Follow good and evil on a slave's trail to freedom in Indiana

African Americans, escaping from slavery, weren’t the only ones following the unmarked routes, known as the Underground Railroad (UGRR). Slave owners and the often brutal men they hired to return their human property were also aware of the towns and people sheltering those trying to escape. This situation set up confrontations between good and evil.

Touring Underground Railroad Sites

So it was with the central Indiana town of Westfield, settled by abolitionist Quakers. When Singleton Vaughn and his group of slave hunters captured the Rhodes family who had settled near here after fleeing a farm in Missouri, Westfield residents rescued the family. Indiana Ghost Walks and Tours offers a Haunted Underground Railroad Walking Tour around historic downtown Westfield.

In the mid 1800s, Madison, a historic river port perched high above the Ohio River, was one of the largest cities in Indiana. It also had the largest number of free African Americans. Many resided just five blocks from the river, in the neighborhood of Georgetown, the perfect spot for the UGRR to thrive.