Bancroft House
Granville
Ashley Bancroft hosted the first Ohio Anti-Slavery Society meeting that ignited the “Granville Riot” of 1836. Though threatened by fellow villagers, Bancroft and her nephew continued to transport slaves in secret through the town hay wagon.
Hubbard House
Ashtabula
Also known as Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard or the Great Emporium, the Hubbard House is the only open Underground Railroad endpoint open to the public. The house was known to have held up to 39 escaping slaves at a time.
Freedom Stairway and the John Rankin House
Ripley
Escaping slaves faced 100 steps between their getaway boat on the Ohio River and the safety of the Rankin house on the hill. Legend has it that a woman who had walked these steps inspired the character Eliza in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin.
Mount Pleasant Historic District
Mt. Pleasant
In the early 1800s, the heavy Quaker populated town preached and practiced its abolitionist views with five Underground Railroad stations, a school for black children, two abolitionist newspapers and a Free Labor Store that refused to sell products produced by slaves.
Alex Curran-Cardarelli is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
Travel Tidbits
State travel statistics courtesy of TourismOhio
Planning trips?
- 44 percent f people traveling to Ohio plan their trip one month or less before their intended getaway
Here to play
- 23 percent f visitors come to Ohio for special events, the No. 1 reason people come to Ohio
Spending
- Ohio visitors spent $43 billion in 2016
- The average visitr spends $111 on a day trip and $360 when staying overnight
Friends and Family
- 43 percent f people making overnight trips to Ohio are visiting friends and family
Visitors
- 212 million visitors came to Ohio in 2016
Supporting Ohio
- 427,000 Ohio jobs are supported by the tourism industry
Staying where?
- 30 percent f people visiting Ohio stay in hotels, which is the No. 1 source of accommodations
Tell your friends
- 92 percent f overnight visitors would definitely or more than likely recommend Ohio as a destination to others