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Journey to Freedom: Illinois’ Underground Railroad Open House with Heather Feezor

March 6, 2025, 4 pm – 6 pm, Freeport Public Library

Join us for the opening reception of Journey to Freedom: Illinois’ Underground Railroad. This new museum-quality exhibit highlights the courageous stories of freedom seekers and the multi-racial conductors who assisted them on The Underground Railroad in Illinois. Looking for Lincoln Program Manager, Heather Feezor, will provide details on the years long journey it took to bring this historic exhibit to life.

Opening remarks and presentation begin at 5 pm.

Refreshments provided by the Freeport Public Library Foundation.

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Race to Freedom: Video and Discussion with Dr. Patricia Norman and Mr. Ed Finch

March 20, 2025, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm, Freeport Public Library

Join us for an enlightening evening as we screen the powerful film “Race to Freedom,” followed by a critical discussion session. This event aims to spark meaningful conversations and foster a deeper understanding of the themes and historical context presented in the film.

Discussion led by Dr. Patricia Norman and Dr. Ed Finch

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The Presumption of Freedom: The Illinois Supreme Court and the Fate of Slavery in the Prairie State with Samuel Wheeler

March 24, 2025, 6:00 pm, Freeport Public Library

Though Illinois entered the Union as a free state in 1818, slavery continued to exist within its borders for decades. Freedom seekers, abolitionists, and pro-slavery forces turned to the judicial system to determine the fate of slavery in Illinois. This talk will highlight several of the nearly two dozen slave cases that reached the Illinois Supreme Court and examine the Court’s role in ending slavery in the Prairie State.

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Songs of the Illinois Freedom Road with Chris Valillo

March 27, 2025, 6:30 pm, Freeport Public Library

Songs of the Illinois Freedom Road is the powerful new musical performance featuring the songs, stories, and struggles of the Illinois Underground Railroad.

The show features rare first-person accounts of freedom seekers who passed through Illinois. Highlighted stories include John and Mary Little, who traveled on foot 140 miles to Chicago, and George Burroughs, a black Canadian who worked on the Illinois Central Railroad where he helped smuggle escapees to freedom.

Vallillo extensively researched the subject using primary source documents such as the 1857 Slave Narratives of Canada and the WPA Slave Narratives as well as the most recent scholarship on the subject. Vallillo combines these powerful stories with eleven historic songs that were sung by the enslaved to inspire and share knowledge among themselves.