Born into slavery on the plantation of John D. Brown in Henrico County, Virginia, Caroline Brown came to Columbus with her son Edward and daugther Constantia in the 1850s. Edward built this house for his mother around 1854.
Johann Christian Heyl was the first German in Columbus. He served on City Council for 14 years, was County Treasurer for 8 years, an associate judge in the Court of Common Pleas for 14 years, was appointed to the first public school board, and was…
Rev. Jason Bull conducted services in the Clinton Chapel (Methodist Episcopal Church) at this site while his daughter took food and water to runaways hidden in an interior room.
Henry and Dolly Turk were the first African-American family to live in Worthington beginning in 1856. They paid $250 for two lots on the northeast corner of Evening and New England. Henry had purchased Dolly's freedom from her master in Virginia in…
Marker Text: When Fernando Cortez and Sophia Stone Kelton built this house in 1852, it was the last residence on East Town Street and was surrounded by pastureland. Ardent abolitionists, the Keltons were members of the local antislavery society.…
In 1852 Alexander Livingston purchased seventy acres of land, where he established a seed garden business, and eventually improved the tomato. Livingston's farm provided hiding for escaped slaves. His employee, Benjamin Patterson, drove Livingston’s…
Known as the white house on the bend of the creek, this home was built in 1841. The home includes a basement tunnel that has collapsed but likely led to nearby Alum Creek. It also has has a hidden crawl space, large enough to hold three people, off…
This home was built between 1837-1840 at the northwest corner of High and North Street in Worthington. The house was moved to its present location, 72 E. North Street, in 1932. While on High Street, the property was owned by Ansel Mattoon, who…
This home was built by Robert Neil in 1856 and later owned by his brother Henry Neil. Ambrose and Catherine Juris were servants for the Neil family for many years. The cellar contains a small enclosed room that may have been used to hide runaway…
Ozem Gardner came to Ohio from Otsego County, New York in 1817. An active member of the Worthington Anti-Slavery Society, he operated an underground railroad station from his home on Flint Road. He traveled the area selling fresh vegetables with…
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James P. Poindexter Leads the Anti-Slavery Baptist Church
James Preston Poindexter (1819-1907) became pastor of Second Baptist Church in 1858 after Second Baptist and the Anti-Slavery church merged. He joined the Underground Railroad…
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Second Baptist Church - Columbus' Oldest Black Baptist Church, 1836
Second Baptist Church cordially received its independence as a mission church from the First Baptist Church on January 7, 1836. Rev. Ezekiel Fields was…