David Curtis Question is was this house part of the UGRR or is it just an urban legend? Because of its own secretive nature proving a house was part of the Underground Railroad is very difficult. For many years I have been trying to prove this house was part of the UG RR without success. The closest I have come is the following: According to an article in the February 25, 1999 edition of the Observer Newspaper; an owner of the house, while doing renovation work found a secret area in the basement that was definitely something that was not easy to see. In this area “they found some small artifacts, some old newspapers and there were other bits and pieces of things that led them to believe that this house may have been a stop on the Underground Railroad. The little cubby hole that they found would have been big enough for a couple of people to get in there and hide until they could get out again.” It should be remembered that many people had cellars and secret places and that does not mean they were part of the UGRR. Best estimates is the house was built around 1852. In 1858 the property was sold to Issacher Hughes whose mother Mary Pancoast was heavily involved with the Society of Friends. This religion, also known as Quakers were very much in favor of slaves being set free. Although it should be noted, not all Quakers were interested in helping free slaves. This resulted in Quakers forming other sects such as Evangelical and Hicksite meetings. I am not sure Issacher took up the Quaker religion as his son Hiram Hughes was a soldier in the Civil War having joined company C, 24th Michigan Infantry. He received a gunshot wound to the left hand at Fitzhughs Crossing near Fredericksburg, VA on 29 March 1863. Hiram owned this property in 1878. Still looking for more proof that this house was part of the UGRR. Other houses in the area were part of the UGRR. So it could or it may not be true.
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 22:16:08 +0000
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