5520 Chicago Road

Historical marker location:

5520 Chicago Road, Warren, Michigan

( Marker is on Chicago Road east of Lexington Street, on the right when traveling east.)

Michigan played a key role in the Underground Railroad, a network of secret routes and safe houses used by slaves to escape to freedom in the 19th century. Detroit was an important hub for the movement, and Michigan was the first state in the Northwest Territory to outlaw slavery in 1837.