I should have known better than to believe such a thing, a professional genealogist I spoke with — a descendant of a branch of the Poor family — said when I told him I was looking into the claim that 66 Poor Street had been a stop on the Underground Railroad. Similar claims are made all over New England, especially on behalf of “any house with a root cellar,” he scoffed. These stories often turn up when a house is changing hands, he added, to make the real estate seem more valuable. Indeed, I suddenly recalled during our conversation, that the very narrative line had been employed when local residents, myself among them, had battled to block the plan of developers who wanted to turn the house into an multi-unit condominium some years ago. A former owner of 66 Poor Street, Robert R. Deacon of East Kingston, New Hampshire, had written a letter to the editor that had stressed the legacy.
"It was in this house that William Poor, under blanket of darkness, ferried runaway slaves to Salem, N.H….,” he told Andover Townsman readers. “It always filled us with pride when, on a warm summer evening, the Historical Society would conduct walking tours of Shawsheen and stop in front of our house to tell the group about her proud history." That's where William Poor, one of the founders of Andover, lived, he later told the Andover Planning Board. He mentioned, too, its underground railroad aspect, and said that a slave, who had fought at Bunker Hill, had also lived there.
Mr. Deacon was, undoubtedly, well-meaning, but he got some of his facts wrong on his way to helping score a victory. (Andover's Zoning Board of Appeals voted against issuing the special permit that would have allowed the original project to go forward. Instead, the house stayed a single-family residence and a four-unit condo was built beside it.) William Poor was not a founder of Andover, although his ancestor Daniel Poor was. Nor did William Poor ever live at 66 Poor Street. Neither did the slave, actually a freed slave, Salem Poor, who had been sold his freedom by one John Poor Jr. and honored with a U.S. postage stamp issued during our Bicentennial year. The house is circa 1830, long after the American Revolutionary War was over. And yes, Joseph Poor did once own it, but not until October 9, 1865. By then, the Civil War had ended and with it, any need to hide fugitive slaves on his property.
To be continued.
"It was in this house that William Poor, under blanket of darkness, ferried runaway slaves to Salem, N.H….,” he told Andover Townsman readers. “It always filled us with pride when, on a warm summer evening, the Historical Society would conduct walking tours of Shawsheen and stop in front of our house to tell the group about her proud history." That's where William Poor, one of the founders of Andover, lived, he later told the Andover Planning Board. He mentioned, too, its underground railroad aspect, and said that a slave, who had fought at Bunker Hill, had also lived there.
Mr. Deacon was, undoubtedly, well-meaning, but he got some of his facts wrong on his way to helping score a victory. (Andover's Zoning Board of Appeals voted against issuing the special permit that would have allowed the original project to go forward. Instead, the house stayed a single-family residence and a four-unit condo was built beside it.) William Poor was not a founder of Andover, although his ancestor Daniel Poor was. Nor did William Poor ever live at 66 Poor Street. Neither did the slave, actually a freed slave, Salem Poor, who had been sold his freedom by one John Poor Jr. and honored with a U.S. postage stamp issued during our Bicentennial year. The house is circa 1830, long after the American Revolutionary War was over. And yes, Joseph Poor did once own it, but not until October 9, 1865. By then, the Civil War had ended and with it, any need to hide fugitive slaves on his property.
To be continued.
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