Crenshaw House (Gallatin County, Illinois) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Crenshaw House
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Front and side of the house
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 Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
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| Location | Off Rt. 1, Equality, Illinois |
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| Area | 2 acres (0.81 ha) |
| Built | 1834 |
| Architect | William Gavin |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival architecture, Vernacular Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 85001164 |
| Added to NRHP | May 29, 1985 |
The Crenshaw House (also known as the Crenshaw Mansion, Hickory Hill or, most commonly, The Old Slave House) is an historic former residence and alleged haunted house located in Equality Township, Gallatin County, Illinois. The house was constructed in the 1830s. It was the main residence of John Crenshaw, his wife, and their five children.
In 2004, the National Park Service named the mansion as a "station" on the Reverse Underground Railroad to acknowledge Crenshaw's practice of kidnapping free blacks in Illinois and selling them in the Slave States.
Early history
Landowner and illegal slave trader John Hart Crenshaw leased the state-owned salt works located at the Illinois Salines, two saline springs along the Saline River near Equality that were important sources of salt since prehistory. Salt was vital to the early American frontier economy, both as a nutrient and as a means to preserve food. Illinois was a free state, and the Illinois State Constitution bans slavery. However, the law permitted the use of slaves at the salt works since the labor was so arduous that no free men could be found to do it. As the lessee of the salt works, Crenshaw was one of a small minority of Illinois residents legally entitled to keep slaves, and Crenshaw became remarkably wealthy. At one point, Crenshaw's taxes amounted to one-seventh of the revenue of the entire state. Crenshaw owned thousands of acres of land, in addition to the 30,000 acres (120 km²) he leased from the state, and more than 700 slaves. In 1838, Crenshaw and his brother Abraham used this wealth to build the mansion on Hickory Hill, a few miles from the salt works near the town of Junction.
Abraham Lincoln's visit
In September 1840, Abraham Lincoln, a state representative, was in Gallatin County for over a week attending debates in Shawneetown and Equality. The Crenshaws hosted a ball in honor of the debates. The ball was held on the second floor. The second floor of the house was designed to be easily converted into a ballroom because the hall and two of the rooms were made from moveable partitions particularly for such events. Mr. Lincoln along with other male guests spent the night in the Southeast bedroom of the Crenshaw House. The furniture in the room consisted of one bed and two chairs. Mr. Lincoln either slept on the bed, which was shorter than he was, or he could have spread out over the two chairs, or possibly slept on the floor.
In 1850, Crenshaw and his family moved to the nearby town of Equality, and hired a German family to live in the house and operate the farm. Crenshaw sold the house in 1864. Crenshaw died in 1871 and was buried in the Hickory Hill Cemetery. By 1913, the house was owned by the Sisk family.
Historic site
In 1913, the house was purchased by the Sisk family, who began charging for public tours offering "a thrilling experience".
In 1996 George Sisk, Jr. retired and closed the museum. In December 2000 the Sisk family sold the house to the state of Illinois. The state paid $500,000 for the house and 10 acres. It is currently closed to the public as the state determines its ultimate fate. Re-opening the house to the public would require renovations, repairs, a new road and parking lot, and a separate structure with a bathroom, all estimated to cost at least $7 million.
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The Saline River of southeastern Illinois where John Crenshaw at the Illinois Salines leased out Kentucky slaves who boiled down salt brine water from the river into usable salt for sale.
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Kidnapping a free black from a free state to be sold into American slavery, 1834 in which Crenshaw was an active participant.
