West Middletown walking tour to focus on Underground Railroad
Sights from around West Middletown include a historic district sign and an old hand pump that once drew water for local residents. In the other photo, a representative of Preservation Pennsylvania and West Middletown residents look at one of the old buildings in town.
Thomas McKeever’s home on Main Street in West Middletown
Located about halfway between Washington and Wellsburg, W.Va., along Route 844, West Middletown’s history goes back to the mid-1790s. The quaint and beautiful village, the third-oldest incorporated municipality in Washington County after Canonsburg and Washington, is regarded as the most well-preserved example of 19th-century rural and commercial community in Western Pennsylvania.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985, the town has 49 buildings included in the historic district, including the oldest house that dates to 1798 and 31 structures circa 1800 to 1850. No building except the fire hall was built after 1900.
On Sunday, the Washington County History and Landmarks Foundation is organizing a tour of West Middletown beginning with a buffet lunch at Breezy Heights Tavern & Restaurant at Routes 844 and 231 in Independence Township.
During the lunch, Erin Hammerstedt of Preservation Pennsylvania will talk about the importance of being named a historic district and Karen Neubauer of Martha Washington Quilters Guild will talk about quilt symbols and symbolism used during the era of the Underground Railroad.
Following lunch, participants will carpool to West Middletown for a guided walking tour that will include visiting six or seven structures. Other houses and structures in town will also be discussed.
“We’ll try to cover everything in town we have information on,” said Sandy Mansmann, foundation coordinator. “We’re looking for people taking the tour who are interested in history, not just seeing the inside of people’s homes.”
The cost of the tour, including lunch is $25. To register, call 724-225-2350.
According to Mansmann, fugitive slaves from Virginia and what is now West Virginia made their way to West Middletown as a stop on the Underground Railroad on their way to Canada. Particularly active in helping them were William McKeever and his two sons, Thomas and Matthew, who had strong feelings about the issue of slavery.
One of the McKeever houses still stands in West Middletown and another lies just outside the village. During the tour, participants will can enter the McKeever Study along with other homes and churches.
In his written nomination to have West Middletown listed on the National Register, the late Bob Carter, former foundation member and town resident, wrote “William McKeever, and his sons, Matthew and Thomas, were major forces behind the abolitionist movement in Western Pennsylvania, and were instrumental in helping to establish West Middletown as a stop on the Underground Railroad.”
According to Carter, the earliest known documented evidence of this involvement is from minutes of a two-day “anti-slavery meeting” which concluded Oct. 20, 1834.
After a heated debate by the “colonizationists” and the “abolitionists” it was, “Resolved: That the Chairman appoint a committee of five persons to draught a Constitution and appoint a meeting for the purpose of forming an Anti-Slavery Society in this place (West Middletown),” the minutes state. Thomas McKeever was selected as one of the original five members for the committee.
Several sources – letters, reminiscences and news articles – link John Brown and Matthew McKeever. Brown, described in one account as “a tall, thoughtful gentleman, of pleasing address and considerable personal magnetism,” is reported to have visited West Middletown several times “in his capacity as wool buyer.” How much direct influence Brown had on the Underground Railroad in town is unknown.
Also unknown is whether the Underground Railroad had any direct relationship in the development of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, which was formed in town shortly after the Civil War. An A.M.E. congregation has been active there since the late 1860s.
“The tour should be a good learning experience, and we’re expecting that people will ask a lot of questions,” Mansmann said. “We also hope to get a lot of new information about the town from local amateur historians who decide to take the tour. We’ll also explore some of the local oral histories about hidden spaces and trap doors used during the days of the Underground Railroad.”
During the county fair in August, the foundation plans to display information on West Middletown and the Underground Railroad at its headquarters, the John White House at Washington County Fairgrounds. For more information, call 724-225-2350 or visit www.washcolandmarks.com.