George Boxley facts for kids
George Boxley (1780–1865) was a white man who believed in ending slavery. He used to own enslaved people but later worked to free them. In 1815, while living in Spotsylvania, Virginia, he was accused of planning a rebellion for enslaved people.
Boxley believed he had "heaven-sent" orders to help enslaved people become free. He tried to get enslaved people from nearby counties to meet at his home. They were supposed to bring horses, guns, swords, and clubs. His plan was to attack and take over the cities of Fredericksburg and Richmond, Virginia. However, a local enslaved woman named Lucy told her owner about the plan, and it was stopped. Six enslaved people involved were sent to jail or faced serious consequences. With help from his wife, Boxley escaped from the Spotsylvania County Jail. Even though there was a reward for his capture, he was never caught.
Boxley fled to Ohio and Indiana, where his family later joined him. In 1830, he built a cabin, which was the first in Adams Township. He helped enslaved people who had run away, taught at a school, and strongly supported abolitionism (the movement to end slavery). The George Boxley Cabin is now a historic site listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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Who Was George Boxley?
George Boxley was born in Virginia in 1780. He worked as a storekeeper and miller. He became very dedicated to the idea of ending slavery. He arrived in Indiana because he had to run away from the law. He was the first person to settle in Adams Township, Hamilton County, Indiana.
Early Life and a Bold Plan
Stories about Boxley's life have some different details. But the main facts are that Boxley, who had once owned enslaved people, came to oppose slavery. He was accused of helping enslaved people escape and of encouraging a rebellion in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. He was put in jail, but his wife, Hannah, helped him escape. After leaving Virginia, Boxley might have spent a short time in Pennsylvania.
Some stories say he lived in Ohio and the Missouri Territory at different times. He was even confronted by people trying to catch him for the reward, but he always managed to get away. His family joined him each time he moved to a new place. Finally, Boxley headed to Indiana. He first stopped at Strawtown, thinking he would continue west to settle near the Wabash River. But on his journey through the thick forests, Boxley noticed the land that would become his future home. He decided to claim it there.
A New Life in Indiana
Around 1828, Boxley arrived to stay in Adams Township, and his family soon joined him. In 1830, Boxley officially recorded the 80 acres (320,000 m2) of land where he had built his cabin. This was the earliest cabin in the township.
Building a Home and a School
Boxley was a well-read man who strongly believed in education. On his land, he quickly built a small log school. It was for his own children and the children of other settlers who were starting to move into the area. Boxley is known for starting the first school in the township. He taught his students using books from his own library. He taught them history, literature, law, and politics. He had strong opinions about these subjects.
It's not clear how long he kept the school running. It was at least until about 1838, when a school that charged a fee became available in Englewood (later Bakers Corner), about four miles to the east. He might have taught even longer. In 1851, a township school was finally started near the southeast corner of Boxley's land.
Helping Others: The Underground Railroad?
Local stories say that Boxley helped with the Underground Railroad. This was a secret network that helped enslaved people escape to freedom. The stories say he hid runaway enslaved people in a secret space under his cabin. It was widely known that he believed in ending slavery. However, there is no clear proof that he directly participated in the Underground Railroad.
We know that such activities happened to the southeast in the Westfield area. Some sources suggest there was a route that might have passed by, or even included, Boxley's cabin. On the other hand, since Boxley's strong beliefs about freedom and ending slavery were public, some people think his property might have been too obvious a hiding place. This would have made it unsafe for enslaved people. But this doesn't mean he didn't help in many other ways.
His Family and Later Years
George Boxley married Hannah in Fredericksburg, Virginia. They had 11 children together. Some of their children were born after they left the South. While some were young adults when Boxley arrived in Indiana, his youngest children were born while he was on the run. His youngest child, Benjamin Boxley, was the first recorded death in the township. He was killed when a tree fell on him during a bad thunderstorm.
After his wife died in 1853, George Boxley's health got worse. At some point, he left his cabin to live with his son Caswell (1817–1891). Caswell was a lawyer and a schoolteacher. Caswell's first wife died in 1858, and his father might have moved in with him around that time. Caswell quickly remarried Sarah Ann Kercheval in 1859. He also bought his father's land then.
George Boxley died in 1865. He was buried in the cemetery of the town that was named after him.
George Boxley's Lasting Impact
- In 1836, Boxley's two oldest sons, Thomas and Addison, started a town called Boxleytown. It was about four miles (6 km) northeast of the Boxley cabin on the old Lafayette Trace. This was an important road for many decades. In the 1830s, a state road had been moved to the south, which used to run across George Boxley's property.
- In 2007, the restored logs of the George Boxley Cabin were put back together on its original foundation. This is now on Pioneer Hill in Sheridan's Veterans Park. The Boxley Cabin is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
