Last updated: April 18, 2023
Place
New York: Montgomery County Department of History and Archives
Courtesy Montgomery County
Quick Facts
Location:
Fonda, New York
Significance:
A facility that welcomes researchers to use their substantial collection of materials related to Underground Railroad history
Designation:
Network to Freedom Member (2023)
The Montgomery County Department of History & Archives, a local history and genealogy research library established in 1934, has a wonderful collection of materials dedicated to preserving and promoting the history of Montgomery County and New York State. Among these materials is a section related to the Underground Railroad, slavery, abolitionism and the African American community and their impact on the local region.
The Underground Railroad collection includes a mixture of primary sources (including but not limited to original town records documenting births of slaves, bills of slave sales and manumissions, local newspapers with articles of antislavery activity, and legal documents related to former slave suing his enslaver in the archival collection) and secondary sources on general Underground Railroad and local history. The cultural resources survey conducted by Judith Wellman and others identifies sites within the county associated with the Underground Railroad, abolitionists and African Americans residing in Montgomery County and is also part of the available resources. Church records, city directories, and surname family files are significant resources available to Underground Railroad researchers as well.
The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom serves to honor, preserve, and promote the history of resistance to enslavement through escape and flight, which continues to inspire people worldwide. The Network currently represents over 700 locations in 39 states, plus Washington D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Through its mission, the Network to Freedom helps to advance the idea that all human beings embrace the right to self-determination and freedom from oppression.
The Underground Railroad collection includes a mixture of primary sources (including but not limited to original town records documenting births of slaves, bills of slave sales and manumissions, local newspapers with articles of antislavery activity, and legal documents related to former slave suing his enslaver in the archival collection) and secondary sources on general Underground Railroad and local history. The cultural resources survey conducted by Judith Wellman and others identifies sites within the county associated with the Underground Railroad, abolitionists and African Americans residing in Montgomery County and is also part of the available resources. Church records, city directories, and surname family files are significant resources available to Underground Railroad researchers as well.
The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom serves to honor, preserve, and promote the history of resistance to enslavement through escape and flight, which continues to inspire people worldwide. The Network currently represents over 700 locations in 39 states, plus Washington D.C. and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Through its mission, the Network to Freedom helps to advance the idea that all human beings embrace the right to self-determination and freedom from oppression.