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READFIELD — “Was the Underground Railroad REALLY in Readfield?” will be offered at Maranacook Adult and Community Education by Dale Potter-Clark April 25 from 6:30-8 p.m.
Potter-Clark has been researching old homes and families in Readfield for several years and relates time and again she has found clues indicating Underground Railroad activity must have existed in town. “For sure there were politicians and businessmen living in Readfield who were active in the anti-slavery and Abolitionist movement both locally and nationwide.” According to Potter-Clark the Underground Railroad passed through Augusta, Hallowell and Winthrop and on to Farmington and Jay. “Look at the map and you will see that Readfield falls right in the middle of that route.”
In the presentation Potter-Clark will share the clues leading to her supposition. Participants are welcome to bring and share their own clues and insights. This promises to be an enlightening and fascinating evening. To register for MACE classes call 207-685-4923 x 1065 or visit maranacook.maineadulted.org. Proceeds from these classes will help fund the creation and placement of historical site markers in Readfield.
PICTURE CAPTION: The Rev. David Thurston was a Congregational minister in Winthrop from 1807 to 1851. In 1833 he was a delegate at the founding convention of the American Anti-Slavery Society in Philadelphia and helped draft their “Declaration of Sentiments.” He also served as a regional manager of the Underground Railroad in central Maine and spoke often at Abolitionist meetings. His son Brown Thurston was a noted publisher in Portland and also active in the movement.
