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The Underground Railroad in New Jersey

with Historian Rick Geffken

Join us in honoring Black History Month for this educational presentation about the local history of the Underground Railroad. This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Plumsted Library.

Enslaved people had run away from their owners for years before their methods and routes became known as the Underground Railroad. The most travelled route through New Jersey for runaways paralleled the Delaware River from Salem County to Trenton. From there, the escapees cut across the narrow part of New Jersey as they headed for New York. Black and white people supported runaways on their perilous journeys to freedom. This illustrated presentation will look at the history of enslavement in New Jersey, the Quakers who lobbied for manumission, and people involved in the Underground Rail Road. 

Rick Geffken has been a Monmouth County resident since 1963, is a veteran of the Vietnam War and had a successful career in the computer industry before focusing his efforts on the study of local history. He has made countless presentations on a wide variety of subjects including slavery, African-American history, Shrewsbury history, and the history of the Morris family.

Rick has authored or co-authored several books including The Story of Shrewsbury, Revisited, 1965-2015, Highland Beach, 1888-1962: Gateway to the Jersey Shore, Lost Amusement Parks of the North Jersey Shore, Hidden History of Monmouth County, New Jersey, and Stories of Slavery in New Jersey among others.

Rick has also been instrumental in the development of the North East Slavery Records Index (NESRI), a searchable compilation of records that identifies individual enslaved persons and their owners.

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