Silhouette photo of man carrying candle lantern with lighted candle - underground railroad sites

Self-guided · metro area, Michigan

Underground Railroad Sites in Ann Arbor, MI

Homes, meetinghouses and crossings tied to the Underground Railroad and the people who helped freedom seekers move north.

Open the Michigan map · All states

Photo: Julia Florczak on Unsplash

History books cover the big events in a chapter each. The places those events touched are scattered across counties like this one. The Ann Arbor, MI metro area has about 370,214 residents, ranking 153rd in the country.

A person holding a lit lantern in the dark - underground railroad sites — Photo: Subhro Vision on Unsplash

Portrait of Harriet Tubman - underground railroad sites — Photo: Library of Congress on Unsplash

Four brown wooden benches inside house - underground railroad sites — Photo: Tracy Jentzsch on Unsplash

On the record near Ann Arbor, MI

The 6 nearest

6 listed sites on the record match underground railroad sites within 200 miles of Ann Arbor, MI, out of 144 listed sites of every kind within 25 miles.

Raisin Valley Friends Meetinghouse27 miles from the center of Ann Arbor · Building · Adrian · listed 1982National Register of Historic Places
Quaker Oats Cereal Factory142 miles from the center of Ann Arbor · Building · Akron · listed 1978National Register of Historic Places
Hicksite Friends Meetinghouse (Wayne County Museum)179 miles from the center of Ann Arbor · Building · Richmond · listed 1975National Register of Historic Places
Quaker Bridge183 miles from the center of Ann Arbor · Structure · Greenville · listed 1988National Register of Historic Places
Dublin Friends Meeting House187 miles from the center of Ann Arbor · Building · Dublin · listed 2018National Register of Historic Places
Richsquare Friends Meetinghouse and Cemetery187 miles from the center of Ann Arbor · Building · Lewisville · listed 2006National Register of Historic Places

Distances are straight-line from the center of Ann Arbor, MI. Many sites are private property or working buildings - view them from the public way. See them on the map.

Underground Railroad in Ann Arbor, step by step

1
Read the short history of the period for this area
2
Open the map filtered to the sites from that chapter
3
Visit the nearest site and read its full record
4
Ask what the marker leaves out and look for the rest
5
Add the site to a route that follows the period in order

What people in Ann Arbor, MI ask first

How much does it cost to visit these sites in Ann Arbor, MI?

Most listed sites can be seen from a public road or sidewalk at no cost, and the app is free to use. Some sites are private homes, working churches or museums with their own hours and fees. The record for each one says what it is, so you know before you go.

Where does the information on these sites come from?

From published records: the National Register of Historic Places, the Recorded Texas Historic Landmark program, and the Georgia Historical Society and Georgia Department of Natural Resources marker program. Every site on the page names its source.

Are the hard parts of this history included?

Yes. The record is shown as published, and the stories behind the markers include what happened, who it happened to, and how it was remembered. Leaving the hard parts out would make the stop less worth the trip.

Why are there so many of these sites near Ann Arbor, MI?

Most areas have more than people expect, because the registers list every surviving building and site tied to a period, not just the famous ones. The list on this page shows exactly what is on the record nearby.

How a visit works in Ann Arbor

Step 1
Find the place
Every stop starts as a pin with real coordinates. In Ann Arbor, MI the map shows what is listed around you and how far each one is, so the first decision is where to go, and it takes a few seconds.
Step 2
Read the story
The record behind each marker is kept whole: what happened there, when, who was involved, and why it was worth a sign. You read it standing where it happened, which is the part a textbook cannot give you.
Step 3
Get there under your own power
Walk it, run it, hike it, ride it or drive it. Stops in Ann Arbor, MI are chained into routes that fit the way you move, so a lunch break, a long run or a Saturday drive can all pass through history.
Step 4
Collect it and come back
Each stop you reach counts toward a badge, and a photo or a correction you send makes the record better for the next person. The map remembers where you have been, so the next trip starts where the last one ended.