 "'Free Frank' afforded me the opportunity to research a challenging
sculpture commission in a unique and fascinating way," said Shirley
McWorter Moss, a descendant of "Free Frank" McWorter, who founded
New Philadelphia in Pike County in 1836. "I drew upon many seemingly
unrelated disciplines to complete the process. 'Free Frank' has
again opened the door for a family member to broaden their knowledge
to reach a higher level of accomplishment."Moss is the sculptor
of a bronze bust of her great-great-grandfather that was part of the
donation on Thursday. The donation also includes the first 11
volumes, with additional volumes to come, of a documentary history
of New Philadelphia and the McWorter family, including a three-year
archaeological investigation of the community. The volumes were
donated by Shirley; her brother William McWorter; cousins from
fifth-generation descendents of Frank McWorter, including Gerald
McWorter and Allen Kirkpatrick; and the New Philadelphia
Association. In addition, Janet C. Davies, host and executive
producer for "190 North" on ABC-7 in Chicago,
donated a DVD copy of "Rediscovering a Pioneer's Dream," an
ABC News documentary about New Philadelphia.
"The ongoing research on New Philadelphia is an important
contribution to our knowledge about Frank McWorter and the town he
founded," said Tom Schwartz, Illinois state historian. "This
donation helps make much of that research available to a larger
public audience."
Frank McWorter was born into slavery in 1777 on a plantation in
Union County, S.C., and moved with his owner, George McWhorter, to
Kentucky in 1795. Frank was so industrious that he was put in charge
of the Kentucky operation when George moved to Tennessee. Frank
married a fellow enslaved Kentuckian in 1799.
During the War of 1812 Frank McWorter started a saltpeter mining
and production operation in his free time. With earnings from the
saltpeter operation and by taking odd jobs from neighbors, he
purchased freedom for his wife, Lucy, in 1817 and for himself in
1819. He succeeded in purchasing freedom for 16 members of his
family over the years, spending approximately $14,000, the
equivalent of more than $300,000 today. By doing so, he earned the
nickname "Free Frank."
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 Shortly after gaining his freedom, he began to invest his
earnings by purchasing land in a largely undeveloped area of Pike
County, where he and his family moved in 1830. He subdivided and
sold tracts of land and platted and legally registered the town of
New Philadelphia. He thus became the first African-American to
legally found a town in the United States.
The town grew to 160 inhabitants by 1865, but a rail line through
Pike County that was expected to pass through New Philadelphia was
constructed along another route, and the town was dissolved in 1885.
The site of the town is now covered by farmland.
"Free Frank" McWorter died in 1854, and his wife died in 1870 at
99 years of age. His grave site was listed in the National Register
of Historic Places in 1988 through the efforts of his
great-granddaughter Thelma McWorter Kirkpatrick Wheaton and
great-great-granddaughter Juliet E.K. Walker.
A collaborative project of archaeologists, historians, area
communities and descendants succeeded in locating the New
Philadelphia town site during 2002 and researching its history.
Their efforts resulted in the New Philadelphia site being listed in
the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. Today, signs along
Interstate 72 in Pike County commemorate "Free Frank" McWorter and
New Philadelphia. A 35-mile stretch from Griggsville to the Missouri
state line was dedicated in February 2005 by Illinois Gov. Rod R.
Blagojevich.
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library is the state's chief
historical and genealogical research facility. Its collections
feature more than 12 million items pertaining to all areas of
Illinois history. For more information, visit
www.alplm.org.
[Text from
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum news release
received from the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information]
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