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John Gill Craven

Released
Full name:John Craven
Gender:Male
Race:White
Era:1800s
State:Indiana
Support
Abolitionism Underground Railroad
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Biography

John Gill Craven was principal of the Eleutherian Institute (later Eleutherian College) in Lancaster, Indiana — an abolition school open to students of all colors, a few miles from slave territory. He and his wife Martha opened their home to Black students and aided freedom seekers. Craven, along with James and Lucy Nelson, was arrested by the sheriff of Jefferson County under the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law.

Case

Charges: Violating the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law.
Sentence: Arrested by the sheriff of Jefferson County, Indiana. Charges as recorded: Violating the 1850 Fugitive Slave Law — for aiding freedom seekers at and around the abolitionist Eleutherian Institute.
Convicted: Arrested and prosecuted under the Fugitive Slave Law.