Sheffield Lake in Lorain County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Burrell Homestead
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 18, 2013
1. Burrell Homestead Marker
Inscription.
Burrell Homestead. . In June 1815, Captain Jabez Burrell settled this land after coming from Sheffield, Massachusetts. Five years later the brick homestead was constructed. Five generations of the Burrell family occupied the homestead continuously from 1820 to January 2001 when Eleanor B. Burrell passed away. In 1836, the racially integrated Sheffield Manual Labor Institute, a branch of Oberlin College, was established at the Burrell Homestead, but the Institute closed the next year because the Ohio Legislature refused to grant its charter unless it excluded black students. From 1837 until the start of the Civil War, the homestead was a major stop on the Underground Railroad. Runaway slaves were hidden in the grain barn until Robbins Burrell could arrange for captains in Lorain, such as Aaron Root, to hide them on vessels for the trip across Lake Erie to freedom in Canada.
In June 1815, Captain Jabez Burrell settled this land after coming from Sheffield, Massachusetts. Five years later the brick homestead was constructed. Five generations of the Burrell family occupied the homestead continuously from 1820 to January 2001 when Eleanor B. Burrell passed away. In 1836, the racially integrated Sheffield Manual Labor Institute, a branch of Oberlin College, was established at the Burrell Homestead, but the Institute closed the next year because the Ohio Legislature refused to grant its charter unless it excluded black students. From 1837 until the start of the Civil War, the homestead was a major stop on the Underground Railroad. Runaway slaves were hidden in the grain barn until Robbins Burrell could arrange for captains in Lorain, such as Aaron Root, to hide them on vessels for the trip across Lake Erie to freedom in Canada.
Erected 2003 by The Ohio Bicentennial Commission-The P&G Fund-The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 15-47.)
W. Marker is in Sheffield Lake, Ohio, in Lorain County. Marker is on East River Road south of Colorado Avenue (Ohio Route 611), on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Sheffield Lake OH 44054, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on August 10, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 1,179 times since then and 151 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on August 10, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. • Al Wolf was the editor who published this page.
