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John Hart Crenshaw
John Hart Crenshaw (November 19, 1797 – December 4, 1871) was an American landowner, salt, salt maker, kidnapper and slave trader, based out of Gallatin County, Illinois. He is also the great-great grandfather of killer and suspected serial killer Joe Ball, also known as "The Alligator Man". Slave trader Although Illinois was a free state (United States), free state, Crenshaw leased the salt works in nearby Equality, Illinois from the government, which permitted the use of History of Illinois, slaves for the arduous labor of hauling and boiling brackish water to produce salt. Crenshaw was widely believed to be involved in the kidnapping and sale of free black citizens in free states as slaves in the south, an enormously profitable trade later known as the Reverse Underground Railroad. Crenshaw was twice prosecuted for kidnapping, but never convicted. Due to Crenshaw's keeping slaves and kidnapping free blacks, who were then pressed into slavery, his house became popularly kn ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Crenshaw House (Gallatin County, Illinois)
The Crenshaw House (also known as the Crenshaw Mansion, Hickory Hill or, most commonly, The Old Slave House) is an historic former residence and alleged haunted house located in Equality Township, Gallatin County, Illinois. The house was constructed in the 1830s. It was the main residence of John Crenshaw, his wife, and their five children. In 2004, the National Park Service named the mansion as a "station" on the Reverse Underground Railroad to acknowledge Crenshaw's practice of kidnapping free blacks in Illinois and selling them in the Slave States."The Old Slave House." National Park Service Network to Freedom Database. National Park Service. Accessed online May 23, 2010. Musgrave, Jon. 2005. ''Slaves, Salt, Sex & Mr. Crenshaw: The Real Story of the Old Slave House and America's Reverse Underground R.R.'' Published by Illinoishistory.com. 608 pages. Early history Landowner and illegal slave trader John Hart Crenshaw leased the state-owned salt workshttp://www.illinoishi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |