Illinois has a deep connection to the Underground Railroad, the secret routes that freedom-seekers journeyed to escape slavery. This is why lawmakers are pushing an initiative to preserve sites connected to this part of history.

In Central Illinois, there were several checkpoints on the path to freedom along the Underground Railroad. One is in Peoria. The abolitionist Moses Pettengill’s home was a secret respite for freedom-seekers heading north for more than 30 years until the end of the Civil War. Pettengill was known to house and feed those who escaped slavery, even facing violence in a not so abolition-friendly state as commonly believed.

Pettengill's efforts are just of one of the many stories that have been found and preserved in Illinois. There were other checkpoints in Tazewell County, for example, along with Jacksonville in Western Illinois and Alton in Southern Illinois.

With so many stories like these and others still waiting to be discovered, Illinois is trying to identify and preserve these locations.

Ron Gifford is an Illinois State University professor who studies the American Civil War and the abolitionist movement. Gifford said the history of the Underground Railroad is more complex than what is taught in K-12.

Gifford said the Underground Railroad was not always a fully unified and organized system; freedom-seekers were sometimes guided through intuition and interactions with benevolent white people.

Gifford said regardless of these complexities, these sites have the potential to introduce more people to the history of slavery and abolition movement.

“It's kind of a boon for somebody who teaches about abolition and emancipation because they already have a story that they think they know,” Gifford said. “So, you can already say, ‘OK, what do you know about the Underground Railroad?’ And 99.9% of the time they don't really know what the Underground Railroad represents, except that, you know, there was some pathway from slavery to freedom.”

This is why Illinois is trying to create a way to preserve and use these historical spaces and one Central Illinois lawmaker has taken on the effort.

State Sen. Dave Koehler, who represents parts of Bloomington-Normal and Peoria, says his bill will create the Freedom Trails Commission to identify and commemorate the places where freedom-seekers journeyed through to liberation.

Koehler said the bill came together after the Underground Railroad Task Force’s final report showed there were more than 200 sites that could be preserved.

The commission is a database that lists recently identified spots along the Underground Railroad with long preserved sites under one roof.

“I was really overwhelmed as to how many groups throughout Illinois are really digging into their history and uncovering a lot of stuff,” Koehler said. “So, this commission would kind of be the depository of all this information that then could be shared with the people of Illinois, and it can be used for all kinds of purposes.”

Koehler says the commission could be used to develop tours, celebrations and simply to preserve history.

“It's good for us to really dig into our history and to see how Illinois became this beacon of hope for a lot of people seeking their freedom,” Koehler said. “How it still is a beacon of hope with people we see coming to Illinois to protect their rights.”

Gifford supported the commission but hopes it is done the right way. He said the history of the Underground Railroad cannot be simplified.

“This commission is a good idea but hopefully they counter the narrative that it was like this unified railroad, instead that they emphasize the choice of Black people, individually and in groups, to escape slavery, that takes a ton of bravery, right? Incredible bravery, to challenge a system like slavery," Gifford said.

Gifford also acknowledged communities that have links to the Underground Railroad could try to turn that history into tourism simply to generate revenue but he hoped in the long run, the sites will become a gateway for education.

“I don't want people to think that the story ends with just kind of collecting the buildings and advertising the buildings and making sure that the buildings are restored or somehow preserved in order to offer a narrative that is ahistorical in some ways,” Gifford said.

The proposal to create the Illinois Freedom Trails Commission has passed in the state Senate and will be considered in the House soon.