Marietta in Washington County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

The Fight for Freedom
⎯⎯⎯
Marietta College Activism

Photographed by Bradley Owen, May 29, 2026

1. The Fight for Freedom / Marietta College Activism Marker

Inscription.

The Fight for Freedom, also, Marietta College Activism. . The Fight for Freedom. The home of John and Susan Eells once stood at this location, 508 Putnam Street, in Marietta. The family moved into the house in 1856 bringing with them a strong hostility to the institution of slavery. Marietta's proximity to the Ohio River, and slaveholding Virginia, made it a natural place for the Eells to continue their abolitionist work, becoming conductors on the Underground Railroad. One of their important allies was freedman George Harrison, whose Harmar home served as a safe house for Freedom Seekers heading north. He also provided a strong voice and aggressive civil rights leadership for the African American community in Washington County. The work of committed townspeople, like the Eells and Harrisons, helped Marietta emerge as a vital trunk line for the Underground Railroad and a focal point for an abolitionist movement that became prominent in Ohio., Marietta College Activism. The Eells found willing allies in many of the faculty and students from Marietta College. Since its founding in 1835, the campus had been a hotbed of abolitionist sentiment. Samuel Hall, valedictorian of the first graduating class of 1838, helped form the Washington County Anti-Slavery Society in 1836. These sentiments reached a crescendo in 1854 with the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act allowing for the expansion of slavery into the western territories. On July 4 of that year, the students passed a number of anti-Nebraska resolutions, flew an American flag upside down, and tolled a bell for 90 minutes over a somber campus. Their protest drew considerable attention in Ohio and across the nation. This zeal for justice later led George Harrison's son, Charles Sumner Harrison, to become the college's first African American graduate in 1876. For Marietta College, these early anti-slavery efforts established a standard of advocacy for future students to take up other issues aimed at extending the scope of civil and political rights for all marginalized people.

The Fight for Freedom
The home of John and Susan Eells once stood at this location, 508 Putnam Street, in Marietta. The family moved into the house in 1856 bringing with them a strong hostility to the institution of slavery. Marietta's proximity to the Ohio River, and slaveholding Virginia, made it a natural place for the Eells to continue their abolitionist work, becoming conductors on the Underground Railroad. One of their important allies was freedman George Harrison, whose Harmar home served as a safe house for Freedom Seekers heading north. He also provided a strong voice and aggressive civil rights leadership for the African American community in Washington County. The work of committed townspeople, like the Eells and Harrisons, helped Marietta emerge as a vital trunk line for the Underground Railroad and a focal point for an abolitionist movement that became prominent in Ohio.

Marietta College Activism
The Eells found willing allies in many of the faculty and students from Marietta College. Since its founding in 1835, the campus had been a hotbed of abolitionist sentiment. Samuel Hall, valedictorian of the first graduating class of 1838, helped form the Washington County Anti-Slavery Society in 1836. These sentiments reached a crescendo in 1854 with the

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passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act allowing for the expansion of slavery into the western territories. On July 4 of that year, the students passed a number of anti-Nebraska resolutions, flew an American flag upside down, and tolled a bell for 90 minutes over a somber campus. Their protest drew considerable attention in Ohio and across the nation. This zeal for justice later led George Harrison's son, Charles Sumner Harrison, to become the college's first African American graduate in 1876. For Marietta College, these early anti-slavery efforts established a standard of advocacy for future students to take up other issues aimed at extending the scope of civil and political rights for all marginalized people.

Erected 2022 by Marietta College Office of Diversity & Inclusion / Marietta College Legacy Library / Daniel and Renee Bailey'84 Gallagher.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Abolition & Underground RR • African Americans • Civil Rights • Education. A significant historical date for this entry is July 4, 1856.

Location. 39° 25.083′ N, 81° 27.004′ W. Marker is in Marietta, Ohio, in Washington County. It is at the intersection of Putnam Street and Foster Lane, on the right when traveling east on Putnam Street. Marker is located on the campus of Marietta

Photographed by Bradley Owen, May 29, 2026

2. The Fight for Freedom / Marietta College Activism Marker

College. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 507 Putnam Street, Marietta OH 45750, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Midwest,

in the Ohio River Valley,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Muskingum Academy / Marietta College (within shouting distance of this marker); Mills House (within shouting distance of this marker); The President’s Home of Marietta College (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Betsey Mills Club (about 600 feet away); Mound Cemetery (about 600 feet away); Mound Square (about 700 feet away); First Baptist Church (about 700 feet away); House of Seven Porches (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Marietta.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 6, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 6, 2026, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia. This page has been viewed 6 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 6, 2026, by Bradley Owen of Morgantown, West Virginia.

The Fight for Freedom⎯⎯⎯Marietta College Activism

The Fight for Freedom
⎯⎯⎯
Marietta College Activism