Gerrit Smith
 VITAL STATS  

Mohawk Valley connection:
Resident of Peterboro, NY; Attended Utica Conference of 1835

Claim to fame:
Nationally recognized abolitionist; Integral role with the underground railroad.

Did you know?
Rioters stormed the church that held the Utica Conference in 1835.

Quote:
"...political rights are not conventional, but natural-inhering in all persons, the black as well as the white, the female as well as the male."

Suggest a celebrity | Utica community

Gerrit Smith. Submitted photo.

Quick BIO

Gerrit Smith was a prominent abolitionist from Peterboro, NY. He was inspired to become the president of the New York Anti-Slavery Society after an anti-slavery conference in Utica, NY was disrupted by rioters.

Smith's estate was a stop on the Underground Railroad for slaves heading to Canada. He had many land holdings in the state and he sold farm tracts to African-Americans for one dollar each.

Today, the Smith home is a National Historic Landmark and is open to the public.

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