Today we toured the Rankin House in Ripley, OH. A town right across the Ohio River from Kentucky.
Back in the 1800s, a family named the Rankins lived in this small house on a hilltop. They were abolitionists and acted as a stop on the underground railroad guiding slaves from Kentucky into free Ohio. Slaves were told to look for a house on a hill with a light in the window. It was their guiding light to freedom.
Over the course of time, they helped some 2,000 slaves escape the south and make their way north to their freedom. Pretty awesome people who risked their own freedom for others.
Thank you for the information and the image to go with it. It's good to know that there were people that back then, that could see the errors being committed, and were brave enough to do something about it, very brave indeed. Fav
@samzee Coolest thing of the day was that the young lady who was our tour guide, shared that her great great something grandfather worked for the Rankins as a paid servant. People wanted to work with them to be able to help their cause. They had 11+ kids and all the kids helped, too!
Cool! I remember reading about them when we lived in Cincy. Did not get to the house though. Right now I'm helping a woman with her genealogy and her great great grandpa was a station master in Connecticut. He's mentioned in books in conjunction with another man and we can't figure out the connection, if that second man is his father, brother or what. We are really stuck there. Hope some light gets shed for us!
