Mary & Emily Edmonson

A woman escaped  from this house owned by a prominent Georgetown family.  The land for the Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, right, was purchased from an African-American businessman who had been a fugitive on the Pearl in 1848.

In 1848, 77 enslaved Americans from the nation's capital, as well as Alexandria, Virginia, stole through the streets to board the "Pearl" schooner at the 7th Street wharf.  Their plan - the largest concerted escape on the Underground Railroad ever attempted - was to sail to freedom.  Wealthy Francis Dodge, Jr. of Georgetown owned 3 slaves on the ship and his family also owned the "Salem" steamboat that took off after them.   The owners of four "Pearl" fugitives lived in the Georgetown house later owned by Robert Todd Lincoln, son of the president.  That same house is now owned by Ben Bradlee of Watergate and Washington Post fame.

 Mary and Emily Edmonson (above left) were on board the Pearl and, after capture, they were quickly sold and shipped south to the lucrative New Orleans slave market with four of their brothers.  But their story didn't end there, as they went on to become famous in anti-slavery circles and then attended Oberlin College. Less well-known but equally intriguing is Alfred Pope, another escapee, who went on to  become a businessman and builder in Georgetown.  A picture of his family home now graces the cover of a leading guide book on Washington, D.C. (below, left lower corner) but the authors had no inkling of the extraordinary history here.

Central to our story in Georgetown is the Mt. Zion United Methodist Church - founded in 1816 as the first African-American church in the District of Columbia.  We begin our walk at Mt. Zion's cemetery, which is believed to have been used as a stop on flights to freedom.  We are often welcomed into the Mt. Zion Church and their community center to share their rich history.

UNDERGROUND RAILROAD walks are sometimes scheduled on Saturdays for the general public in rotation with other walks.  As part of the citywide "Dreams & Blues" festival this fall, Tour DC, in partnership with Mt. Zion United Methodist Church, will be offering a public walk on September 27th.  The walk can also be booked at private groups' convenience on most days of the week.  Visit Group Tours for booking information, and Walk Schedule for Saturday public walk dates.   For articles written about the "Pearl" by Mary Kay Ricks in the Washington Post,  as well as a public radio documentary produced by Richard Paul that details the this Underground Railroad event, please visit the Guide Information page.