FRANKLIN COUNTY- The Underground Railroad has become as engrained in American lore as the Revolutionary War and Western Expansion, only for much darker reasons. The path to freedom was not as glamourous as it may sound. The conditions were hard, the path was treacherous and the fear of getting caught was almost as great to the approximately 500,000 slaves who braved the trail as was the thought of finding freedom.
Why was the escape route from the slave holding Southern Untied States to the North called an “underground railroad?” The name itself conjures up dark tunnels lit by lanterns in dank and wet earth, but that was not the case.
Abolitionist John Rankin (1793-1886), described it best when he stated, “it was so called because they who took passage on it disappeared from public view as really as if they had gone into the ground. After the fugitive slaves entered a depot on that road no trace of them could be found. They were secretly passed from one depot to another until they arrived at a destination where they were able to remain free.”
The route to the North made good use of the land and water. Trails in the woods and rivers and canals made up the path that was always traveled at night under the mask of darkness. During the day, the men, women and children would hide in various locations such as cellars, barns and secret rooms hidden within houses and places of business by abolitionists and sympathizers.
While there was no formal “body” that governed or planned the escapes, each territory would have “agents” who would help map out the route and set up the hiding spots. The slaves would then be led by a guide, one of the most famous being Harriet Tubman, who herself made the venture to the South several times to bring those who sought freedom to the safety of the North.
Due to its close proximity to the Mason Dixon line, Franklin County was a pivotal point for those seeking freedom from oppression and those who risked everything to help them.
When discussing the Underground Railroad in Franklin County, author and historian Charles Blockson (1923-2023) had this to say, “it was a hazardous area of 100 miles which contained the most secretive, tangled lines of the Underground Railroad.”
The town of Mercersburg, had one of the most prolific routes in Central Pennsylvania which used the old Warm Springs Indian Trail that would lead to Chambersburg via what is now Route 30. From there the guides would take the escaped slaves to Shippensburg on a route that is now Route 11. Imagine that, the roads that many of Franklin County residents travel today were once an important section of trail leading to New York.
Two of the hideaway stops along the route in Chambersburg were the Old Jail which hid the travelers in secret rooms in the basement of the building, and the other place was the Mary Ritner Boarding House where abolitionist John Brown stayed in 1859 and used as a staging area as he prepared his assault on Harper’s Ferry.
The Mercersburg/Chambersburg route was not the only trail blazing through Franklin County. Guides would lead their groups along the foot of South Mountain through Rouzerville seeking sanctuary in the heavy wooded areas that the mountains provided. The trail then led to the farm of Hiram Wertz in Quincy Township and then to Caledonia Iron Works which was run by Thaddeus Stevens. There the freed men and women would build a community to raise their families and build a new life out of bondage.
Franklin County is just one chapter in the history of the Underground Railroad, but a significant one to be sure. As a center point between the North and South, the safe houses, trails and traveling routes were under the looking glass by slavery supporters. One misstep could jeopardize the entire operation and risk the lives and welfare of many men, women and children.
Time has shown us that the determination and resolve of the slaves looking to be free and the abolitionists who risked so much to support them was not in vain, and the legend of the Underground Railroad is as important today as it was over 160 years ago.
