THIS IS NOT A QUICK GRAB! This cache will lead you around Pittsburgh to visit five sites known to have been stops on the Underground Railroad, helping people escape from slavery in the years prior to the Civil War. Completing this cache will probably take about an hour, and is best done with a vehicle. After visiting the five waypoints, email or message us the answers to the five verification questions. Go ahead and log your find -- we'll notify you if there's a problem with your answers.
With its location along the Ohio River just north of Virginia, Pittsburgh was a major hub for the Underground Railroad in the first half of the 1800s. Many of the city's residents, both white and black, were heavily involved in the abolitionist movement, and sought to help formerly enslaved people make their way to freedom in the northern states or beyond. The network of safe houses maintained by these abolitionists was known as the Underground Railroad. Because it was secret, there are few official records of the Underground Railroad, but historians have identified five sites in the city which are known to have served as stops for people seeking their freedom.
To claim this cache, visit the five listed waypoints (in any order) and find the answer to the verification question at each one.
STOP 1: AVERY COLLEGE
Charles Avery was a white businessman and immigrant to Pittsburgh. After making his fortune as a cotton merchant, he experienced a religious awakening about the evils of slavery and became an ardent abolitionist. In 1849, he set up the Allegheny Institute and Mission Church in a building in what was then Allegheny City, with the aim of providing elementary and secondary education to free black students regardless of gender. Upon Avery's death in 1858, the institute was renamed Avery College. The basement of the college was used as a stop on the Underground Railroad. Avery College struggled financially, and its operations were suspended in 1873.
Verification question: On the utility pole on the northwest corner, you will find a small gray medallion that says "Energy Services." What is the year stamped on the medallion?
STOP 2: JOHN VASHON BARBERSHOP AND BATHHOUSE
John Vashon was one of Pittsburgh's most accomplished black residents of the pre-Civil War era. After a colorful career including a stint as one of the few black members of the US navy during the War of 1812, Vashon moved to Pittsburgh and established a bathhouse downtown. He became active in the abolitionist cause and hosted the first meeting of the Pittsburgh Anti-Slavery Society in 1833, as well as co-founding the Pittsburgh African Education Society. His bathhouse was an important stop on the Underground Railroad, and he helped fugitives get a change of clothes and a haircut in order to disguise themselves from pursuers. He died in 1852 or 1853.
At this spot you will also find a historical plaque dedicated to Martin Delany, the subject of the next stop.
Verification question: On the southeast corner, there is a light pole with an identification tag that says "PGH DPW." What is the seven-character ID of this pole?
STOP 3: MARTIN R. DELANY HOUSE
Martin Delany was one of the most prominent abolitionists in Pittsburgh. Born to a free black family in Charlestown (West) Virginia, Delany moved to Pittsburgh in 1830 and worked as a physician after studying at the school Vashon co-founded. In 1843, he launched the abolitionist newspaper The Mystery, the first black-owned newspaper west of the Allegheny Mountains. His home in downtown Pittsburgh was used as a safe house along the Underground Railroad. In the 1850s, he became increasingly pessimistic about the prospects for abolition and racial equality in the United States, and became a prominent advocate for African Americans to set up their own country in Africa, even traveling there to scout out possible locations. He joined the Union army during the Civil War and became its highest-ranking black officer. After the war, he relocated to South Carolina.
It's not clear exactly where Delany's house was, but business guides from the 1830s list it as being on Third St between Smithfield and Wood. We've put this waymark in front of the Times building since Delany was also a newspaper publisher.
Verification question: What are the last three characters in the model number of the fire hose valve, which begins FIG?
STOP 4: MONOGAHELA HOUSE HOTEL
Built in 1840, the Monogahela House was the first large hotel in Pittsburgh. Its owner, James McDonald Crossan, was an abolitionist who let people escaping slavery stay at the hotel. Many of the staff were free African Americans, including noted abolitionists Thomas and Frances Scroggins Brown. The staff were known to use a variety of tactics, including violence, to disrupt the efforts of visiting slave owners seeking to recapture fugitives they were pursuing, or even to separate enslaved guests from their masters. In 1861, Abraham Lincoln stopped at the Monogahela House on his way to Washington DC for his inauguration and gave a speech from its balcony about the impending Civil War.
Verification question: What is the four-digit number of the bus stop on the northwest side of the street?
STOP 5: BIGHAM HOUSE
This was the home of abolitionist lawyer Thomas Bigham. Secluded among the trees and commanding a view of the surrounding land, this house was well-placed to protect those escaping slavery. A quilt or lantern would be placed on the balcony to signal that the house was safe. A secret extra floor was concealed above the upper ceilings of the house, creating a hidden space for those who needed to hide.
Verification question: Up the street a little you will find a flagpole dedicated to local residents who participated in a conflict a century later. What is the last name of the person honored here?
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.