2020 Tours

I plan to do only 3 tours this year. The following are the 3 tours on the agenda!

1- September 10–DETROIT CELEBRITY HOME Tour-($60)* (9:00-4:30)
Eat lunch (on your own on Canfield)
2- October 10-11-CANADA UNDERGROUND RAILROAD TOUR-($139 double room)($239-single room)
3- October 21—-CHELSEA & DEXTER Tour (9:00-7:30) ($70)

TRAVEL INSURANCE- www.axatravelinsurance.com- 1-855-327-1441

Tours leave from Eastpointe, 16600 Stephens (Stephens is the equivalent of 9 & one half mile-1 block from Gratiot). Tours conducted by Stewart McMillin from Indian Village. He has led Black History Tours of Detroit for 53 YEARS. Please mail checks or money orders to Stewart McMillin -2136 Seminole, Detroit Mi.-48214. The EARLIER the BETTER for CHECKS!!

Stewart McMillin at 313-922-1990 or e-mail stewart@mcmillintours.com

UNDERGROUND RAILROAD TRIP TO OHIO

& KENTUCKY-April 16-19, 2021-I am going to begin this letter

by talking about the MONEY.!!!!About Thanksgiving of 2020 I will begin receiving the checks. ALL MONEY must be to Stewart by Feb. 1, 2021!!!!!! I need 40 people!!!!!!!!

2020-(Sgl-$659) (Dbl-$375-each) During this fabulous 4 day, 3 night adventure we will either visit or learn about the following Ohio Cities: Wilberforce, Springboro, Cincinnati*, New Richmond, Point Pleasant, RIPLEY, , Wellington, Oberlin.& Sandusky. Kentucky cities will include, Maysville, Washington, & Mays Lick.Two homes with slavery will be in Mays Lick!!!.

AUGUST 2- FRIDAY- The beginning of our “WOW ADVENTURE” happens at 9:00 AM from the Military Museum in Eastpointe. As we drive south on I-75 we will introduce ourselves, go thru Stewart’s handouts, watch relevant videos & have lunch on bus. Please bring your own lunch for the first day. Stewart will have plenty of soft drinks, water, snack stuff, apples and “sweets’ for your pleasure. When we come to Dayton we will learn about Paul Lawrence Dunbar (he grew up here).Near Wilberforce we will learn about some of the UGRR history in this area..We then drive thru Wilberforce University Campus & see historic markers & visit the Wilberforce Museum. (our 1st stop) This is the oldest private historically black college in the USA! After visiting the Wilberforce Museum. we will see the “Cry Baby” Bridge & then the home of the 3rd Black Man who went to Westpoint–Charles Young! (our 2nd stop) (the home that he was born in is in Kentucky) I have seen it once in Mays Lick, Ky.

Our 3rd stop will be Springboro, where we will visit a B & B which once served as a “station”on the UGRR. In that home we will see a secret hiding place where fugitives could hide if necessary. Springboro once had over 20 homes that were on the UGRR!!! We will see many of them.(outside only). We will eat at a choice of restaurants before we check into our Super 8 Motel. We will be spending two nights here. .

AUGUST 3-SATURDAY–Our 1st highlight today will be driving near the beautiful Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati(“Cinci”) (2nd largest Cemetery in the USA) where we will learn about the final resting places of two very famous abolitionists—Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase & Levi Coffin—a former “President” of the UGRR. Our 1st stop today will be the home where Harriet Beecher Stowe stayed in “Cinci. “ She wrote the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. This experience at her home will be a REMARKABLE VISIT!! Our next stop will be lunch at a choice of restaurants in downtown “Cinci”.. The area is called “The Banks”. In the afternoon we will see one of the HIGHLIGHTS OF THE TRIP:—The fantastic FREEDOM CENTER on the banks of the Ohio River in Cinci.(1:30-5:00) You will never forget the sight of the SLAVE PEN! etc. After the museum, we will walk near the Ohio River reading historical markers. We also will look across the Ohio River to Covington, Kentucky. A very sad UGRR incident occurred near here. We will learn about the horrors suffered by Margaret Garner (& her children) on their attempt to gain freedom.Dinner will be at a choice of places in “The Banks.

AUGUST 4–SUNDAY-In the AM we will drive along the Ohio River. seeing romantic, historical, & relevant towns in Ohio associated with the UGRR. These include Richmond, Pt. Pleasant, Moscow, & RIPLEY. Ripley, Ohio along with John Rankin, John Parker and a host of other brave people escorted or gave directions to thousands of people on the UGRR. In Ripley we will climb FREEDOM HILL (optional). This is a steep walk where fugitives in the 19th Century escaped slavery in Kentucky & sought refuge at Pastor John Rankin’s home at the top of the hill in Ripley. We will have a tour of John Rankin’s home. You will have a breathtaking. view of the Ohio River & Kentucky from the Rankin home. We will then enjoy lunch at a choice of restaurants in Ripley. After lunch we will tour Main Street where we will see a number of “stations” on the UGRR including John Parker’s home—an incredible & brave abolitionist! We will tour his home also! After Ripley we cross the Ohio River & learn about the Historic town of Maysville, Kentucky. We will walk along the levee located on the Ohio River & view beautiful murals. The murals describe the history & events in Maysville history.

MURAL INFO-

1-In 1803 Meriweather Lewis (of the Lewis & Clark Expedition) picked up the famous (also

infamous) John Coulter enroute from Pittsburgh to Louisville where they meet William Clark.

He was the first person (other than Native Americans) to see Yellowstone Park & their

geysers !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (he left the trip early !!!!!)

2-Lafayette made a trip back to the USA from France about 45 years after his French Army

helped George Washington win the American Revolution. Lafayette was only 19 when he

came to assist the Continental Army. He left Pittsburgh on the Ohio River to come to Mays-

ville. (same trip Meriweather Lewis made in 1804)

3-Thornton Blackburn was born here. He and his wife Lucie escaped slavery in Louisville &

became famous in Detroit. His escape from a Detroit Jail started the first Detroit Race Riot in

He had been placed in jail by slave catchers but, Detroit abolitionists broke in to the jail

& he & his wife escaped to Canada.. Thornton owned the first taxi cab in Toronto!!!

Next we will go to Washington—— a quiet & relaxed village. Walking around this historic

place seems to take you back 200 years. It does not have all of the commercial activity so

many historical places seem to have. By far the most memorable event in Washington was

when Harriet Beecher Stowe first saw slaves being sold—and it horrified her. The result—

Harriet decided to write the book—Uncle Tom’s Cabin. We then check into our Super 8 Motel,

freshen up, & head downtown to Maysville to eat at Chandlers. (a black owned restaurant)

. AUGUST 5-MONDAY –Today we get up EARLY for our departure from our Super 8 at 8:30!!!!!!!! We are going to Tour Augusta, Kentucky & take a boat ride across the Ohio River.. Our Tour Guide will be Carolyn Miller & she is TERRIFIC!! Your experience on the boat will be quite different than the fugitives before the Civil War.. Those fugitives were just SCARED TO DEATH but, their desire for FREEDOM outweighed anything else!!!!!!!!!!!!!. Carolyn will share many sites in Augusta that referred to slavery & the agony of that situation. About 10:30 or 11:00 we will leave Augusta & start our trek back to Ohio. We will eat lunch at a Ponderosa Restaurant in Hillsboro, Ohio. After lunch we are off for Wellington where we will learn about the “Wellington raid”. That incident .really put OBERLIN ON THE MAP!!!. We then arrive in OBERLIN—our last MAJOR STOP OF THE TRIP! We will learn about its history and some of the AMAZING PEOPLE who walked on this campus. We will tour the historic sites in Oberlin. I cannot predict our timing for this day. I hope we are back to Eastpointe no later than 9:00PM.!!!

*Cinci–this stands for Cincinnati.

MISCELLANEOUS INFO-Meals are on your own. I recommend you get travel insurance—866-877-3240-TRAVELGUARD.COM- You could also call 866-729-5215

STEWART’S BACKGROUND-

He has led these 2 tours about 10 times each! This is his 50thyear

conducting tours. This is his last year for giving OVERNIGHT TRIPS! I

taught Social Studies at East Detroit High School for 30 years. (1964-1993)

From 1994-2001 I taught Humanities at Wayne State University. Of course

TRAVELLING has also been very important to me. I also have been blessed

to have visited all of the states and 142 countries!!! Please send checks to- Stewart McMillin–2136 Seminole- Detroit, Michigan 48236 (DO NOT say Stewart McMillin TOURS!!!!!!!!!)