West Nottingham Township in Chester County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Parker Kidnapping & Rescue

Photographed by Don Morfe, June 15, 2015

1. Parker Kidnapping & Rescue Marker

Inscription. Emboldened by the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law, Maryland slave catchers kidnapped Rachel and Elizabeth Parker from the Nottingham area in 1851. Rachel’s employer Joseph Miller was murdered in a failed attempt to rescue her from Baltimore. Public outrage led Pa. officials to seek the sisters’ release in a Md. civil court case that secured their freedom in 1853. The forcible enslavement of two young free black women galvanized antislavery sentiment.

Erected 2011 by Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Abolition & Underground RR • African Americans. In addition, it is included in the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1850.

Location. 39° 44.476′ N, 76° 3.929′ W. Marker is in Nottingham, Pennsylvania, in Chester County. It is in West Nottingham Township. It is on Fremont Road, on the left when traveling south. The marker is located at Fremont Cemetery and Union Methodist Church. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 321 Fremont Rd, Nottingham

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PA 19362, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Pennsylvania and in Greater Philadelphia.

It is also in the American Northeast

and in the Mid-Atlantic.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

New Netherland,

and one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: West Nottingham Academy (approx. 2.8 miles away in Maryland); Veterans Memorial (approx. 3 miles away in Maryland); American Legion Post 194 Veterans Memorial (approx. 3 miles away in Maryland); The Nottingham Lots (approx. 3.1 miles away in Maryland); Hopewell Historic District (approx. 3.7 miles away); Richards Oak (approx. 4 miles away in Maryland); Sheep (approx. 4.2 miles away in Maryland); Koi (approx. 4.2 miles away in Maryland).

Photographed by Don Morfe, June 15, 2015

2. Parker Kidnapping & Rescue Marker

Photographed by Don Morfe, June 15, 2015

3. Parker Kidnapping & Rescue Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on September 5, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 21, 2015, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 2,316 times since then and 99 times this year. Last updated on February 25, 2020, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on June 21, 2015, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.