This is episode four of Illinois 250 on Community Voices. This is a special six-part series exploring Illinois connections to the 250th anniversary of the United States, created in partnership with Illinois Humanities.
Record an Illinois Voices 250 story - Explore the Passport to Illinois
As Illinois joins the nation in commemorating America's 250th anniversary, two historians are working to ensure Black history remains a visible and lasting part of the state's story.
Connie Martin, an Illinois Humanities Road Scholar and retired educator, has spent years sharing her family's connection to the Underground Railroad through the tradition of quilt codes. Inspired by her mother's research and presentations, Martin has expanded that work by researching Underground Railroad routes and abolitionist histories in communities across Illinois. Her presentations bring history to life by explaining how quilt patterns, such as the familiar Log Cabin design, were believed to communicate messages of danger, safety, and hope to freedom seekers traveling north.
Martin says Illinois played a pivotal role in the Underground Railroad, with routes from across the state converging in Chicago before many freedom seekers continued on to Canada in search of true freedom after passage of the Fugitive Slave Act.
Preserving more recent history is also the mission of Leila Wills, executive director of the Historical Preservation Society of the Illinois Chapter of the Black Panther Party. Wills is leading the creation of the Black Panther Party Heritage Trail, a project that identifies and commemorates important sites across Illinois, even where original buildings no longer stand.
Together, Martin and Wills say preserving places, stories, and community memories ensures future generations inherit a fuller, more accurate understanding of Illinois history—and the people whose contributions helped shape it.
Illinois 250 on Community Voices is a special series exploring Illinois connections to the 250th anniversary of the United States, created in partnership with Illinois Humanities.
This 6-part series uplifts stories of people and places in Illinois that have helped bring the ideals of the Declaration of Independence to life and shaped the story of our nation. Production assistance from Alison Cuddy.
Transcript pending.
