Dorris Keeven-Franke
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The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, except for punishment of a crime. On October 20, 1940, the U.S. Postal Service issued a 3 cent postage stamp with the image of that Monument. The Emancipation Monument served as the primary national memorial to Lincoln in DC until 1922, when the Lincoln Memorial…
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On September 24, 1863, a St. Louis newspaper announced “Archer Alexander, a negro … whose last master was Richard Hickman Pitman of the County of St. Charles…is hereby declared to be an emancipated slave and a free man!
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Since this story first aired, the site of freedom seeker’s Archer Alexander’s burial has been listed on the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom….
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The controversial Emancipation Memorial in Lincoln Park in Washington DC with President Abraham Lincoln includes Archer Alexander, an enslaved man seen rising in freedom given by the Emancipation Proclamation, first announced on this date…
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Sharing a recent story in Missouri Life Magazine about Archer Alexander …
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In 2019, I retraced the steps of Archer Alexander as he was brought from Virginia to Missouri, with his wife Louisa, and his son Wesley. They had spent over eight weeks traveling over 1,000 miles, a trip that can be made today in less than 11 hours.
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Archer Alexander was the last fugitive slave captured in Missouri, and received his freedom on September 24, 1863, for his important services to the United States Military (Union) after informing them of a plot to destroy a local railroad bridge. He saved hundreds of lives, and a vital link conveying troops, funds and supplies for…
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National Park Service adds the Archer Alexander and the Underground Railroad to the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program
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Originally called the Freedom Memorial, the Emancipation Memorial, still stands today in Lincoln Park, in Washington, D.C. The Memorial to President Abraham Lincoln, dedicated on April 14, 1876, was the first memorial to Lincoln erected by the formerly enslaved in grateful appreciation for the Emancipation Proclamation. The enslaved man seen with Lincoln was a real…
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The discovery that Archer Alexander had been the informant who had passed information to the Union Troops about the Confederate’s plans, sent the whole area around Dardenne Prairie into turmoil! While the trains were halted, and the bridge repaired, everyone from Flint Hill to Naylor’s Store to Cottleville was looking for Pitman’s enslaved man….
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After many discussions, reviews, and thought, Abraham Mohler’s design for a new Memorial at St. Peter’s United Church of Christ Cemetery on Lucas and Hunt in St. Louis, will bring life to this American icon for Emancipation. Rejoicing in his glory of freedom, having left his enslaved life behind, he is truly rising, asking others…
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Come hear the story of Archer Alexander’s dangerous route to freedom on the Underground Railroad or join us at his Jubilee…
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Look closely at the look on Archer Alexander’s face. Have you seen this memorial before? It was dedicated in 1876, with over 25,000 black people attending and its original name is the Freedom Memorial. It was entirely paid for by thousands of formerly enslaved black people.
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Free Virtual Program about Archer Alexander and the Underground Railroad on February 28, 2024 at 6:30 pm.
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Archer Alexander’s burial site is listed on the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. Archer Alexander is the Great-Great-Great grandfather of Muhammad Ali. Dorris Keeven-Franke is an author and public historian. A professional genealogist and archivist, she shares the story of this enslaved man born in 1806 near Lexington, Rockbridge County, Virginia. Taken to Missouri…
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On September 27, 2023, the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom announced new listings to their program, and Archer Alexander Burial Site, St. Peter’s Cemetery, St. Louis will be among the 23 new listings joining the over 750 listings nationwide.
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The caravan completed its’ crossing of the state of Indiana. America was on the move.These things are not on the mind of these fifty weary travelers, of which Archer Alexander is a member. In 1876, the Freedom’s Memorial a monument in Washington, D.C. was the vision of thousands of the formerly enslaved people that President…
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On the road for thirty-seven days, William Campbell’s journal tells us that Archer and the caravan have traveled over five-hundred miles.
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Next day passed through a barren corner of Harrison Co. It is destitute of both wood and water. Poor soil covered with low brush. The roads alternately good and bad.Crossed Blue River at Fredericksburg. Next day passed through a poor country, and a small town called Pool [Paoli] The county seat of Washington [Orange] County.…
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Next day proceeded on our way to Louisville, a handsome well built business-like place on the Ohio River. Staid sometime in market house which was abundantly supplies with fish, flesh, fruit and vegetables. Supplied ourselves with provisions and left…
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This is the journey of Archer, the enslaved property of James Alexander of Lexington, Virginia. Alexander is a member of a caravan of families moving from Rockbridge County, Virginia to Saint Charles County Missouri. If we listen closely to this journal of William Campbell, we might hear the voices of the enslaved… after all this…
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On September 24, 2022, residents of St. Charles County, the City of St. Charles, and the City of St. Louis would commemorate the emancipation of Archer Alexander…
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Isn’t it time we tell the whole story? There is so much more to this man’s life than we knew. Recent research has uncovered so much more…
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On March 30, 1863, Eliot would address a letter to Archer’s owner Richard H. Pitman asking to purchase him, as he wanted to see Archer Alexander emancipated. In his book, The Story of Archer Alexander, Eliot would later write …
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Archer was a hero in his own right, an unknown American hero, whose untold story is difficult to share yet needs to be told. Don’t you think the time is right? For more about Archer visit https://archeralexander.wordpress.com/ online anytime.
ARCHER ALEXANDER 