African American History Month program at Andersonville

Date: February 13, 2012
Contact: Eric Leonard, 229 924-0343, ext. 201

Lincoln Home presenter portrays Underground Railroad conductor

ANDERSONVILLE, Georgia -Andersonville National Historic Site is proud to host its second annual African American History Month program at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 3, 2012 in the National Prisoner of War Museum auditorium.

Visiting park ranger Jason Boyd of Lincoln Home National Historic Site will portray Jameson Jenkins, an important figure in the history of the Underground Railroad. The city of Springfield, Illinois was an ideal route for an escape to freedom from the south during the 19th Century due to its geography and location to slave-holding states. According to a newspaper report, Jenkins was involved with an incident that occurred on January 17, 1850.Although he was initially deemed to have betrayed the freedom seekers, it is believed that he assisted nearly 20 former slaves northbound through Springfield and on to freedom.Jenkins risked his life, sacrificed his home and reputation, and delivered freedom to those who had been enslaved.

Please join us for this unique living history presentation. No admission will be charged and no reservations are required.

Andersonville National Historic Site is located 10 miles south of Oglethorpe, GA and 10 miles northeast of Americus, GA on Georgia Highway 49. The site features the National Prisoner of War Museum, Andersonville National Cemetery and the site of the historic Civil War prison, Camp Sumter. ­Andersonville National Historic Site is a unit of the National Park System and serves as a memorial to all American prisoners of war. Park grounds are open from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. with the museum opening at 9:00 a.m. Admission is free.

For more information on the park, call 229 924-0343, visit on the web at www.nps.gov/ande/, or find us on Facebook at facebook.com/AndersonvilleNPS

 

Resources:
News Release [63KB PDF file]