Cassopolis, MI December 2009
An interracial alliance of West Michigan residents, the Minority Coalition of Cass County, and the Michigan Humanities Council are collaborating to produce an outdoor mural depicting the Kentucky Raid, which took place in Cass County. The mural, entitled Sanctuary and Deliverance in Cass County, MI,
will be painted on a downtown Cassopolis building in the summer of 2010; located at 150 South Broadway, the north facing wall is jointly owned by Becky Maier of the Village Florist and Attorney Stephen Woods. Local residents and students will prepare the wall and execute the mural design under the direction of local artist, Ruth Andrews.
In 1847 a group of slave catchers from Kentucky arrived in Cass County and seized several African Americans living on land owned by Cass County Quakers. The Kentuckians were intent on taking the African Americans back to Kentucky, but an interracial group of Quakers, free African Americans and white farmers determined that the African Americans would not be returned South and turned out to protect the African Americans.
The mural collaboration, headed by Dr. Veta Tucker (Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI) and Dr. Alisea McLeod (of South Bend, IN) will deliver accurate information about the Kentucky Raid. Striving to encourage dialog, deliberation and reflection on relevant issues, the sponsors propose to offer positive values to Cass County residents and visitors in a variety of formats including an informational pamphlet and discussion guide, an internet blog; www.kentuckyraidmural.blogspot.com , and an on-line collection of personal reactions to the mural.
The mural project derives from the work of Sondra Mose-Ursery, former mayor of Vandalia, who spent over 25 years researching the underground railroad network and African American settlement in 19th century Cass County. The current alliance, including Beverly Young the current mayor of Vandalia, wants to amplify Mose-Ursery’s pioneering effort by creating a work of art that instills pride and solidarity in the residents of Cass County. The sponsors of the Sanctuary and Deliverance mural project (Chain Lake Missionary Baptist Church, the Museum at Southwestern Michigan College, Cassopolis Public Schools, Michigan Freedom Trail Commission, and the Underground Railroad Society of Cass County) will engage local residents and visitors in discussions of the relevance today of the choices faced by Cass County residents during the Kentucky Raid. For more information contact:Humanities Scholars: Dr Alisea McLeod ( ) and Dr, Veta Tucker ( 616-331-8099), Artist, Ruth Andrews ( ) Project Director, Marty Kaszar (269-445-2431), or Scott Hirko of the Michigan Humanities Council (517-372-0029). Sanctuary and Deliverance in Cass County, Mi is made possible in part by a grant from the Michigan Humanities Council, an affiliate f the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
The Kentucky Raid & Interracial Liberation
Dr. Debian Marty, of California State University, writes, On historical merits alone, the Kentucky Raid and its aftermath deserve renewed attention. Cass County’s practical abolitionism, based in an interracial alliance, has been called “America’s first successful interracial liberation movement”.
How did this practical abolitionism come about?
Who are the role models of today?
Where is our model for interracial leadership?
How did this practical abolitionism come about?
Who are the role models of today?
Where is our model for interracial leadership?
8th Annual International Festival
August 1847 slave raid ‘defines who we are’
Posted 1 month ago at 8:42 am, Dowagiac Daily News
"Kentucky at Sunrise" ends with Mark Jones as Charley Parker and Steve Kaszar as Quaker Stephen Bogue shaking hands while Michelle Anderson as Katie Tann smiles he approval that if Kentucky raiders returned, "We will let them know that under no circumstances will they be allowed to openly and freely capture our friends again." The Quakers kept their word. A few months later, when word of another raid reached Michigan, the Quakers acted quickly and let the intruding party know that under no circumstance would they sit idly by and let them attack their Negro neighbors. In 1850, bending to political pressure, the Union ratified the Fugitive Slave Law. Michigan was no longer a safe haven. (The Daily News/John Eby)
By JOHN EBYDowagiac Daily NewsCASSOPOLIS – “Kentucky at Sunrise,” a tableau telling the story of slave raids which occurred in Cassopolis and Vandalia in August 1847, was featured Sunday at Ross Beatty High School as the centerpiece of the seventh Minority Coalition of Cass County International Festival.
“I lived in Cass County for quite a while before I heard about the Kentucky raid,” said Ruth Andrews of the Human Services Coordinating Council and project director of the Minority Coalition, established in 1996. “But when I did, I thought, ‘This is the story of our community. This defines who we are as a community.’ This is a really special performance for us.”
Andrews organized the event with funding support from the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. Playwright Von Washington Sr., Fran Washington and Von Washington Jr. narrate stories of the Underground Railroad, which spirited more than 1,000 people of African descent from southern bondage, through Michigan and to freedom in Canada.
Characters include free blacks Samuel Strothers (Peter Anderson), Katie Tann (Michelle Anderson) and Turner Byrd (Michael Anderson); fugitives Mose (Norman Tubbs) and Mamie (Martha Bailey); and the Quakers, Erastus (Mike Smith) and Sarah Hussey (Sharon Tubbs) and Stephen Bogue (Steve Kaszar).
Drama centers not just on foiling the Kentucky slave catchers, but whether resorting to violence is justified.
The title refers to how long the raiders expect it to take to return home with their “property” in tow.
Washington, an Albion native, has directed Western Michigan University’s Multicultural Theatre program for the last 20 years.
“Kentucky at Sunrise” was originally performed in 1994 in Battle Creek, when the W.K. Kellogg Foundation commissioned Washington to write the play to celebrate the unveiling of an Underground Railroad statue in collaboration with the Historical Society of Battle Creek.
As the costumed characters strike poses, the narrators bring their individual stories to life through a narrative rich in facts, thanks to historian Buddy Hannah. Cast members also include: Brendon McCullin as Howell, attorney for the fugitives; Karl Crisler, Turner, attorney for the Kentuckians; Diane Bailey, Anna Byrd; Mark Jones, Charlie Parker and James; Shaun Notten, Kentucky Raider No. 2; and Hope Anderson, Patty.
Ruth Crawley directed a choir of Jonna Bacon, Leozie Broadnax, Benise Bufkin, Rayvon Bufkin, Joanne Cogdell, Sarah Davis, Liz Gilliam, Mark Jones, Patricia Jones, Robbie Lawson, Georgia McNeary, Maxine McNary, Henrietta Stewart, Dora Strong, Sharon Tubbs and Georgia Yarbrough.
The technical crew consisted of Tom Rea and Debbie Hackworth, with Jean Schultz, Kadie Ford, Connie Bailey, Michael Bailey and Manuel Bailey responsible for costumes and props.
Freed blacks and abolitionist whites who were often of the Quaker religion orchestrated the illegal operation of helping free slaves along the escape system that crossed several state lines – and was often called the Quaker Line. In Cass County, the route merged with one coming from Illinois and became known as the Michigan Central Line. This line began near Vandalia and went through Schoolcraft and Battle Creek.Other small towns and villages were included along a path which led to Detroit and, ultimately Canada and freedom.
In the raid of August 1847, the Quakers, free blacks and townspeople collaborated to prevent 13 Kentuckians from returning to Bourbon County with nine blacks who fled that state on the Underground Railroad.
Zachariah Shugart and his companions brought the fugitives to Battle Creek.
Erastus Hussey and his wife, Sarah, the Battle Creek “stationmasters,” had but two hours notice to prepare for 45 fugitives. With the help of townspeople, they were fed and bedded down for the night. The families of William Casey, Perry Sanford, Joseph Skipworth and Thomas Henderson stayed in Battle Creek.
Eventually, the potentially violent confrontation in Cass County was resolved non-violently and ended happily for the fugitives – many of whom escaped to Canada.Several other blacks remained in Cass County, where their descendants live to this day alongside the Quakers’ descendants.
Many believe the Kentucky raid and the escape of valuable slaves from the South on the Quaker Line played a part in the creation of fugitive slave laws and eventually led to the Civil War in 1861.
Posted 1 month ago at 8:42 am, Dowagiac Daily News
"Kentucky at Sunrise" ends with Mark Jones as Charley Parker and Steve Kaszar as Quaker Stephen Bogue shaking hands while Michelle Anderson as Katie Tann smiles he approval that if Kentucky raiders returned, "We will let them know that under no circumstances will they be allowed to openly and freely capture our friends again." The Quakers kept their word. A few months later, when word of another raid reached Michigan, the Quakers acted quickly and let the intruding party know that under no circumstance would they sit idly by and let them attack their Negro neighbors. In 1850, bending to political pressure, the Union ratified the Fugitive Slave Law. Michigan was no longer a safe haven. (The Daily News/John Eby)
By JOHN EBYDowagiac Daily NewsCASSOPOLIS – “Kentucky at Sunrise,” a tableau telling the story of slave raids which occurred in Cassopolis and Vandalia in August 1847, was featured Sunday at Ross Beatty High School as the centerpiece of the seventh Minority Coalition of Cass County International Festival.
“I lived in Cass County for quite a while before I heard about the Kentucky raid,” said Ruth Andrews of the Human Services Coordinating Council and project director of the Minority Coalition, established in 1996. “But when I did, I thought, ‘This is the story of our community. This defines who we are as a community.’ This is a really special performance for us.”
Andrews organized the event with funding support from the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. Playwright Von Washington Sr., Fran Washington and Von Washington Jr. narrate stories of the Underground Railroad, which spirited more than 1,000 people of African descent from southern bondage, through Michigan and to freedom in Canada.
Characters include free blacks Samuel Strothers (Peter Anderson), Katie Tann (Michelle Anderson) and Turner Byrd (Michael Anderson); fugitives Mose (Norman Tubbs) and Mamie (Martha Bailey); and the Quakers, Erastus (Mike Smith) and Sarah Hussey (Sharon Tubbs) and Stephen Bogue (Steve Kaszar).
Drama centers not just on foiling the Kentucky slave catchers, but whether resorting to violence is justified.
The title refers to how long the raiders expect it to take to return home with their “property” in tow.
Washington, an Albion native, has directed Western Michigan University’s Multicultural Theatre program for the last 20 years.
“Kentucky at Sunrise” was originally performed in 1994 in Battle Creek, when the W.K. Kellogg Foundation commissioned Washington to write the play to celebrate the unveiling of an Underground Railroad statue in collaboration with the Historical Society of Battle Creek.
As the costumed characters strike poses, the narrators bring their individual stories to life through a narrative rich in facts, thanks to historian Buddy Hannah. Cast members also include: Brendon McCullin as Howell, attorney for the fugitives; Karl Crisler, Turner, attorney for the Kentuckians; Diane Bailey, Anna Byrd; Mark Jones, Charlie Parker and James; Shaun Notten, Kentucky Raider No. 2; and Hope Anderson, Patty.
Ruth Crawley directed a choir of Jonna Bacon, Leozie Broadnax, Benise Bufkin, Rayvon Bufkin, Joanne Cogdell, Sarah Davis, Liz Gilliam, Mark Jones, Patricia Jones, Robbie Lawson, Georgia McNeary, Maxine McNary, Henrietta Stewart, Dora Strong, Sharon Tubbs and Georgia Yarbrough.
The technical crew consisted of Tom Rea and Debbie Hackworth, with Jean Schultz, Kadie Ford, Connie Bailey, Michael Bailey and Manuel Bailey responsible for costumes and props.
Freed blacks and abolitionist whites who were often of the Quaker religion orchestrated the illegal operation of helping free slaves along the escape system that crossed several state lines – and was often called the Quaker Line. In Cass County, the route merged with one coming from Illinois and became known as the Michigan Central Line. This line began near Vandalia and went through Schoolcraft and Battle Creek.Other small towns and villages were included along a path which led to Detroit and, ultimately Canada and freedom.
In the raid of August 1847, the Quakers, free blacks and townspeople collaborated to prevent 13 Kentuckians from returning to Bourbon County with nine blacks who fled that state on the Underground Railroad.
Zachariah Shugart and his companions brought the fugitives to Battle Creek.
Erastus Hussey and his wife, Sarah, the Battle Creek “stationmasters,” had but two hours notice to prepare for 45 fugitives. With the help of townspeople, they were fed and bedded down for the night. The families of William Casey, Perry Sanford, Joseph Skipworth and Thomas Henderson stayed in Battle Creek.
Eventually, the potentially violent confrontation in Cass County was resolved non-violently and ended happily for the fugitives – many of whom escaped to Canada.Several other blacks remained in Cass County, where their descendants live to this day alongside the Quakers’ descendants.
Many believe the Kentucky raid and the escape of valuable slaves from the South on the Quaker Line played a part in the creation of fugitive slave laws and eventually led to the Civil War in 1861.
Bonine house purchased by newly-formed history group
Posted 5 hours, 27 minutes ago at 9:22 am, Dowagiac Daily News
VANDALIA – The public is invited to a meeting taking place at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, at Vandalia Village Hall.
At the meeting, a newly-formed organization, the Underground Railroad Society of Cass County Inc., (URSCC), is making a major announcement regarding the acquisition and preservation of the historic 1840s James E. Bonine residence and carriage house in Vandalia.
URSCC is presenting options for restoration and funding of the properties. The historical significance of the Bonine residence, named for the family who built the home, is that the Bonines, who first settled in Cass County in 1843, were ardent abolitionists. Like many of their neighbors, they played a significant role in the Underground Railroad movement that assisted fugitive slaves escaping from the South to Canada.
Politicians in Washington, D.C., often referred to Cass County as “that hot bed of abolitionism.”
The area surrounding Vandalia was unique for several reasons. First, it was the junction of two main Underground Railroad routes, the Illinois and Quaker lines. Also, it is the only known example of land being set aside for a settlement for fugitive slaves. “Ramp Town” and the surrounding township was well known for its large population of free blacks and fugitive slaves, numbering nearly 1,500 just before 1860.
Although originally heading for Canada in their escape from the South, many fugitive slaves felt they had reached a place of safety when they arrived at Ramp Town and, therefore, ended their journey there.
Many Underground Railroad sites have long since disappeared.The James E. Bonine residence and carriage house are the most visible reminders in Cass County – arguably southwest Michigan – of that pre-Civil War period.
The residents of this area of all races and creeds played a unique role in this great debate when America was struggling with its conscience over the question of slavery. They influenced the course of national history by promoting the abolition of slavery, the pursuit of personal liberty and the evolution of civil rights.
In addition to the family’s role in the Underground Railroad, the home is one of the best examples of American domestic architecture in southwestern Michigan and northern Indiana.
Due to decades of neglect, this historic site is at significant risk. Without the public’s immediate help, this historic property may be lost forever. The Underground Railroad Society of Cass County Inc., is seeking assistance and support to acquire, stabilize and preserve the structures so a learning center can be created.
The center, it is hoped, will become a focal point for educating about the role that the abolitionists and the African-American communities played in the Underground Railroad and, in turn, will become a significant cultural-tourism destination.
For information, call President Dave Bainbridge at (574) 235-9664, ext. 254, or Carol Bainbridge at (269) 683-4702.
Posted 5 hours, 27 minutes ago at 9:22 am, Dowagiac Daily News
VANDALIA – The public is invited to a meeting taking place at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, at Vandalia Village Hall.
At the meeting, a newly-formed organization, the Underground Railroad Society of Cass County Inc., (URSCC), is making a major announcement regarding the acquisition and preservation of the historic 1840s James E. Bonine residence and carriage house in Vandalia.
URSCC is presenting options for restoration and funding of the properties. The historical significance of the Bonine residence, named for the family who built the home, is that the Bonines, who first settled in Cass County in 1843, were ardent abolitionists. Like many of their neighbors, they played a significant role in the Underground Railroad movement that assisted fugitive slaves escaping from the South to Canada.
Politicians in Washington, D.C., often referred to Cass County as “that hot bed of abolitionism.”
The area surrounding Vandalia was unique for several reasons. First, it was the junction of two main Underground Railroad routes, the Illinois and Quaker lines. Also, it is the only known example of land being set aside for a settlement for fugitive slaves. “Ramp Town” and the surrounding township was well known for its large population of free blacks and fugitive slaves, numbering nearly 1,500 just before 1860.
Although originally heading for Canada in their escape from the South, many fugitive slaves felt they had reached a place of safety when they arrived at Ramp Town and, therefore, ended their journey there.
Many Underground Railroad sites have long since disappeared.The James E. Bonine residence and carriage house are the most visible reminders in Cass County – arguably southwest Michigan – of that pre-Civil War period.
The residents of this area of all races and creeds played a unique role in this great debate when America was struggling with its conscience over the question of slavery. They influenced the course of national history by promoting the abolition of slavery, the pursuit of personal liberty and the evolution of civil rights.
In addition to the family’s role in the Underground Railroad, the home is one of the best examples of American domestic architecture in southwestern Michigan and northern Indiana.
Due to decades of neglect, this historic site is at significant risk. Without the public’s immediate help, this historic property may be lost forever. The Underground Railroad Society of Cass County Inc., is seeking assistance and support to acquire, stabilize and preserve the structures so a learning center can be created.
The center, it is hoped, will become a focal point for educating about the role that the abolitionists and the African-American communities played in the Underground Railroad and, in turn, will become a significant cultural-tourism destination.
For information, call President Dave Bainbridge at (574) 235-9664, ext. 254, or Carol Bainbridge at (269) 683-4702.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
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