 10 feet of an Ohio River tributary, the Lawrence and just outside Maysville KY. 

Quaker Levi Coffin, a member of New Garden Friends Meeting in Greensboro NC, was often called the President of the Underground Railroad. As southern Quakers became persecuted for aiding runaway slaves, Coffin moved to a town in Indiana just across the Ohio River to continue his work. I've heard a lot about Coffin as I attend Quaker meeting not far from New Garden. Ruthie attends there now, too, and we have wanted to visit the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati since we became aware of it. What we have discovered is a much richer, broader history in towns along the river about an hour from the Cincinnati museum.

Rankin Home on Liberty Hill

We started in the town of Ripley OH just 3 miles from our campsite. The man who created the town
was an abolitionist and when he was able to build a church, Rev. John Rankin was hired to be the Presbyterian minister in 1829. We visited Rankin's home atop a steep hill on the river, named Liberty Hill as a direction for runaway slaves. Rankin, his wife, and their 13 children were all actively engaged in aiding escaped slaves and encouraging abolitionism. When Rankin met Harriett Beecher Stowe, he shared a true story of an escaping slave that inspired Stowe's famous book, Uncle Tom's Cabin. Their outspoken commitment put the Rankin family in great danger so that Rankin and his sons had to be constantly armed. The term Underground Railroad was born when a slave hunter chased an escaped slave across the river and into a manufacturing site in the town of Ripley. The hunter demanded to know from the local workers where the slave had gone. The townsmen,

Beautiful restoration of the Rankin home

 all supporters of Rankin, said they hadn't seen any slave. It was the slave hunter who suggested an underground railroad must have carried him away and used the term when he placed notices around town looking for his prey. 

Restored Rankin kitchen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

John P. Parker home

Another famous Ripley resident was John P. Parker, who managed to earn his freedom from slavery and
built a successful iron foundry along with receiving patents for a variety of inventions. He spent 15 years working with Rankin and others to help slaves to freedom. His house is a National Historic Landmark.

 

 

Waterfront Ripley

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maysville KY also has an Underground Railroad Museum, the Bierbower Home, on a river hillside near downtown. The home once served as a safe house where slaves were hidden under floorboards until they could be carried across the Ohio River. Due to COVID, this museum was closed but we enjoyed walking the downtown historic district full of period architecture and engaging shops. 

Maysville Historic District

Maysville side street

Downtown Cincinnati

The next day, we headed to Cincinnati to the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, a museum that opened in 2007. Cincinnati is full of both wonderful contemporary architecture and equally wonderful historic structures. The Ohio River is covered with both modern and historic bridges as well, including the Roebling Bridge that, at 1075', was the largest bridge in the world when it was built in 1867. Trusses have been added and apparently it is undergoing additional repair, but it is a magnificent sight. The picture was taken from the third floor of the museum.

 I've driven several times in Cincy in the past few years and each time I find it a rough experience. The roads are not on a grid, the streets are poorly marked if at all, and drivers are aggressive. And finding parking is hateful. Twice I asked Google Maps for "parking near me". It would show me a parking garage across a divided street that would require me to drive around the neighborhood to be on the entrance side. As I'd drive past across

Roebling Bridge

the divide to start the trek, Google would presume I was there and erase the map. We did luck out and find a curbside spot we could buy for 2 hours and headed into the museum.

The museum is overwhelming. It is full of artwork, artifacts, and posters brimming with documentary information, just simply too much to take it all in. When you choose to visit, plan on making several short, intense stays and take your time--to read, to think, to view. When I look back on my formal education and how much about slavery was overlooked or disguised, it is clear that this museum's job is to correctly redocument what has been, for me and most Americans, a lifetime of misinformation. 

The museum gift shop did have an extensive collection of topic related books, including a nice selection for children. They also had African art, including clothing, bags and jewelry. I am bringing home a book about the Underground Railroad efforts along the Ohio River where we've visited and look forward to re-exploring the places we've seen.

National Underground Freedom Center

One of the larger displays was a Slave Pen, built in 1800 and taken from a farm near where we are camped. It has been fully restored. A Kentucky slave trader, Capt. John W. Anderson, built the log building to hold slaves while he prepared to move them further south for sale. Africans would be packed inside and chained to bolts through overhead beams. The conditions repeated the dark holds of the slave ships that had brought them over. Sadly, they could see across the river to land where they could have been free. There was a display of a KKK robe, some of which were designed after monsters to terrify former slaves. 

Slave Pen

 

An entire exhibit was dedicated to modern slavery and human trafficking. It included descriptions of how and where these abuses occur along with lists of organizations and businesses that are currently fighting this horrible scourge. We left the museum, exhausted, troubled by what we had learned and motivated to learn more and support the organizations fighting current assaults.

 

 

Slave Pen inside

Iron bolt for chains

 

Clan robe

On a patio off the third floor, the museum had a memorial flame that will burn until the last slave is freed.

Human Trafficking exhibit

Memorial Flame

After leaving the museum, we decided to hit two places of interest to me for craft supplies. Silk Road Textiles,  just north of Cincinnati, describes itself as "a premier retailer of fine fabrics and yarn. We bring together ethically produced textiles and fibers from around the world and offer them to the local and international community of fiber artists. We support women owned businesses and companies that value the artisans and creators of the products being offered." The collection of yarns, fabrics and hand made gifts was fabulous and the prices were far better than I expected. I am now on their mailing list...

From there we headed to the J and H Clasgens woolen mill. I'd read about it on Google and it was on the way back to the campground. The mill was started in 1862 and remained in the family, run by descendants of the two brothers who founded it. They made several

Clasgens Woolen Mill

sizes of 100% wool yarn and their website showed a nice selection of available colors. Sadly, when we arrived at the mill, the building was for sale and no further information was available on the web. 

So the day has been challenging and full, as has been this entire trip. Our last stop is Brown County State Park in Indiana for the fiberglass RV rally we've attended before. Then home to clean up and regroup for adventures ahead.

If you are visiting in this area, the Lawrence River Campground where we are staying has been pleasant as well. We are right on the river and near where we can hear trains at night. Something we haven't seen before is a campground with its own bar. Were we staying longer, we might check it out.

Sunset train bridge