Erastus Hussey (1800–1889) was an important abolitionist, a stationmaster on the Underground Railroad, and one of the people who helped start the Republican Party. He worked as a farmer, teacher, businessman, legislator, and editor to support his family.

Personal life

Erastus Hussey was born in Scipio, Cayuga County, New York, on December 5, 1800. He grew up on a farm located on the eastern shore of Cayuga Lake. He used books from a large library to improve his education and later became a schoolteacher. He saved his earnings to travel west. He first walked 140 miles (230 km) to Buffalo, New York, and then took a boat to Detroit. He arrived on September 25, 1824, and the next month became the first buyer of land in Plymouth, Michigan.

On February 21, 1827, Hussey married Sarah E. Bowen. Sarah’s parents were Lucretia and Benjamin Bowen. The Husseys had a daughter named Susan, who later married Henry B. Denman. Denman was Hussey’s father’s business partner in the 1840s. Hussey died on January 21, 1889, at his home in Battle Creek. Sarah died on March 22, 1899, in Battle Creek.

Career

Hussey moved to Plymouth and lived on a 160-acre farm, where he farmed wheat from 1827 to 1836. In September 1838, he moved to Battle Creek and started a general store there in 1839. In 1843, Henry B. Denman became his business partner, and together they ran a dry goods store called Hussey & Denman until 1847.

He supported free education, which was funded by a general tax. He helped manage the school system for three years and was also a member of the school board. His wife, Sarah, started the Ladies' Library Association.

In 1847, Hussey became the editor of the anti-slavery newspaper, Michigan Liberty Press. In the spring of 1849, a fire destroyed the newspaper’s building. Originally a member of the Whig Party, he later joined the Liberty Party, which had a stronger opposition to slavery. He was also part of Michigan’s Anti-Slavery Society.

Hussey held several positions in city government. He was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives and served in the Fifteenth Legislature in 1850. On July 6, 1854, he attended the "Under the Oaks" convention in Jackson, Michigan, where the Republican Party had one of its first meetings.

Representing Calhoun County, he worked on the Printing committee. As a Republican, he served in the Michigan Senate, representing Calhoun County in the 13th district from 1855 to 1856. He was part of committees for Finance, Federal Relations, and State Prisons. He helped introduce the Personal Freedom Act of 1855, a law designed to stop former slaves from being captured and sent back to slavery. The law was also called the Personal Liberty Bill. Battle Creek became a city in 1859, and Hussey was one of its first city officials.

Hussey was a delegate to the 1860 Republican National Convention, where Abraham Lincoln was chosen as the presidential candidate. In 1867, he was elected mayor of Battle Creek.

Underground Railroad

Hussey learned about the Underground Railroad when a man from Indiana named John Cross asked if Hussey would help run a station in Battle Creek. The Husseys were strong Quakers who strongly opposed slavery. By 1840, they began hiding escaped slaves in their home. Soon, their home became one of the most important stops on the Underground Railroad. Their station was part of the Central Michigan Route, which had stops every 15 miles between Cass County and Detroit, Michigan. Other stations along this route included Climax, Battle Creek, Marshall, Albion, Grass Lake, Ann Arbor, Plymouth, and Detroit, where people crossed into Canada (Sandwich First Baptist Church).

As a station master on the Underground Railroad, Hussey helped between 1,000 and 2,000 people escape slavery. The Husseys also helped a man named Samuel Strother, who later settled in Battle Creek. Hussey once shared stories about people who passed through his and his wife’s home.

He once learned that a group of slaveowners was traveling through Michigan. He printed warnings on handbills and spread them in newspapers. He traveled west to Niles, where he gave the handbills to the slaveowners. Because of this, the slaveowners did not visit Battle Creek.

Legacy

• A historical marker was placed at the site of their home, where they managed an Underground Railroad station.
• A bronze statue of Erastus Hussey, his wife Sarah, and Harriet Tubman was created by Ed Dwight. It is located in Battle Creek's Linear Park. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation funded the statue, which is the largest tribute to the Underground Railroad. It is 14 feet (4.3 m) high and 28 feet (8.5 m) wide. The statue honors all people who helped enslaved individuals escape slavery, even though they risked being imprisoned, injured, or killed.
• A historical plaque at the Kellogg Foundation Headquarters in Battle Creek includes a quote from Hussey: "I have fed and given protection to over 1,000 fugitives, and helped them travel to Canada." The plaque also states that when asked if any stationmaster had been paid, Hussey answered, "No…. We were working for humanity."