Orleans municipalities asked to support Underground Railroad Byway
3 sites in Orleans listed on proposed Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway
The proposed Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway includes 22 of the 62 counties in New York State. The Underground Railroad Consortium of New York State is working to have the byway in place in 2026, a year before the 200th anniversary of the state abolishing slavery.
National Park Service photo: Harriet Tubman is the most famous conductor of the Underground Railroad.
Orleans County municipalities along Route 31 are being asked to adopt resolutions in support of establishing a 550-mile byway highlighting historical sites with connections to the Underground Railroad.
The Albion Village Board on Wednesday voted in support of the proposed Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway. It would stretch from New York City to Niagara Falls. The byway would be the longest in the state and would include 22 of the state’s 62 counties.
The Underground Railroad Consortium of New York State is working to create the byway, with a goal to have it in place by 2026, which is the year before the 200th anniversary of when the state abolished slavery.
The byway recognizes Harriet Tubman, who was born enslaved in Dorchester County, Maryland in 1822. She seized her freedom at age 27. In the next 10 years she led about 70 people to freedom, making 13 trips from Maryland to Philadelphia; St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada; and Auburn, New York. She was the most famous conductor on the Underground Railroad.
She settled in Auburn in central New York and stayed there until her death in 1913. Her home in 2017 became a National Historical Park under the National Park Service.
The byway will recognize many historical sites that were part of the Underground Railroad and the Freedom Seekers, who were African Americans who left enslavement. At the time they often were deemed “fugitives,” “runaways” or “escapees.”
The consortium is seeking resolutions of support from municipalities along the proposed route. The group will be asking the State Legislature to designate the byway.
This stretch of the proposed byway goes from Rochester to Lockport. The byway goes along Route 31 in Orleans County.
Dawn Borchert, Orleans County tourism director, said the byway would be a boost to the county, bringing in some visitors and highlighting the county’s role in Underground Railroad, which was a secret network of trails and homes. Many of the houses and sites that were part of the Underground Railroad are unknown.
But there is documentation about one house in Holley that helped Freedom Seekers on their journey.
File photo
A historical marker was erected in October 2020 at 35 South Main St. to highlight the home of Chauncey Robinson as a “Safe House.” Robinson was an Orleans County pioneer and an abolitionist. He sheltered escaped slaves at this site as part of the Underground Railroad.
Local historians have long suspected there were houses in Orleans County on the Underground Railroad. But there wasn’t documentation to back it up, until Clarendon Historian Melissa Ierlan found a letter from Robinson’s grandson.
In the lengthy letter, the grandson details visiting his grandfather, who took him up to the second floor of the back side of the house. The grandfather pulled back a curtain, and there was a group of escaped slaves on beds. More research showed that Robinson was in fact an outspoken abolitionist.
File photo
The consortium also lists the cemetery where Robinson is buried as a historical site in Orleans County on the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad New York Proposed Byway.
Robinson Cemetery is on Route 237 in Clarendon at the intersection of Glidden Road. The cemetery sign notes Chauncey Robinson was a veteran of the War of 1812 and a prominent abolitionist in the community.
The consortium also highlights a historical marker on Main Street in Medina. The Orleans Renaissance Group in April 2015 unveiled the marker in recognition of two speeches delivered in the community by Frederick Douglass, a leading abolitionist.
Borchert, the tourism director, said she is grateful for the efforts by Melissa Ierlan to highlight Robinson’s life and contributions to abolition, and also the ORG led by Chris Busch to have the marker erected in honor of Frederick Douglass.
“Kudos to the people who did those markers for us,” Borchert said. “Because that’s what put us on the trail.”
The Medina Village Board discussed the byway during its meeting on Monday. The board wanted some clarification about signage restrictions. The consortium said it would restrict new billboards or off-premises signs as part of the byway but existing ones could remain.
The byway does allow new signs that are directional and official signs, notices, sale or lease signs, and on-property signs, Borchert said, quoting information from the Department of Transportation.
Municipalities are being asked to send in their resolutions of support by April 1.
There are three sites listed in Orleans County as historical sites with ties to the Underground Railroad and Freedom Seekers.
