04/25/2026 | 2-3pm | Lecture: The Underground Railroad: Bucks County & Beyond!

Presented by Gather Place, this one-hour lecture explores the vital role Bucks County, Pennsylvania played in the Underground Railroad and its significance to local, state, and national history. Situated along the Delaware River corridor, communities including Yardley, Buckingham, Bensalem, Newtown, Bristol, and New Hope formed a critical chain of refuge and resistance for freedom seekers traveling north.

This lecture is uniquely told from a very location of one of Yardley Borough’s Underground Railroad sites and is developed and presented by a storyteller whose ancestry reflects the very people who survived this horrendous journey— bringing authenticity, bravery, and lived connection to the narrative!
 
Using natural waterways such as the Delaware River and the Historic Delaware Canal, along with inns, churches, meeting houses, mills, and private homes, a hidden network provided shelter, strategy, and safe passage. Many of these sites—including the Parry Mansion in New Hope, AME churches in Bensalem, Langhorne and Buckingham, Buckingham Friends Meeting House, and documented locations throughout Historic Yardley Borough—still stand today as lasting symbols of extraordinary courage.

The program honors the courage of abolitionists, Quakers, free African Americans, and faith communities who risked everything to uphold freedom and human dignity, demonstrating how Bucks County helped sustain one of America’s most important freedom movements.

Program Highlights

• Key Underground Railroad sites in Bucks County—many still standing and visitable today
• Stories of local courage with state and national impact
• The role of rivers, canals, and community networks in the pursuit of freedom
• Interactive Q&A exploring resistance, moral choice, and lasting legacy

Step into Yardley’s hidden history on this one-hour guided Underground Railroad walking tour beginning at the historic AME Church of Yardley (1817 / 1877 / 1956), home of the Gather Place Museum. The church stands on land once owned by the Yardley founding family, historically known as the “Boatyard Lot,” near the intersection of Canal Street and Letchworth Avenue leading directly to the Delaware River and the historic Yardley Ferry established by founder Thomas Yardley. Primary historical records document that enslaved people labored at this ferry crossing, reflecting the complex history of the early village.

Participants will walk the Delaware Canal towpath, pass the Aaron LaRue General Store, and explore the historic “Flats” neighborhood. Brief interpretive stops share stories of Quaker abolitionists, African American residents, and freedom seekers, including the legacy of Lucretia Mott, who spoke in the town once known as Yardleyville.

The tour concludes at Gather Place with beverages and light refreshments.

• Guided 1-hour walking tour along the historic Delaware Canal towpath
• Begin at the AME Church of Yardley, home of the Gather Place Museum and located on the historic Boatyard Lot
• Learn about the Yardley Ferry founded by Thomas Yardley, where records document enslaved labor
• Walk past the Aaron LaRue General Store and through the historic “Flats” neighborhood
• Interpretive stops sharing stories of Quaker abolitionists, African American residents, freedom seekers, and Lucretia Mott
• Return to Gather Place for beverages and light refreshments