THE HOUSE
Updated March 2022
The Gammon House was built in 1850 -- the same year that the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 imposed six months' imprisonment and a massive $1,000 fine on any person aiding a runaway slave by providing food or shelter.
The Gammon House is one of only three existing Ohio “stops” on the Underground Railroad owned by a free person of color.
The Gammon Family
George and Sarah (Bradley) Gammon displayed extreme courage and bravery. They were free persons of color who risked imprisonment, enormous fines and ostracism by their neighbors to help others become free. They raised seven children at 620 S. Piqua Place. George’s parents were free people of color and charter members of St. Paul’s African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church of Urbana, which also was active in helping slaves on their journey to freedom.
The eldest Gammon son, Charles, enlisted in the 54th Massachusetts Regiment along with five other Springfield men. He gave his life in the assault on James Island in the South Carolina. The effort of these brave soldiers is movingly told in the film, “Glory,” showing that blacks were willing to sacrifice their lives for freedom which many did not have.
Learn more about the construction of the Gammon House, Click Here