Conductors and Agents

Hundreds of individuals worked on the Underground Railroad in different roles across its large, interconnected network of trails and safe houses. Some served as "conductors," guiding enslaved persons North towards freedom, while others served as "agents," hiding runaways at their "stations," providing food and shelter and other means of assistance. Because of the necessary secrecy of their work, much of the materials we have now were written well after the individuals had escaped and were no longer in danger.
 

Notes such as these on the Underground Railroad give some credit to the efforts of these agents and conductors. More stories of individuals involved in the Underground Railroad in Michigan can be found in the section below.

Notes on the Underground Railroad in Michigan

A notebook page detailing individuals who worked on the Underground Railroad in Michigan, featuring the Rev. John Cross, Samuel Zug, and George Ingersoll.

Conductors and Agents who served on the Underground Railroad in Michigan include:

Asher Aray

A black man born free, Asher Aray used his home as a station on the Underground Railroad. It is known that in 1853, Aray sheltered and transported 28 runaways escaping with John Fairfield from Kentucky.

George DeBaptiste

Freeborn George DeBaptiste, born around 1815 in Fredericksburg, Virginia, came to Detroit in 1846 from Madison, Indiana. While in Detroit he conducted many freedom-seekers to the safety of Canada. He also lead Adam and Sarah Crosswhite and their four children (featured on the Survivors page) across the Detroit River to safety in Canada (Frost et al., 159).  

Col. Charles V. DeLand

Col. Charles V. DeLand is just one member of the DeLand family to serve as agents on the Underground Railroad. He not only helped to create the station at the First Congressional Church, but he also was the editor of an anti-slavery magazine in Jackson.

Seymour Finney

Seymour Finney was a business owner and prominent Underground Railroad stationmaster in Detroit. Passengers of the Underground Railroad took refuge in Seymour Finney's barn in the city before continuing on their journey to freedom in Canada. 

Laura Haviland

Quaker Laura Haviland shletered freedom-seekers on her farm in Lenawee County using their home as an Underground Railroad station. She and her husband established the first biracial school in Michigan, leased land to refugees wishing to farm, and traveled from Michigan to Canada and even into the South courageously assisting those who sought freedom (Mull, 106).

William Lambert

Freeborn William Lambert, originally from Trenton, New Jersey, journied to Detroit in 1840. Advocating for African American rights, he quickly became a public figure and helped shape the Detroit-based Colored Vigilant Committee who provided thousands of runaways with food, protection, medical care, and shelter (Frost et al., 156).

Sojourner Truth

Sojouner Truth, a formerly enslaved woman from New York, was a bold activist publicy speaking on matters involving "womens rights" and antislavery. She spent time in the Detroit area with friends who were superintendents, agents, stationmasters, and conducts; all deeply involved in the Underground Railroad network (Frost et el., 168-169).