George Ivan Lynn Etheridge

27 May 2019 Smart Matches: Full name, B/D dates and locations. I doubted that he was born in Dawson Springs, however, I checked online and Dsprings was a hopping place in the late 1880's. So it's possible. Added spouse, siblings and children

I love the following account. Good for Henry Howton

Ginnie Hopper Oldham

Excerpt from Ivan Etheridge's, (s/o George Whitson Etheridge, s/o Miles Bartlett Etheridge and Charlotte Howton) narrative "My Trip to Dawson Springs, Ky from Colorado and back to Wyoming (year 1895), Ivan was 8 at the time of this trip:

"Then we went to see old man Henry Howton, that was Dad's uncle.  Before the Civil War he ran an underground station, so the negro slaves fleeing from their masters could get across the Ohio River, where they would be safe and free.  This was just an old well that the negroes could hide in during the day.  Uncle Henry would feed them and then they could travel at night that is, he would take them to another station and they would take care of them the next day, and so on till they were safe.  He had a neighbor that owned some negroes.  One day he came over to Uncle Henry's and brought a negro boy along to hold his horse.  Well, he made a mistake by staying for dinner.  When he got to the table he found the colored boy at the table.  He wasn't going to eat, but he had to sit down and eat with the negro boy, the old boy didn't like it but Uncle Henry weighted 190 lbs. and was 6 ft. 4 inches tall so he didn't have much choice.  My uncle had a blacksmith shop, and he let me run the bellows.  That was something I have always liked ever since. While we were there we went seining for fish.  I remember catching fish, but I don't remember any big ones, they were catfish."