William Earle Williams

Artist Statement:

The Underground RailRoad Made Visible

Synopsis

Five Counties in Pennsylvania situated on the border between slave and free states constitute one of the most active areas of the Underground Railroad, possessing one of the largest inventories of buildings and structures used by this trackless railroad intact today.  New York, Indiana and Ohio have stations of equal importance because of their proximity to Canada and to slave holding states. Maryland and Kentucky were slave-holding states that supported significant abolitionist convictions.  Harriet Tubman and Reverend John Rankin found support for their Underground activities in these Border States.  Most station stops and escape routes go without official designation or recognition.  This lack of appreciation had led to the loss and destruction of many of these structures and landscapes.  Research and location of these places to freedom has become the starting point for my photographs.

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