The Peru Gazette

The North Star Underground Railroad Museum opens for a 4^th season on May 3^rd. The museum exhibits portray compelling stories of freedom seekers (former slaves) who passed through Northeastern New York and the Champlain Valley, many of them going to Quebec and Ontario, Canada. Displays include a multimedia production of the story of John Thomas and his family. Thomas escaped from the cruelties of slavery in Maryland and settled on his own Adirondack mountain farm. Another exhibit shows how the debate over slavery divided many of our churches. A leg iron found hidden in a nearby Quaker home is the centerpiece in this room. A regional exhibit will identify safe-houses and illuminate the lives of men and women who represented every stage of the antislavery struggle – from petitions to war.

The Champlain Line of the Underground Railroad encompassed the Upper Hudson River, the Champlain Canal, and Lake Champlain. Freedom seekers (former slaves) who reached these waterways took steamboats, barges and canal boats as part of their northward journey. Stagecoach and railroad lines from New York City and New England provided land routes into the region. Lake Champlain was a Gateway to Freedom.

The museum also has a gift shop which contains an extensive selection of books and DVDs on the Underground Railroad in the Lake Champlain area. On opening day, May 3^rd, the first mini-bus tour of the Underground Railroad sites in Peru and Keeseville will leave the museum at 9:30 am. Reservations for the tour are recommended. Costs are $10 for adults and $5 for children.

The museum will be opened daily from 9 am to 4 pm from May 3^rd thru the end of October. Admission is free but donations are gratefully appreciated.

Contact: Jacqueline Madison, 834-5180

North Country Underground Railroad Historical Association

1131 Mace Chasm Rd.

Ausable Chasm, NY 12911