Located outside on the East Plaza (Third Street)

The Ohio Department of Transportation and the Friends of Freedom Society co-sponsored this plaque to commemorate the history of the Underground Railroad and its place in Ohio history.

Underground Railroad Memorial
THE UNDERGROUND
RAILROAD

The Underground Railroad was neither underground nor a railroad, but a system of loosely connected safe havens where those escaping the brutal conditions of slavery were sheltered, fed, clothed, nursed, concealed, disguised, and instructed during their journey to freedom. Although this movement was one of America's greatest social, moral, and humanitarian endeavors, the details about it were often cloaked in secrecy to protect those involved from the retribution of civil law and slave-catchers.

Ohio's history has been permanently shaped by the thousands of runaway slaves passing through or finding permanent residence in this state.