September 9, 2003

CONTACT: Deanna L. Bremer
Director of Marketing
Cleveland Restoration Society
Phone: (216) 426-3111
Fax: (216) 426-1975
E-mail: dbremer@clevelandrestoration.org

HEAD OF FREEDOM CENTER TO SPEAK AT SOCIETY’S COMMUNITY LUNCHEON

The Cleveland Restoration Society welcomes keynote speaker, Dr. Spencer R. Crew, Executive Director and CEO of the new National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, to our 31st Annual Community Luncheon on November 25, 2003. The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, which is scheduled to open mid-Summer 2004 on the northern bank of the Ohio River in Cincinnati, will celebrate the historic efforts of the Underground Railroad, showcase the efforts of modern day heroes and offer lessons and reflections on the ongoing struggle for freedom. Dr. Crew will speak about the opportunities and challenges of preserving Ohio’s Underground Railroad sites. This event, which will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Cleveland Marriott Society Center Ballroom, 127 Public Square, Cleveland, Ohio, raises much-needed unrestricted funds for the Cleveland Restoration Society’s programs and operations.

Many freedom-seekers crossed the Ohio River, the legal and symbolic dividing line between the South and the free North, as passengers on the Underground Railroad. Before 1863, a system of cooperation among African American slaves, free African Americans, abolitionists and sympathetic Whites and Native Americans arose to help slaves escape their bonds and claim the promise of freedom. According to a recent study by the National Park Service, "...this informal system arose as a loosely constructed network of escape routes that originated in the South, intertwined throughout the North, but also extended into western territories, Mexico and the Caribbean." Ohio, with its broad border on the Ohio River, and Cleveland, with its lakefront leading to Canada, played a central role in many people’s journey to freedom.

Dr. Crew has a distinguished track record of making history accessible. As the Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, he is building a museum from the ground up. Dr. Crew grew up in Cleveland and sits on the Board of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He made a name for himself as a curator at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. His 1987 exhibition “Field to Factory” documented the migration of southern blacks to northern cities in the years during and after World War I and sparked a national discussion on the impact of migration and race. In 1994, he was named director of the museum, becoming the youngest and the first African American director of a major Smithsonian museum.

Dr. Crew is an active member of the academic and cultural communities, serving on many boards that work to generate enthusiasm for history among the general public. In addition to serving on the Board of the National Trust, he is the Chair of the National Council for History Education. He has published extensively in the areas of African American History and Public History.

Individual tickets for the Community Luncheon range in price from $40 to $125 each. For reservations and more information, contact the Cleveland Restoration Society at (216) 426-1000 or e-mail fhall@clevelandrestoration.org.

The Cleveland Restoration Society & Preservation Resource Center of Northeastern Ohio is the region’s largest non-profit preservation organization and is a Local Partner affiliate of the National Trust. Founded in 1972, the Society is dedicated to the preservation of greater Cleveland’s historic resources.

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