April 2001 online edition

Prior to that time, escaped slaves from the southern states followed informal routes to attempt to reach Canada and freedom. They were helped by many people along what is called "The Underground Railroad."

Three "stops" have been identified in Peekskill and Sisters In Support have conducted popular tours of the sites during the last three years. On December 18, 2000, 135 years after the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, the group held a celebration to announce the founding of The Museum of the Underground Railroad.

In front of 1112 Main Street, surrounded by a group of African drummers, Sister LaFern poured a libation to begin the ceremony, and called on all ancestors to join the supporters. "The museum must be created because we must know our history if we are going to know our destiny," LaFern said.

Waymond Brothers, La Fern's husband, who will be executive director of the new museum, explained that the group is asking the City of Peekskill to sell them the historical building for $1. In 1836, a Quaker named William Sands owned the large house and used it to hide escaped slaves during their passage north.

The city acquired the property a few years ago, through a tax lien. It has been used during the Underground Railroad tours, but is now locked and can no longer be entered. The windows of the house have been left open, to the concern of the group, because of the possibility of more rapid deterioration.

Just a few blocks away at 1218 Park Street, the A.M.E. Zion Church, which was built in the nineteenth century, features a small, cramped space behind a false panel near the pulpit which was used to hide the fugitives.

West of downtown Peekskill, near from the Beach Shopping Center, the Henry Ward Beecher estate, is the third identified site. The famous preacher allowed the slaves to blend with his servants and work outside the house. A tunnel to the house, which was used by the escapees, has been part of the tours.

Mr. Brothers explained Sisters-in-Support is currently preparing a business plan to present to the City Council. A petition is being circulated throughout Peekskill to gather support for the project. Mr. Brothers was confident funding will be available through grants to complete the Museum.

"This is an incredible opportunity to rejuvenate our Main Street and revitalize our city. The administration should move as fast as possible to make it happen," Mr. Brothers said. One observer commented that Peekskill is an appropriate site for The Museum of the Underground Railroad Museum. She noted that President Abraham Lincoln made his only stop in Westchester at the old depot on his railroad journey to take his oath of office in Washington. Plans are underway to restore the old depot building, a little north of the current railroad station.

President Lincoln signed his Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. It proclaimed that "all persons held as slaves within any State, or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free."

She also noted the State of New York Freedom Trail Commission is planning to design a web page with information about the Underground Railroad in New York State.

After the official announcement, a fund-raising event was held at Kathleen's Tea Room with the proceeds dedicated to getting the museum in operation as soon as possible.

Because of the secrecy necessary in conducting the Underground Railroad, authenticating the various "stations" is very difficult. However, several others have been established in Westchester.

The Foster Memorial African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, which was founded by freed slave Amanda Foster in 1860 at 90 Wildey Street, Tarrytown, is said to have been one of the stops.

In the Bronx, the villa of abolitionist Charles Van Doren, on what was then called the Boston Road (now Third Avenue) sheltered and fed all sorts of nocturnal visitors. No trace of the building remains today but there is mention of the family in the records of the local Dutch Reformed Church.

The Yorktown Historical Society web site suggests that a tunnel built during the Revolutionary War on the corner of Rt. 132 and Rt. 202, connecting a church with a house on the opposite side of the road, was used by the escaping slaves.

There are many stories of other sites, including one in Verplanck with a view of the Hudson River so that small boats could be directed as they were rowed across the water, and hopefully as many as possible will be researched and saved.

Interested supporters of the Museum of the Underground Railroad may contact Sisters In Support, The Fern Tree, 13 South Division Street, Peekskill, NY 10566, 914-736-7908; e-mail: brothers@bestweb.net.