Lawrenceburg in Dearborn County, Indiana — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Elijah Anderson

Photographed By J. J. Prats

1. Elijah Anderson Marker

Inscription.
Elijah Anderson was an African-American blacksmith who lived and worked in Lawrenceburg from 1850 to 1854. He once told a friend that he had helped at least 1000 slaves escape to freedom in all sorts of weather.

Anderson left Lawrenceburg in 1854 in hopes of finding safety in Northern Ohio, but could not resist resuming his Underground Railroad activities. In 1859 he was arrested aboard a river boat in Kentucky and charged with “slave stealing.” He died several years later in a Kentucky prison.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Abolition & Underground RR • African Americans. A significant historical year for this entry is 1850.

Location. 39° 5.514′ N, 84° 50.792′ W. Marker is in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, in Dearborn County. Marker is on Walnut Street south of New Street, on the left when traveling south. It is at the turnaround at the end of Walnut Street across from the hotel, on the floodwall. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1802 Walnut St, Lawrenceburg IN 47025, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Captain Samuel C. Vance (here, next to this marker); Abraham Lincoln (a few steps from this marker); Vietnam War Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Lawrenceburgh (about 300 feet

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away, measured in a direct line); Hunt House Hotel (about 400 feet away); Lorey Block (about 400 feet away); McCullough Drug Company (about 400 feet away); 29 East High Street (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Lawrenceburg.

Also see . . . Elijah Anderson at Wikipedia. Excerpt:

In 1845, many of the established routes were compromised due to new abolitionist actors, and it became increasingly dangerous for enslaved people and conductors. John Simmons, a successful black abolitionist, was accused of having exposed the routes in exchange for money, but he emphatically denied this charge and sued his accusers.

The leadership of the Underground Railroad in Madison was targeted and fined large sums of money, leading many to flee the state, including De Baptiste, Lott, and Harris. Other conductors were shot and drowned by pro-slavery mobs. Because of this violence and the imposed fines, Elijah and Mary decided to move to Lawrenceburg, Indiana.

Once in Lawrenceburg, Anderson had determined that the established practice of bringing one, two, or three slaves at a time was quite ineffective. Instead, he believed, it would be much more productive to take larger
Photographed By J. J. Prats

2. Elijah Anderson and Captain Samuel C. Vance Markers
groups of twenty to forty fugitives through the routes. Anderson took many of these escaped slaves to Cleveland, Ohio, but Sandusky, Ohio, was favored because of its distance to Canada and its position near the islands of Lake Erie.

His blacksmithing skills are said to have helped him hammer code in messages between agents and escaped slaves.

(Submitted on September 24, 2022.)

Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, April 30, 2023

3. Elijah Anderson Marker

The featured marker is on the left wall.

Credits. This page was last revised on May 9, 2023. It was originally submitted on September 24, 2022, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 478 times since then and 166 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 24, 2022, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. 3. submitted on May 9, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.