Oberlin-Wellington Rescue Monument

Oberlin-Wellington Rescue Monument

This monument, which was erected in 1990 and is located in Martin Luther King Park, commemorates the 1858 Oberlin-Wellington Rescue. In that year, slave catchers captured John Price, an escapee from slavery who was living outside Oberiln. A large group of students and citizens from Oberlin and Wellington quickly gathered outside the hotel where Price was being held before he could be moved South and succeeded in spiriting him away. 37 of the rescuers, including 25 Oberlinians, were charged with violating the Fugitive Slave Act. Most were released after spending 83 days in prison. The monument was designed by Oberlin art professor Paul Arnold. Its inscripton reads: "In the spring of 1859, twenty Oberlinians went to jail for the crime of rescuing John Price from slavery. With all their comrades in the Abolition Cause, they kindled hopes of freedom for us all."

Oberlin College Archives

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1990

17 East Vine Street, Oberlin, OH