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Hybrid: Onward to Chicago: Underground Railroad in Northern Illinois

Through the stories of specific freedom seekers, author Larry McClellan shares details about several Black slaves who made their way safely through Illinois with the assistance of activists in the Chicago area. McClellan shows how, despite its small Black community, Chicago emerged as a point of refuge. The 1848 completion of the I & M Canal and, later, the Chicago to Detroit train system created more opportunities for Black men, women, and children to escape slavery. From eluding authorities to confronting kidnapping bands working out of St. Louis and southern Illinois, these stories of valor are inherently personal.

Part of our Chicagoland: Read All About It series. 

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This program is not recorded. 

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