I have always been interested in the stories concerning the Underground Railroad. Probably because I grew up hearing about them from my Grandmother Glasgow or Grandma G as we called her. Chloe (Clark) Glasgow (Grandma G) was born in 1891, between Louisville and Louden in Adams County, Ohio. Her Gall ancestors on her mother’s side, had settled around 100 years earlier near Sinking Springs in Highland County.
Just to note, I expect anyone’s family that has lived around the Sinking Springs and Peebles area for several generation is probably related to the Galls. George Gall, Jr. was married twice and had eleven children by his first wife and thirteen children by his second wife. Imagine the grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Anyway, Grandma G’s great great-grandfather, George Gall Sr., served in the Revolutionary War as a Corporal under Capt. John Mountjoy in the 10th Virginia Regiment. George died at the age of 48 at Valley Forge. George’s son, George Gall Jr., was called into service in January 1881, and was present at the surrender of Cornwallis. Grandma G’s parents were Steve and Melissa (Williams) Clark. She had one sister, Grace (Clark) Storer. Aunt Grace married Charles Stores or Uncle Doc (he was a dentist) as we called him. Grandma G’s father was a farmer. As soon as he was able to pay for one farm, he would sell and buy a farm with more acreage.
Thus, they moved several times when she was a child, resulting in her attending one-room schools near Locust Grove, Marble Furnace, Lawshe and Peebles. Grandma G’s dad also helped build the road up Wisecup Hill just outside of Peebles. He was kind of a jack of all trades. When Grandma G grew to be a young woman, she taught in a one room school house called Sunny Side which was located across from the farm which was owned by her future in-laws. The farm was located between Cherry Fork and Seaman on today’s State Route 137.
In 1914, she married Caskey Glasgow. The bride and groom moved in with her in-laws, Arthur and Lurissa (Caskey) Glasgow. Arthur was born in 1852 and Lurissa in 1859. The farm they lived on was called the old Caskey homestead. The Caskey’s had settled on the farm in 1811. Lurissa had inherited part of the farm from her parents (Alexander and Lurissa (Patton) Caskey and had bought the rest from her siblings. Lurissa was born in the house in which they lived and had married there as well.
In 1914, there wasn’t any TV, so evenings were spent crocheting, knitting or quilting and of course with that there was the telling of stories. Lurissa relayed many stories to Grandma G concerning the Underground Railroad as the Caskey homestead had been part of that transportation line. Grandma G lived to be 102 and her mind was clear as a bell. As a child I would sit and listen to her tell story after story. I was always spell bound and would dream about those days and how exciting it must have been to have taken part in helping people travel to freedom. Now as an adult, I realize they were risking their lives as well as the possibility of being sent to jail for six months or more and paying large fines up to a thousand dollars if they were ever caught in this freedom business.
Next week we will continue our story on the Underground Railroad of Adams County, Ohio.