SHREWSBURY, Mass. - Carol Baker doesn't claim to be an expert historian, but presents her findings through five years of research into how her town may have been part of the famous network of safehouses helping escaped slaves find a way to safety and freedom.
The Shrewsbury church historian hosts talks titled, “The Underground Railroad in Shrewsbury and the North Precinct, Examining the Evidence”.
What You Need To Know
- Carol Baker has years of research which possibly connects Shrewsbury to the Underground Railroad titled “The Underground Railroad in Shrewsbury and the North Precinct, Examining the Evidence”
- There is no known record of Shrewsbury having safe houses, but Baker said rumors about the Underground Railroad and certain locations in town have circled for years
- Baker presented her research to to The Retired Men's Club of Greendale on Wednesday
- The project started as a group effort and led to Baker making more connections between historical places and people in Shrewsbury. She's since written a children's book and created a board game as interactive ways to present her findings
“I think I really wanted to put Shrewsbury on the map because you can find information about some of the towns around, but you can't find anything about Shrewsbury," Baker said.
For Baker, the journey started when she and other members of First Congregational Church were tasked with researching the Shrewsbury church’s history for its 300th anniversary.
“The first flicker that I got was from reading Joseph Sumner's memorials,” Baker said.
In journal entries from the church’s second minister, Rev. Joseph Sumner, Baker found multiple writings about picking up travelers; possibly alluding to helping runaway slaves.
“Why would he word things the way that he did? And why would he call the man and lady, brother and sister? Because he didn't know the name, maybe," Baker said. "And it just waved red flags that sort of supported the rumors that we've heard for years that nobody's been able to prove. And so, that was my idea was and I'm not an authority. I'm just going to tell you. What do you think of this evidence?”
Through further findings, Baker’s research weaves together stories of multiple locations in Shrewsbury and historic figures she dubs as “heroes” who are seemingly connected to other known Underground Railroad stops in the state.
“Leicester has a pastor by the name of Samuel May, and he had a safe house, and he was so active," Baker said. "He spent a ton of time in Boston. And when I looked at Francis Jackson's documentation in his book as treasurer, Samuel May's name is everywhere.”
Baker said her hope is for people to come to their own conclusions when looking at her evidence and seeing the possibility of Shrewsbury’s connection to the historic route to freedom.
“I'm not telling people what happened, I want them to make their decision," Baker said. "But what if they said, ‘Yeah, this is valid and this points a direction and let's get Shrewsbury on the map as a stop on the Underground Railroad.’ And if it doesn't happen, so what?
Other known stops on the Underground Railroad in central Massachusetts include Worcester and Uxbridge, as well as Northampton and many others across the state.
