Preservation Pennsylvania

Abolition Hall in Plymouth Meeting, PA, one of the most active sanctuaries for slaves fleeing the South along the Underground Railroad in the mid 1800's, is in jeopardy of being destroyed.  Abolition Hall and two other National Historic Buildings, the George Corson Barn and the Thomas Hovenden House, sit on approximately ten acres of land that is under an agreement of sale to a home builder, K. Hovnanian Homes, who is proposing to build 67 townhouses on the land with no plan to repurpose or restore the three Historic Buildings.  The entire estate, land and buildings, is known as the George Corson Estate.  George Corson was a Quaker and Abolitionist who believed that slavery was evil and all men should be free.  He built Abolition Hall on top of a carriage house that was on the back of his barn after another meeting house was burned down by arsonists.  Abolition Hall was a meeting house where Abolitionists could meet and plan for the safety of runaway slaves.  Abolition Hall was a 200 seat venue of the Montgomery County (PA) Anti-Slavery Society, a group George Corson helped found in 1837.  Many of the great Abolitionists of the day came to Abolition Hall to speak.  Among them were:  Frederick Douglass, Harriet Beecher Stowe, William Lloyd Garrison, and Lucretia Mott.  George Corson, and other Abolitionists who lived in Plymouth Meeting, lived in fear on a daily basis from slave chasers and even his own neighbors because he hid and gave shelter to other human beings who were running to freedom.  It is a disgrace that Abolition Hall, the Barn, and the Hovenden House (George Corson's residence and later that of his son-in-law Thomas Hovenden, the renowned painter) are to be forgotten with no repurpose for the future.  Funding is needed to support the grass root effort of the citizens of Whitemarsh Township, PA, in which the Corson Estate sits, to save this historic site.  The exact location of the estate is at the Northeast corner of the Germantown Pike and Butler Pike intersection.  The builder, K. Hovnanian Homes, has not shown any respect for this historical property or any appreciation for what George Corson and the other Abolitionists did to help free runaway slaves.  Financial assistance is needed to save Abolition Hall and the other historical buildings and to also defend the legacy of George Corson and those who defended the freedom of other human beings.  Your contribution is tax deductible.  It will go to pay for legal assistance, planners, and other experts to help protect and preserve this Historical and important Underground Railroad site.  PLEASE...GIVE WHAT YOU CAN.  No amount is too small.  Thank you!

"Abolition Hall is a National Historical Site that Should be Preserved"  -  Charles L. Blockson, Curator Emeritus, Afro American Collection at Temple University Libraries.

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