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(calm music)

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<v Narrator>In the decades preceding</v>

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the American Civil War, the whaling port of New Bedford,

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Massachusetts became a significant stop

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on The Underground Railroad, the network of safe havens

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used by fugitive slaves escaping the south.

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New Bedford became an important destination

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for many escaped slaves because of its active port,

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wide availability of work, and its comparatively large

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population of people of color.

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An area now dubbed Abolition Row,

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was home to a large concentration of active abolitionists.

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This is the story of 21 Seventh Street,

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owned by Nathan and Mary Johnson.

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Nathan and Mary, who went by the name Polly,

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were well known for their work in the anti-slavery movement.

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They were free people, a middle class

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African American family who owned

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four properties in the area.

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<v ->My name is Lee Blake, I am the president</v>

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of the New Bedford Historical Society.

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So this house, the Nathan and Polly Johnson house,

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is unique, it is an Underground Railroad sight.

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It is also the first free home

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of Frederick Douglass and Anna Douglass.

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But it's also unique because this was a home

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that African Americans owned, African Americans

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who were involved in The Underground Railroad.

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As opposed to, when people come in and I do tours

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they're always surprised to realize

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that African Americans owned this home.

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<v Narrator>Nathan and Polly were business partners</v>

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who operated a catering business out of their home.

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Polly was best known as a candymaker and baker.

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Her confectionary shop at 23 Seventh Street

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sold free labor candy made from ingredients

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farmed by free workers.

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Her famous ginger cookies and molded ice cream

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were enjoyed by New Bedford's wealthiest families.

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<v ->In 1838 Nathan and Polly Johnson</v>

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welcomed the young Frederick Douglass

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and his Wife, Anna Murray, into this home.

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And it was in this very house that Frederick

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got his last name Douglass, thanks to a suggestion

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made to him by Mr. Johnson.

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It was in this city that Frederick and Anna got their start.

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Their family grew and Frederick became

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the well-noted abolitionist and public speaker

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that we know today.

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<v Narrator>In 1849, after years of economic downturn,</v>

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Nathan left Massachusetts for the California gold rush,

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hoping to improve his fortune.

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Before he left, Nathan gave Polly ownership

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of their four properties, which would have been valued at

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more than half a million dollars in today's money.

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In his absence, Polly with her strong work ethic

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and business sense, continued the confectionery

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and paid off their home's loan.

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In 1857, Polly sought and won

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the city's permission to expand her home.

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The original four room federal style home

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was lifted off its foundation, rotated 90 degrees,

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and moved to the rear of the lot.

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Polly continued to live there

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while the construction began on the front.

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The new addition, in Greek revival style,

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was trimmed with a gable roof, arched window frames,

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broken pediment, and corner pilasters.

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After 20 years away, and two years after Polly's death,

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Nathan Johnson returned from the west

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with little or nothing to show for his expedition.

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Polly left the house to her granddaughter, Mary Buchanan.

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And Nathan lived in the home until his death,

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seven years later.

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The property remained in the Johnson family

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until 1891, when it and all its contents were sold.

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The proceeds were used to set up an MIT University

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scholarship fund to benefit young men of color.

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In the 1970s a two story shed roof extension

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was added to the home,

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which housed bathrooms, and a stairway.

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In the year 2000 the Johnson house

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was designated a National Historic Landmark.

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One of only a few selected properties

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in New Bedford to receive that title.

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With this new designation plans were drafted

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to restore the property to its 1850s elegance.

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This photograph from the late 1800s,

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taken to document a fallen tree,

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was used as the basis for the restoration.

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In 2006, the entire home was restored

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from top to bottom, painted white,

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and exterior accents were added.

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The first floor rooms were decorated with period furniture

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and artwork that recreated the way the home

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may have looked in Nathan and Polly's time.

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The Nathan and Polly Johnson house,

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a significant part of new Bedford's

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abolitionist history and a historic symbol

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of the city's thriving free black community

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and entrepreneurial spirit.