Nathan and Polly Johnson House, New Bedford, Mass.

Long before the Civil War, the New Bedford home of Nathan and Polly Johnson served as a vital sanctuary for those escaping slavery. Nathan Johnson arrived in the city around 1819 and married Polly Mingo Durfee. By the mid-1850s, Polly was managing the family's real estate, successfully moving their original home to construct a grander Greek Revival house on the lot. Today, these connected historic structures are a National Historic Landmark and home to the New Bedford Historical Society.

The Johnsons' activism began as early as 1822. Their most famous guest arrived in 1838: a young freedom seeker named Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, whom Nathan Johnson helped transition into freedom by giving him the surname Douglass. Beyond their Underground Railroad work, the Johnsons were prosperous confectioners, caterers, and landlords. Nathan was also a prominent political voice, representing New Bedford at early national conventions of free people of color. Though he left for California in 1849 and spent over two decades in the West, Nathan ultimately returned to the Seventh Street home he shared with Polly, passing away there in 1880.

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Photo: Wikipedia, Creative Commons