Underground Railroad History of Jonesville MI Tour by Williams Elementary School

The 4th grade students at Williams Elementary School in Jonesville, Michigan, take an annual field trip to tour the Munro House Bed and Breakfast. Legend has it that Munro House was once used as a Station on the Underground Railroad and hid over 400 runaway slaves for at least one day on their journey to freedom in Canada. The tour can last from 20 to 45 minutes–depending on time constraints. 
The elementary school students are invited to walk into what is left of a tunnel that was once over 150 feet long. Only about 30 feet of the tunnel remains and it is currently used as a landing to the basement.  Additionally, Munro House has a secret room that allegedly hid hundreds of runaway slaves over a 15 year period preceeding the American Civil War. A photo array shows several views of the hideaway that is large enough for thirty 4th graders to stand in. Unfortunately, to let 30 kids go up there would be an exercise in futility.  Only 2 people have been up there in the last 11 years.  The pictures are a much better alternative.
The Munro House can arrange tours of the house for various size groups.  Thirty kids or twenty adults at a time would be about the limit. Weekdays are preferred and Sunday afternoons are O.K., by appointment only. A group of 53 car club enthusiasts are coming by in waves next month. They love their old cars and they enjoy the historic tales of cool old buildings, too.

In addition to the tales of the Underground Railroad, the tour guides also tell about the history of Jonesville, early pioneers in Hillsdale County, and the tribe of Pottawatomie Indians who originally lived in the area. It happens that George Munro, the namesake for the house, was a local politician, businessman, and entrepreneur with many interesting stories of early Michigan settlers and politics. The legacy of his deeds are some of the foundations upon which Jonesville was built. Munro House has historic significance because it is the oldest house in Hillsdale County (circa 1834) and has a “new” addition that is the first brick building in Hillsdale County (1840).

Mike Venturini – Innkeeper
“Life is good in Jonesville”

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