Escape of Freedom Seekers Patrick and Abraham
Geistown, Cambria County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
In February 1837, two slaves, brothers Patrick and Abraham, escaped from a farm in Bath, Va. As they made their way to freedom, bounty hunters pursued them and they were wounded. Both black and white abolitionists assisted them on their way through Pennsylvania. They were aided here by William Slick, whose farm was a regular stop on the Underground Railroad. Although taken into custody in Johnstown, they escaped without trial or recapture.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
In February 1837, brothers Patrick and Abraham escaped enslavement on a farm in Bath, Virginia, and fled north toward freedom as bounty hunters pursued and wounded them. In Pennsylvania both Black and white abolitionists came to their aid, including William Slick, whose farm near here was a regular stop on the Underground Railroad. Though the brothers were seized in Johnstown, they slipped away without trial or recapture.
Why it matters
Their flight puts a human face on the Underground Railroad and the interracial resistance to slavery that stretched across Pennsylvania in the decades before the Civil War.
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Related people
- · Patrick
- · Abraham
- · William Slick
Related events
- · Underground Railroad
Themes & tags
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