The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center is anchoring its future in the power of its past.
A new permanent exhibit, “In This Place,” opens May 23 on the museum’s first floor. It honors the thousands of enslaved people who crossed the Ohio River seeking freedom and marks the Freedom Center’s first major exhibit addition in 15 years.
Set on the riverfront site where many freedom seekers first stepped onto free soil, the immersive gallery introduces guests to the museum by spotlighting the historic and symbolic significance of its location.
The exhibit features a panoramic media experience, historical photos, archival footage and artifacts that explore Cincinnati’s role as a borderland between slave and free states. An interactive digital river allows visitors to “pull” moments of history from a virtual current to learn more about key events and individuals.
“The story of the Freedom Center is rooted in this power of place and the legacy of the land we stand on,” said Woodrow Keown Jr., president and COO of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.
Reshaping the museum through history
“In This Place” is part of a broader exhibit overhaul at the Freedom Center that includes updates to existing galleries and the development of a new permanent social justice exhibit. That forthcoming gallery will focus on local and national movements from the late 1800s to the present, tracing modern activism back to the Underground Railroad’s tactics and strategies.
By rooting visitors in the physical and symbolic power of its riverfront location, the Freedom Center aims to connect historical struggle with contemporary calls for justice – beginning each visit with a reminder that liberation has always required courage, action and place.
“This new gallery will serve as an important introduction to the Freedom Center, our region’s history and the stories guests encounter as they journey through our museum,” Keown said.
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