In remembrance of a man’s courage to liberate himself and gain freedom, a plaque marker was placed on Buffington Street in Guyandotte, West Virginia. 

The dedication ceremony, held by the Appalachian Freedom Heritage Tour, took place Sunday, Sept. 28, with guests seated across from the plaque before the unveiling.

The Tour is part of the Appalachian Freedom Initiative, which is, according to their website, “a nine-county, three-state initiative to locate and document Underground Railroad sites in the tri-state region of Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia.”

The marker is one of two new sites in Cabell County, with the other on Green Bottom/Jenkins Plantation.

The marker honors the life of James Major Monroe, a Black man who escaped from slavery in 1836. Monroe was captive on his owner’s plot of land in Guyandotte until he had to leave his wife behind and fled across the Ohio River. 

Monroe got to Chillicothe, Ohio, where he was then captured and held in a tavern. He promptly escaped that night and fully gained his freedom in Toronto, Canada. In 1838, he tried to return to free his wife, whom he had not forgotten, but she had been sold to the deep South. 

Multiple people spoke at the ceremony, including Marie Redd, the first African American West Virginia state senator, and Marty Conley, the director of the Lawrence County Convention and Visitor’s Center, about the significance of the plaque and the history of not just the country, but Huntington as well.

Conley said, “We stand on a piece of the ground that tells the truth. (The marker) honors a husband and wife, bound together by love but separated by slavery.”

Redd spoke about the importance of “preserving and protecting the history of those who fought for their freedom.” 

The ceremony also included remarks and a prayer by Rev. Anthony Stradwick of the First Baptist Church in Huntington. 

Stradwick said, “Some people don’t realize that this is our history. Whether it’s good or bad, it’s still our history. This represents a man who had the courage to seek freedom.”

A song titled “Oh Freedom” was sung by Doris “Lady D” Fields,  soul and blues musician and songwriter.

The marker was unveiled after Cicero M. Fain, the assistant director of research and outreach for the Appalachian Freedom Heritage Tourism Initiative, presented the certificate that made the site officially recognized by the National Park Service.

Davina Snyder can be contacted at [email protected].