Moses Pettengill: Peoria\'s Freedom Conductor

Tags: things to do downtown peoria, peoria historical society, freedom conductor, moses pettengill 02/12/23 01:00PM - 04:00PM

Abolitionist movement historian Corey Curtis of Peoria will discuss “Moses Pettengill: Peoria's Freedom Conductor” in two presentations Sunday, Feb. 12 at Pettengill-Morron House Museum, 1212 W. Moss Ave. The presentations will begin at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The event is being held in conjunction with Black History Month.  
Curtis will discuss the connection between Pettengill and the Underground Railroad in Peoria. Pettengill and his wife, Lucy, welcomed enslaved individuals at their now-razed home at Liberty and Jefferson streets, near where the Peoria Civic Center now stands. He will also discuss famous anti-slavery orators, including Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, both who spoke in Peoria.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $5 for college and high school students and $3 for ages 6-12 and will include a guided tour of the Moss Avenue mansion Pettengill built in 1868. Tickets are available at 309tix.com or at the door. For more information, contact the Peoria Historical Society at 309-674-1921.  
Curtis is a history teacher. He was Peoria Historical Society's Volunteer of the Year in 2019, and he leads the society’s “Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War” history bus tours in summer and fall.

Location: Peoria River Front Association