Jefferson

We spent the day visiting local Ohio villages and Lake Erie.

Jefferson (pop 3500) is just a few miles down the road and is the county seat. It's claim to fame includes that it was a center of abolitionists in the early 1800's, it played a huge role in the underground railroad, it was the home of John Brown and he gave a fiery speech at the Congregational Church in town the night before he left to lead the raid on Harper's Ferry, and it is also the home of Benjamin Wade, who was a major player in forming the Republican Party and would have been president if the impeachment process against President Johnson would have been successful. Since it was Thursday, the historical museum was closed. However Vine Lipps (yes, a real name) was walking down the sidewalk in front of the museum and noticed that Barb and I were trying to get in. She stopped to talk. When I told her I was interested in the underground railroad homes, John Brown, etc., she responded, "Oh, I've got to get you in. I'll call Myra." It took a bit of negotiation but I finally convinced her that we didn't need to bother Myra. Vine, a retired teacher, probably in her 80's and suffering from emphysema, talked fondly of her village. We enjoyed it thoroughly. We rode our bikes around to visit the church, the railroad depot, and the courthouse area.

In the afternoon we traveled to Ashtabula. First we went to the Maritime Museum which was closed. However, Glen Beagle (I swear, I am not making these names up) saw us walking around and stopped us to talk. He, a volunteer, was working on painting the fence. He talked fondly of his home town and the history of the area. Again, we found a gem. He directed us to the Hubbard House which is near Lake Erie. It was the terminus of the underground railroad. The Hubbard's, a wealthy business family, were pivotal in arranging houses in the area to deliver the runaway slaves to the Hubbard house. Then in the middle of the night, slaves would be loaded into a boat on Lake Erie to Canada and freedom. All this was illegal but the Hubbards saw it as a moral enterprise. They were arrested at one point but were able to pay the $1,000 fine to avoid jail time.

Barb and I then visited to shore line areas on lake Erie. It was warm both on the beach and in the water.

The 22nd should find us in Niagara.