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Rivers
Institute sponsors
‘crossing’ of Ohio River
The
experience is being studied
for use in heritage tourism
By
Don Ward
Editor
(June 2005) – A group of students, historians and
educators got a sneak preview May 21 of what could become
a regular heritage tourism event to promote and interpret
the Underground Railroad history of the region.
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Photo
by Don Ward
This
retrofitted barge was used May 21
to carrying the passengers from
Preston Plantation to Hanover Beach.
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The Rivers Institute at Hanover College sponsored
a day-long educational “crossing” of the Ohio River
on a customized barge sent up from Jeffersonville, Ind. The
barge, owned by American Commercial Barge Line, was retrofitted
with carpet, new paint, and wooden benches surrounded by hand
rails to ensure the safety of the passengers, said Chris Primm
of ACBL. The barge was powered by the 3,800-horsepower James
Nivin towboat, whose normal task is to push 15-16 loaded barges
between Louisville and Pittsburgh.
The group of nearly 30 people, including several high-school-aged
museum docents from the newly opened National Underground
Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, gathered at Hanover
College early that morning. From there, they were then taken
by bus to Paul and Pam Venard’s Preston Plantation farm
on the banks of the Ohio River in Trimble County, Ky. There,
Hanover College professor Ted Farrell began the program by
discussing the history and stories about slave traffic to
freedom.
Madison resident and blues musician Johnny Jackson and Helen
Ochs, director of Hanover College’s Haq Center for Cross-Cultural
Education, provided soulful renditions of African American
spirituals that were common during slavery. The Venards talked
about life on the river and the history of their farm, which
also serves as the site of their annual Civil War Re-enactment
in June and another pioneer days event in the fall called
“Ghost Roads Homecoming.”
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Photo
by Don Ward
Hanover
College professor Ted Farrell
speaks to the group at Preston Plantation
in Trimble County, Ky.
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Following the program at Preston Plantation,
the group boarded the barge and traveled upriver to Hanover
Beach. From there, they traveled to Hanover College where
they had lunch. In the afternoon, they visited St. Stephen’s
A.M.E. Church in Hanover, where Sue Livers explained its history.
The group then traveled 13 miles to Lancaster in northern
Jefferson County to visit Historic Eleutherian College, where
president Jae Breitweiser spoke about the college’s history
while portraying Lucy Nelson, a period figure.
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Photo
by Don Ward
Taking
part in the program were (from left)
Helen Ochs, Paul Venard and
Johnny Jackson.
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This invitation-only event was centered on the
historical significance of the slaves who escaped to freedom
along the secret routes along the Ohio River. Madison and
Hanover played key roles in those missions in the 1860s. The
program was videotaped and will be studied for refinement
by Rivers Institute staff and others via focus groups through
the expertise of their individual organizations, said Michelle
Purvis, program coordinator for the Rivers Institute.
The Rivers Institute, created last year with a $5 million
Lily Foundation grant, is dedicated to the interdisciplinary
and collaborative study of rivers using the disciplines of
liberal arts. Rivers has three program areas – culture,
economics and science.
• Learn more on the Rivers Institute
and its programs at: www.riversinstitute.org.
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