A new interactive map shows stops along the Underground Railroad throughout Michigan, including here in southwest Michigan. The Michigan History Center has collected two dozen stories, not often found in textbooks, of people fleeing enslavement in the mid-1800s, abolitionists who assisted them, and communities that stepped up to protect freedom seekers. It says they’re all compiled into the new map to help anyone interested discover and learn more. In all, there are 24 stories. Among them is that of Stephen and Hannah Bogue, who were Quakers and staunch abolitionists who settled in Cass County in the 1830s. By 1843, they hosted meetings for the Young’s Prairie Anti-Slavery Society in the house that still stands to this day. The Bogues and their neighbors supplied freedom seekers with food, shelter, financial assistance and work. You can visit the Stephen Bogue Commemorative Marker at M-60 and Crooked Creek Road in Cassopolis. You can find the new interactive map right here.
