Historical Marker
John J. Glessner House
Historical marker location:
1800 South Prairie Avenue, Chicago, Illinois
( Marker is at the intersection of South Prairie Avenue and East 18th Street, on the right when traveling south on South Prairie Avenue.)
Henry Hobson Richardson, Architect. 1887.
The state of Illinois played a crucial role in the Underground Railroad, a network of secret routes and safe houses used by slaves to escape to freedom in the 19th century. Many abolitionists in Illinois provided safe houses for escaping slaves, and Chicago was a key hub on the Underground Railroad.