- Jacob Clawa
- Jefferson Cradolph
- Catherine Paul Tolliver ,
- Madison Black ,
- Gabe Johnson,
- James Ditcher
- Phillip Lynch
Joe Logan
Others not POC who were Underground Operators in Adams County
- Sam Baldridge, Benjamin Blackstone, Edward Cannon, Seth Gales, Abraham
Hollingsworth, Nate Kirkpatrick, The McKinleys, Robert Ralston, Joesph Rothrock,
William Stroup, Rev. John Graham,George Kirker,Rev. Dyer Burgess, Peter
Wickersham, James Wilson, Moses and James Woods, John T. Wilson. These persons
were largely Presbyterian
Source:
The papers of Wilbert Seibert,Mysteries of the UndergroundRailroad By W. Seibert
Kelley, Stephen, Lore, Legends and Landmarks of Adams (County)
Kelley, Stephen, Landmarks of West Union
Many many crossing sites were found in this county. Most of the known activity was by members of the Presbyterian Church. Operators were:Cyrus Jiles, The Miles, Rathbone and Simpson Familes.
HIGHLAND COUNTY
Peter Dent
Quaker activity was strong in this county as was Presbyterian involvement.
Not far from the Eden Baptist Church, in Pike County, Ohio is the final resting place of several African American heroes and heroines. They were the original settlers of the county and many were conductors on the Underground Railroad.
Though four evergreen trees traditionally mark the site of the cemetery, it is very difficult to locate the burying ground. Man and time have greatly altered this place.
Entering a wooded area and using the evergreen trees as a marker, one must search carefully for something that is remotely familiar. A careful of scrutiny of the forest floor finally reveals the remains of a tombstone. The name on the stone is James Barnett, who died March 12 ,1865 aged 87 years. The Barnetts came to Pike County from Virginia in the 1820's and 1830's. Several Barnett families were conductors on the Underground Railroad that operated through this part of Pike County.
A more careful search of the leaf-covered ground yields still more bits and pieces of tombstones. One stone has the following inscription: Chana Huse (Hughes) wife of Stephen died 1849 about 100 years. Chana Huse was theGrandmother-in-law of Madison Hemings, who was the alleged son of Thomas Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemings. Heming's daughter, Julia is buried here as is in all probability Madison Hemings.
This was a place of burial for African Americans for nearly 100 years, from 1849 until 1941. Chana Huse was the first burial of record and Henry Williams, Jr. who died in the winter of 1941 was the last. They were the first settlers of the region. They built the community, they were parents, carpenters, coopers, blacksmiths, farmers, scholars, shoemakers, christian and good citizens.
Unless some restoration is done very quickly, this African American resting place; this last record of the lives of some heroes will be lost from human memory forever. Unfortunately, all over the nation, the resting places of countless African Americans are being lost and forgotten.
(written for Lest We Forget, published by Bennie McCrae, 1997.)
by Beverly J Gray
A tear slid down the cheek of William Garland as he sat in the back pew of the Union Baptist Church of the Pee Pee Hills, in Pebble Township, Pike County, Ohio. William, a runaway slave, reached the Pee Pee settlement some years prior and never failed to give thanks to God.
Thirteen African American families settled in this southern Ohio community in the early 1820's. The settlers, former slaves and freemen, were a multi-talented group of people. They brought a multitude of skills, talents and considerable wealth to the new community. They built a school, meeting hall and organized a church. At first the settlers worshipped in various homes, but in 1824 organzied into a congregation, most probably influenced by the Rev. David Nickens. Nickens organized another Baptist congregation in Chillicothe the same year (First Baptist Church). The date of the construction of the first log church is not clear, but seems to have been in the 40S. The land for the church was donated by Minor Muntz.
In addition to providing spiritual leadership, the church soon became the center of activity in the settlement. Through the church, families associated with people in other southern Ohio communities. The membership sent delegates to a Baptist convention in Brown County in 1847, and to a Baptist Association of Churches( probably Providence Association) in 1848. Delegates from Cincinnati, Columbus, Xenia, and Chillicothe were also in attendance at these meetings. These religious gatherings allowed the exchange of political and social ideas, as well as, spiritual guidance. The returning delegates brought to the Pee Pee families and to the church, news of other African American communities, including news of the Underground Road activities. (The UGRR was called the Underground Road prior to 1850)
From the very beginning, this church possessed an antislavery spirit. Item eight of the church by-laws reads as follows:
"No persons who hold the principles of slavery or practice it, shall have any part in this church,"
The James, Henry and David Barnett families, members of Union, were station masters on the Underground Railroad, as was another member Minor Muntz. Both families assisted fugitives like William Garland, to safety either to one of African American communities in southern Ohio, or on the trail to Canada.
Muntz and Barnett received runaways from stations in Piketon,( Pike County) and from the Ohio River town of Portsmouth. The Barnetts or Muntz then transported the fugitives to Bainbridge, in Paxton Township, Ross County or to the Stillguest Station near Frankfort, Ohio, in Union Township. From these stations other station masters took them to stops near Circleville and then to the Columbus stations. The goal was, of course, to reach Canada and freedom! These families and other members of Union Baptist Church continued this work until the Road ceased operations after the Civil War.
The church membership grew after the Civil War because of the migration north of scores of African American families to southern Ohio. The church name was changed in 1878 to the Eden Baptist Church and a new church building erected at a site about a mile northwest of the original location on the Cline's Chapel Road. The growing membership brought new ideas to the church, therefore, the church continued to be the center of community activities. Church festivals, fish fries, holiday programs and concerts, homecoming and basket dinner celebrations, picnics and socials, all enriched the lives of the membership and the community. Night classes taught at the church helped to educate those who needed it. Learned men, like Professor Heyward Rose, directed the choirs and taught the membership some semblance of formal music. Great orators spread the gospel and educated the membership as well. The church membership involved itself in many endeavors throughout the years, the UGRR was just one of them.
William Garland, Minor Muntz and the Barnett families, were major players in the operation of the Underground Railroad in southern Ohio. They remained members of the Eden Baptist Church until their deaths. The church still stands on the hill in Pike County, Ohio, as a testament to these and other unsung heroes.
(William Garland is an ancestor of the writer of this article and the Eden Baptist is her "home church")This article appreared in LEST WE FORGET magazine, published by Bennie McCrae, 1997