Cooper Wingert, historian and author of 10 books about the Civil War and the Underground Railroad, will present Slavery and the Underground Railroad in South Central Pennsylvania, Sunday, September 22, 2:00 p.m., at the American Philatelic Society, Bellefonte. Based on new archival research, this talk will illuminate how the Underground Railroad consisted of white and Black people whose actions were more open than many think.

Wingert’s first book, The Confederate Approach on Harrisburg, won the James I. Robertson Jr. Award in 2012. He also has published a seminal article in The Journal of American History—the leading academic journal in the field—on northern resistance to laws mandating the return of fugitive slaves to southern owners. A scholar completing his Ph.D. in history at Georgetown University, Wingert serves as Assistant Director of the National Park Service project titled “Slave Stampedes on the Southern Borderlands."

”Slavery & the Underground Railroad in South Central Pennsylvania" is an illustrated talk based on Wingert’s book which shows how the region became a battleground in the fight against slavery. Freedom seekers journeying through the state connected with free Black communities and white allies willing to shelter and assist them. Runaways and antislavery activists employed legal maneuvers, and sometimes violence, to resist slave catchers and undermine federal fugitive slave laws. Based on new archival research, the talk illuminates how the Underground Railroad consisted of white and Black people whose actions were more open than many think, and whose legacies continue to have an impact today

This program is a part of the distinguished author series underwritten by the Anne Hamilton Henszey Pyle and Kenneth B. Pyle Educational Fund for Regional Heritage Preservation (Henszey-Pyle Fund.)

This program is free to the public and will be held at the Pennsylvania Match Factory in Bellefonte, PA, home of the American Philatelic Society. RSVPs are required and may be made by calling 814-234-4779 or reserving online at CentreHistory.org under “Upcoming Events & Programs” on the home page. For general information and program updates, visit www.CentreHistory.org