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The Passport to Freedom is dedicated to the lives of brave men and women who believed that any type of slavery was wrong. At the risk of being fined and arrested, they willing aided enslaved people in their quest to find safety and freedom. As these freedom seekers traveled north through Indiana County, they were sheltered and moved from one safe place to another. 

Blairsville's location along the Conemaugh River at the southern edge of Indiana County provided many opportunities for growth. From its beginning in the early 1800s, the town benefited from road, canal and railroad traffic. Many of the people who settled in the area had strict religious convictions and they became a strong force in the Underground Railroad movement.

In those days, the bounty hunters tracking the freedom seekers often made comments about how swiftly the runaways moved and were able to disappear. It was almost as if they had an underground railroad. The various methods used by abolitionists to hide and move the freedom seekers made their pursuers is now referred to as the Underground Railroad.

Records were seldom kept due to the severe fines and threats of jail terms that accompanied anyone found guilty of breaking the law. At that time, the law forbid aiding and abetting any slave trying to reach freedom in Canada.

We trace the travels of the brave freedom seeker who traveled through Indiana County, beginning in Blairsville and moving northward, one hiding place at a time…

B.Y.O.P.

Congrats to mrjonnyflash,Whotheheckisalex and Richyrich9401 of the FTF

Determine the NORTH Coordinates:

Go to the Stage 1 coordinates, and you should be standing in front of the interpretive trail educational panel.  Answer the following questions based on what you see on this panel

The NORTH coordinates for this cache are: N40 25.ABC

A =  THIRD NUMBER IN YEAR OF MEETING WITH DR. MITCHELL ?

B =  HOW MANY FREEDOM SEEKERS WERE SUGGESTED TO BE SEPARATED ?

C =  FIRST TWO NUMBER IN THE YEAR OF MEETING ADDED TOGETHER ?

COMPLETE CHECKSUM FOR THE NORTH COORDINATES = 16 

Determine the WEST Coordinates:

At Stage 1 coordinates, you'll still  be standing at the same educational panel.  Answer the following questions based on what you see on this panel.

The WEST coordinates for this cache are: W 079 1D.EFG

D = WHAT WAS CONSTRUCTED UNDER MR. GRAFFS HOUSE AND THRU HIS BROTHERS YARD ? NUMBER OF LETTERS MINUS 1

E = THIRD NUMBER IN YEAR OF BLAIRSVILLE STREET MAP ?

F =  FIRST NUMBER IN THE YEAR OF BROTHERS CIRCA HOME?

G=  NUMBER OF LETTERS IN FREEDOM SEEKER BROWN'S FIRST NAME?

COMPLETE CHECKSUM FOR THE WEST COORDINATES = 18