“The Underground Railroad Movement In Lancaster County and Southeastern Pennsylvania, 1780 – 1860”

This lecture given by Randy Harris, will focus on how the Southeastern PA regions played a role in the origins of the Underground Railroad. It will also cover the plans for the Thaddeus Stevens and Lydia Hamilton Smith Center for History and Democracy. The Center’s opening is planned for early 2025. Come to this rare lecture sponsored by the Walters Trust and UUCL. Free admission with a small reception following. RSVP below.

Randy Harris (presenter) has a background of more than 25 years in community revitalization initiatives in historic preservation and heritage tourism. A former journalist, Randy served as Executive Director of the Historic Preservation Trust of Lancaster County (1995-2002), then renewed work as a consulting historian. Since 2003, he has researched and nominated 20 heritage sites into the National Park Service’s Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, including the 70-mile-long Amtrak right of way between Lancaster and Philadelphia — part of the original Main Line corridor. Today, Randy works with LancasterHistory on the development of the Thaddeus Stevens & Lydia Hamilton Smith Center for History and Democracy and continues to give guided tours of Underground Railroad sites in the Lancaster County region.