Marjory Allen Perez, former Wayne County Historian, has announced the completion of her new book, Final Stop, Freedom!: The Underground Railroad Experience in Wayne County, New York (Herons Bend Productions, 2017).
The book includes biographical sketches of men and women who boarded the Underground Railroad between 1800 and 1865. Thomas and Agnes Watkins were brought as slaves from Virginia to Sodus Bay by Captain William Helm about 1800. In 1810 they fled from slavery, taking with them their infant son, Edward. Loyd and Susan Chase and their six children arrived in Macedon, New York about 1844, but within a few years felt compelled to continue their journey to freedom, moving to Canada. In 1863, William Scott, then known as William Bacome, took advantage of the disruptions of the Civil War in Tennessee to begin his odyssey to freedom, traveling first to Massachusetts and eventually to Huron, New York, where he set down deep routes and raised his family.
Perez stated that the impetus to turn her research into a book was spurred on by a project, spearheaded by Dr. Judith Wellman, professor emeritus at State University at Oswego, that surveyed the Underground Railroad, abolitionism and African American life in Wayne County. Completed in 2009, the report revealed that many Wayne County residents played a critical role in both the Underground Railroad and in reform movements of the day.
Final Stop, Freedom will be on sale at local historical society gift shops or by contacting Ms. Perez at (315) 946-4562 or at marjory.perez1944@gmail.com. The book’s retail price is $17.95. Discounts are available to libraries, schools, museums and retail shops.
Marjory Perez is a writer and former Wayne County Historian and Director of Tourism Promotion. She lives with her husband, George in Lyons, New York.
Books noticed on The New York History Blog have been provided by their publishers.
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