Asbury Parker, wearing the suit of clothes in which he escaped, disguised as a freeman of color. Source: Wilbur H. Siebert Underground Railroad Collection, Ohio Memory, Ohio Historical Connection, Columbus, Ohio.
Crossing the River Jordan
Asbury Parker’s life traces a remarkable journey from enslavement in Cabell County, Virginia (now West Virginia), through a daring 1857 escape along the Ohio River, to his later work aiding other freedom seekers and ultimately building a free life in Ironton, Ohio. His story is deeply tied to the geography of the Tri-State region and to the networks of Black and interracial collaboration that defined the Underground Railroad.
Early Life in Cabell County
Asbury Parker was born into slavery in 1830 on the Richard Brown plantation, situated along the Ohio River in what is now downtown Huntington — a site that would later become his “gateway to freedom.”
The Brown plantation was later known as South Landing and Brownsville, complete with a store and a boat landing. Richard Brown operated a licensed “private house of entertainment,” employing an enslaved labor force. Its location near the James River–Kanawha Turnpike and the state road along the Ohio River guaranteed a constant stream of visitors who carried news and perhaps, fragments of information that enslaved people listened for: rumors of freedom, kin carried away or stories of escapes, such as James Major Monroe’s flight to freedom in 1836 from his enslaver Victor LeTulle at Guyandotte.
In 1838, after the death of Brown’s wife, financial pressures forced him to liquidate his Cabell County holdings. In 1839 he relocated to Lawrence County, Kentucky, taking most of his enslaved laborers — including nine-year-old Asbury — but leaving behind others, such as Fanny and her child, who were seized and sold when Brown defaulted on a loan. This early trauma of family separation shaped Parker’s understanding of slavery’s instability and cruelty.
Life in Kentucky and the Iron Furnace District
After Brown’s death in 1843, Parker was sold to James Rouse of Lawrence County, who moved to Clinton Furnace in Greenup County, Kentucky, about 1847 where Parker experienced industrial slavery for the first time. Clinton Furnace was notorious for harsh conditions for enslaved and free laborers alike who endured beatings for non-performance of duty. Parker worked as a team driver, hauling raw materials and pig iron between the furnace and Clinton Landing on the Ohio River.
During his years at Clinton Furnace, Parker formed a relationship with Hannah Poage, daughter of a free Black woman named Perlina Poage who was living near Clinton Landing. Research suggests that Parker fathered three daughters with Hannah before his escape. Perlina Poage’s family lived close to the river, and their ties to Ironton likely introduced Parker to the Underground Railroad network operating across the Ohio.
Richard Brown House (built c.1810), 2nd Ave between 4th & 5th Streets, Huntington, W.Va. Birthplace of Asbury Parker. Source: William Wallace Photograph Collection, Marshall University, Huntington, West Virginia.
The 1856 Presidential Election and Parker’s Decision to Escape
Parker had long contemplated escape but kept postponing it. Following the 1856 presidential election, Parker admitted he had “almost fell out with God for making me a slave.” Enslaved communities followed the contest closely, associating Republican candidate John C. Frémont with the possibility of freedom. When Democrat James Buchanan won, Parker became convinced that freedom would not come unless he decided to seize it. He concluded, “to make a break and I told the boys that by the end of another year no white man would be collectin’ my wages.”
“Crossing the River Jordan”
In April 1857, Parker fled Clinton Furnace under cover of night. Carefully avoiding slave patrols, he traveled up Shope’s Creek toward the Big Sandy River, likely crossing near Hampton City before moving east across Twelve Pole Creek into Cabell County.
Parker later stated, “I crossed the River at Huntington (there was no Huntington there then),” almost certainly at or near the old Brown plantation where he had been born. Parker noted that, at the designated time and place, “a friend of mine put me over the River in his skiff.” He may have been assisted by Edmund and Siller Brown, formerly enslaved on the same plantation and later emancipated, who were still living in the area.
Burlington, Ironton, and the Underground Railroad Network
Parker’s goal was to reach Ironton, Ohio, which was roughly 19 miles distant down the river. It is likely that he found assistance in nearby Burlington, home of one of the earliest free Black communities in the state, which had a long history of aiding fugitives. Its Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church was part of the Providence Anti-Slavery Baptist Association, whose ministers urged congregations to provide “shelter, resources, and guidance to freedom seekers.”
Possibly travelling by steamboat, Parker soon reached Ironton and met Gabe Johnson, a key Underground Railroad operator. Johnson’s barbershop near the wharf was a known site of assistance. Parker briefly reunited with Hannah at Perlina Poage’s home, changed out of his “Kentucky jeans,” and was soon guided by conductors Dan Holt and Nat Salisbury toward Olive Furnace.
Through the Furnace Region to Central Ohio
At Olive Furnace, Parker hid during the day before being taken to the home of “old Cratoff” — identified as James Craddolph, a formerly enslaved man active in the Underground Railroad. Craddolph escorted him to the Stewart settlement at Poke Patch, a major Black community and station. From there Parker traveled to Washington Switch, where he boarded a train — his first — using a $5 bill from the Wheeling Bank of Virginia to buy a ticket. His journey took him to Hamden, then Cincinnati, and finally Columbus.
In Columbus, he found refuge among Black residents and was questioned by a barber involved in the Underground Railroad, likely Rev. James P. or Joseph Poindexter. After resting, Parker continued north to the Benedict Settlement in Morrow County, a Quaker community known for sheltering “hundreds of poor fugitives.” He then moved through Mt. Gilead and Iberia, where he spent several days near Iberia College — an abolitionist institution founded by the Free Presbyterian Church.
Route of Asbury Parker’s Escape from Clinton Furnace in 1857. Source: Andrew Feight, Ph.D., Appalachian Freedom Heritage Tourism Initiative, Shawnee State University
Arrival in Canada
From Iberia, Parker followed the railroad tracks to Sandusky, where a Black youth connected to the Underground Railroad helped him board the steamer Bay City. He landed at Fort Malden, Ontario, a major terminus for freedom seekers. Parker recalled seeing “hundreds” of formerly enslaved people from Virginia, Tennessee, and Kentucky, some of whom were from his former neighborhood.
Life in Canada and Continued Activism
Parker did not remain in Canada. By 1860, he had returned to Morrow County, Ohio, where he was involved in the “Iberia Outrage,” a confrontation in which local residents — including Parker — resisted federal marshals attempting to capture escaped enslaved men. Indicted under the Fugitive Slave Act, Parker fled back to Canada where he remained until after the Civil War.
Parker settled with Hannah and their children in Windsor, Ontario. Tax records show that Parker found steady employment, rented his home and enjoyed relative economic stability. Contemporary observers described Windsor’s Black neighborhoods as “comfortable dwellings…with little gardens,” contradicting racist stereotypes of refugee poverty.
Return to Ohio and Later Life
After the repeal of the Fugitive Slave Act (1864) and the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment (1865), Parker and Hannah returned to Ohio. By 1870 they were living in Ironton, near Gabe Johnson and Hannah’s family. Parker worked as a laborer, furnace man and janitor. In 1889 he purchased property on Adams Street, across from Quinn Chapel AME Church — recently recognized by the NPS Network to Freedom for the role it played as part of Ironton’s UGRR network in aiding freedom seekers such as Parker. In 1894, Asbury Parker was interviewed by Prof. Wilbur H. Siebert, Associate Professor at Ohio State University, for his book “The Underground Railroad from Slavery to Freedom: A comprehensive history,” which was published in 1898.Asbury Parker died in 1903 at the age of 73. In 2025, his previously unmarked grave in Ironton’s Woodland Cemetery received a new monument honoring his journey from enslavement to freedom.
This site is part of the Appalachian Freedom Heritage Tour, funded by an ARC POWER Grant and developed by the Lawrence Economic Development Corp. and the Center for Public History at Shawnee State University.
