It is without question that the Ohio River had (and still has) a distinct, and visible, impact on the formation of the social landscape of its surrounding areas.  Some may say that its historical influence has even broader implications – one that contributes to the development of our nation.  The latter is what this piece will be focusing on.  While the majority of our groups focus is concentrated on the Ohio River in the Louisville area, this entry will delve deeper into the cultural aspects of the river.  More specifically, it will address, the river’s importance as a physical boundary in America between slavery and freedom in the 18th an 19th centuries.  Also, emphasis will be placed on the Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.



During slavery in America, Kentucky was known as a “breeding ground” for slaves.  Due to the states limited population at the time, many slaves were unneeded.  Thus, the state became a hub for the slave trade – selling about 6,000 slaves annually to southern markets (Dunaway). Many families were split, and lives forever altered, as a result of a gruesome form of commerce.  In fact, the title of the state’s song – My Old Kentucky Home – has a deeper meaning than some might realize. Slaves who had been sold away from their families and were missing their home originally used it as a phrase to express their disposition.  Also, the saying “sold down the river” refers to the aforementioned scenario as well.  In relation to the prevalence of slave trade in Kentucky, many would refer to their diaspora as being “sold down the river” (the Ohio) to the Deep South (Mendes).



There were many trading routes that fed into this hub of the slave trade.  One of which started Lexington and used Louisville as a middle ground between Nashville and Memphis.  Researchers even have first hand sources that compliment their positions on Kentucky and the Ohio River’s role in slave trade.  For example, a slave that lived in eastern Kentucky weighed in by saying dealers “made a business of buying up slaves at auction sales and shipping them down to New Orleans to be sold to owners of cotton and sugar cane plantations…they would ship whole boat loads at a time, buying them up 2 or 3 here, 2 or 3 there, and holding them in jail until they had a boat load.“

Kentucky and the Ohio River obviously played monumental roles in the slave trade.  But, how do they relate to the opposite - how and why was the Ohio River used as an escape route to freedom?  Dr. J. Blain Hudson proposes to two main reasons:

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1. If the probability of effecting a successful escape was inversely proportional to one's distance from free territory, then, by virtue of location alone, escape from Kentucky had a fair probability of success; and
2. Escape through Kentucky (or by the Ohio River) was the route chosen by enslaved African Americans fleeing states farther south, particularly after the massive shift of slave population as cotton cultivation spread into the Gulf States after the War of 1812.


In his report, Dr. Hudson also details the main crossing points of the Ohio for escaped slaves hoping to find freedom.  Likewise, the Cincinnati, Ohio and Covington, Kentucky area were referred to as the “Grand Central Station” of the Underground Railroad.

The above provides a perfect transition into a discussion about the Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati.  Its creation signifies the importance of the Ohio River as a means of escape for victims of slavery.  Moreover, it is a shining beacon to the errors of the past and the development of our nation’s future.  The Freedom Center is a physical reminder of what slaves had to go through in order to gain their freedom.  Which, in the end, is what America stands for: the pursuit of freedom and the hardships associated with that pursuit.  Likewise, the center’s location is of no mistake.  This area clearly represented the terminus between enslavement and freedom.  The Freedom Center isn’t solely a museum; it’s a continuous embodiment of the necessity of equal human rights in any functioning society.  Moreover, the center recognizes its role first hand – for it is stated emphatically on their website: “It is estimated that there are 27 million people around the world currently enslaved, more people than at any other time in human history.  But we believe that – through education and inspiration – we can encourage everyone to take part in the ongoing struggles for freedom."

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In the end, one must avoid viewing a waterway solely in terms of its present state - as simply a mode of commerce or recreation.  It is important to examine the historical implications to understand the magnitude of its purpose.