Local Underground Railroad Conductor To Be Honored

Sangamon County and Tazewell County Historical Societies

The ceremony honoring a local Underground Railroad conductor will be the topic of the Sangamon County Historical Society program at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 16, at the Bell Tower of Oak Ridge Cemetery, 1440 Monument Ave., Springfield. The event is a joint program of the Sangamon County and Tazewell County Historical Societies. It is free and open to the public.

John Albert Jones was a friend of Abraham Lincoln and a conductor on the Underground Railroad, who lived in Tremont prior to residing in Springfield for many years. He is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery.

John Ackerman, Tazewell County Clerk and Underground Railroad historian, will conduct the ceremony and provide information about the Underground Railroad routes and the project underway to erect markers at graves of Underground RR conductors. Reenactor Pat Foster will portray John Albert Jones. The program will also feature music and other entertainment.

Signs will direct attendees to parking, which will be available near the Bell Tower. Attendees are asked to bring a lawn chair. In case of rain, the event will be held in the Springfield and Central Illinois African American History Museum, at the entrance of Oak Ridge Cemetery, 1440 Monument Ave., Springfield.

For more information about the event, contact the Sangamon County Historical Society at www.sangamonhistory.org or 217-525-1961.

Location:
Bell Tower at Oak Ridge Cemetery
1441 Monument Avenue
Spingfield, Illinois (Map)