The Freedom Path

The Freedom Path. . The Underground Railroad was the path to freedom for slaves escaping bondage in the American South. Its conductors were men and women, both black and white, who aided freedom seekers on the road to liberty. For many freedom seekers, Madison was the first stop north of the Ohio River. From here they moved along a series of trails leading north through the hills of Southern Indiana. For even though Madison was a northern city, it was not safe for escaping slaves or those risking all to help them. Still, many African-Americans settled here in a neighborhood known as Georgetown, to the east of where you stand now., In 1820 Madison had the third largest population of blacks in the state of Indiana, and as the population swelled through the 1830s and 1840s, shops, churches and homes lined Walnut Street in Georgetown. Underground Railroad conductors living in the area included African Americans Elijah Anderson, William J. Anderson, and George DeBaptiste. Chapman Harris lived just outside of town in Eagle Hollow., Elijah ran a blacksmith shop at the corner of Walnut and Third Streets. His home is located at 626 Walnut Street. Elijah Anderson shuttled many slaves across the river until he was arrested in Kentucky and died mysteriously in jail in 1861. William J. Anderson built the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church at 309 East Fifth Street. The building is now owned by Historic Madison, Inc. and has been rehabilitated as a museum dedicated to the story of the Underground Railroad in Madison., Near Madison in the town of Lancaster is Historic Eleutherian College, founded in 1848 by anti-slavery advocates for the education of all races and genders. The College's main building survives today, and is a National Historic Landmark open to the public. Nearby, the Lyman Hoyt house and visitor center are open as part of the Eleutherian College complex., By the Way: Georgetown and Eleutherian College are officially designated as Underground Railroad sites by the “Network to Freedom” program of the National Park Service., Captions: , . (Bottom, center) This portion of an 1887 birds eye view map of Madison shows the area known as Georgetown. , . (Bottom, right) [unreadable]