Dr. Benjamin Franklin Stephenson

Historical marker location:

Petersburg, Illinois

( Marker is on Sangamon Avenue (Illinois Route 123) west of Curtis Black Top, on the left when traveling west.)

Marker installed: 1955

1823 - 1871.

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.