Spoon River Valley site
Dublin Core
Title
Spoon River Valley site
Subject
Underground railroad tourism and heritage
Description
The road sign in this image was formerly posted in or near Bernadotte, Fulton County. It directed tourists to visit the site of the home of Francis Overton, and his daughter, Harriet Overton, both WIUGRR operators. Francis built a cabin near Bernadotte in 1835, where he harbored fugitive slaves and from which he accompanied them along a ravine to another safe space, the Stone Castle. Reflecting both local sentiment, and the fact that some operators' illicit complicity with fugitive slaves was an open secret, an anti-black mob attacked Francis one day in town. Harriet mounted a horse, and, armed with a lead bar, charged the mob, obtaining her father's release.
Creator
Glennette Tilley Turner
Source
Underground Railroad in Illinois
Publisher
Newman Educational Publishing
Date
2001
Contributor
Illinois Department of Local Government Affairs Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission, Intergovernmental Cooperation in Illinois, 1976
Rights
Glennette Tilley Turner
Format
jpeg photograph
Language
English
Type
image
Identifier
WIUGRR #17
Coverage
Illinois, United States
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
photograph
Files
Citation
Glennette Tilley Turner, “Spoon River Valley site,” Traces of Western Illinois' Underground Railroad, accessed May 16, 2024, https://timroberts.org/wiugrr/items/show/17.