The Mary Meachum Freedom Crossing site in St. Louis, Missouri

Photo byMary Meachum Freedom Crossing Celebration via Facebook.

The Mary Meachum Freedom Crossing is north of St. Louis where escaped enslaved people dared to cross the Mississippi River from Missouri to Illinois, a free state. This is a designated site in the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom.

There are currently over 700 Network to Freedom locations in 39 states, plus Washington D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands and Canada. (Source.)

Late on May 21, 1855, abolitionist Mary Meachum and nine people boarded a small boat to cross the river at night. Everyone met at Mary's home downtown where they began their journey to get to the river and try to escape from what is now part of the Mississippi Greenway: Riverfront Trail north of Merchant’s Bridge.

Unfortunately, they were ambushed by people hunting enslaved people on the other side. They scattered, but most were killed, captured, or resold. Mary Meachum was put in jail and charged in criminal court for helping the then-labeled fugitives to escape.

Mary, a former slave, would educate and help free those enslaved. She and her husband, Reverend John Berry Meachum, were steadfast abolitionists.

In 2001, the National Park Service recognized the site as part of the Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. It’s the only nationally recognized site of the Underground Railroad west of the Mississippi River. Mary spent a good deal of her life contributing to the Underground Railroad along the river.

After Missouri banned the education of African Americans in 1847, she and her husband established the Floating Freedom School. They purchased a steamboat on which they could teach former slaves how to read and write. Hundreds of African Americans were educated at this school in the 1840s and 1850s.

Rev. Meachum bought his own freedom, his wife’s, and many others with what he earned from his carpentry business. After he died on March 20, 1864, at age 64, Mary maintained their home on Fourth Street as a safe house until she died in 1869.

Non-profit organizations like Great Rivers Greenway have taken steps to honor the crossing site.

The 22nd Annual Mary Meachum Freedom Crossing Celebration and Great Rivers Greenway will occur on October 19, 2024, at 28 E. Grand Boulevard in St Louis, Missouri. The theme this year is Wouldn't Take Nothing For My Journey.

The significance of the celebratory event is that it puts a spotlight on St. Louis Black History and educates people about Mary Meachum, her husband, and their efforts. Visit here for more information or to register for booth space.

Mary Meachum died in August 1869. She and her husband and son, William, are buried at Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis.

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