Who's Who in Pennsylvania's Underground Railroad

Zerchers' Hotel in Christiana, Pennsylvania

NPS Network to Freedom Site

Randolph J. Harris, of Lancaster, has been doing yeoman's work in the field of Underground Railroad research for quite some time. His efforts have yielded valuable results in the discovery, recognition, and ultimately the protection of several highly significant sites in Lancaster County. Those sites include the cistern connected with Thaddeus Stevens' property at 45-47 South Queen Street in Lancaster, believed to have been used as an Underground Railroad refuge, and as documented below, recognition of Zercher's Hotel as the only surviving historical site associated with the Christiana Rebellion.

Recently, a gala opening for the new Christiana Underground Railroad visitor's center was held. The center is located in the historic Zercher's Hotel, in the town of Christiana. The event also celebrated the site's inclusion in the National Park Service's Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, the only nationwide registry and network of sites, programs and research centers about the Underground Railroad. In the photograph at left, Richard Broadbent sings at the opening reception.