John King and King Family Cemetery

John King and King Family Cemetery. . , The Kings, a family of staunch Presbyterians, were active in the Underground Railroad. From 1838 to the end of the Civil War, here, at the John King Farm, a network of extended families operated an Underground Railroad Station. Following the ridges (now Ridge Road) through the Great Black Swamp, fugitive slaves were delivered from Henry County to the King Farm in Fulton County. The farm was located on the overland route from Ohio to Michigan that passed through the swamp to the Detroit River, Lake St. Clair, and then into Canada. , In 1848, John's brother, Reverend William King, brought fifteen enslaved people whom he had freed to live on the King homestead. They learned northern agricultural methods, received wages for the first time, and prepared for a life of freedom. The family risked severe penalties by instructing them to read and write along with the King children. This group was the nucleus of the Buxton Mission founded by Reverend King in Canada that became a destination for freedom seekers making a new life in a free country. , The family burial ground, established in 1838-1839, includes a memorial stone honoring William who is buried in Canada. Some headstones were removed when the road was widened, some graves are unmarked, and some inscriptions on grave markers are unreadable. Families who are known to be interred in the cemetery are: King, Bruce, Hampton, Harrison, Martin, and Shoemaker, , Ford Bevard Cauffiel . Phyllis Hobbs Cauffiel , Naomi R. Bayer Twining; Historian, Memorial Coordinator.