09/28/2026
What was the Jerry Rescue?
On October 1, 1851, 175 years ago this week, a crowd of up to 3,000 abolitionists worked together to free William “Jerry” Henry who had been arrested under the terms of the Fugitive Slave Act. Passed in September of 1850, this legislation required freedom seekers to be returned to their enslavers and compelled citizens of free states to cooperate with their capture. While the Fugitive Slave Act may have been the law of the land, many considered it to be unjust for several reasons, including that under this legislation the accused were denied due process. Rather than allow this law to be carried out here, the abolitionist community broke into the offices of the Police Justice and rescued Jerry. They hid him until safe passage to freedom in Canada could be arranged. This act of civil disobedience became an important symbol of the antislavery movement. Originally attributed to St. Augustine of Hippo and later referenced by Martin Luther King Jr.: “An unjust law is no law at all.”
One hundred seventy-five years to the day after one of the most dramatic acts of civil resistance in the abolition movement, Syracuse will gather to remember the Jerry Rescue. The Erie Canal Museum, the New York Power Authority and the New York State Canal Corporation will present a free evening of history, reflection and community at the Everson Museum of Art at 6 PM on Thursday, October 1. Visit the Events Calendar on our website to learn more and register.
Multidisciplinary artist, scholar, poet and author Yao Kahlil Newkirk will deliver a multimedia lecture-performance based on his research into Peyton Harris, tracing Harris’s life from enslavement to an owner of canal boats and abolitionist in Buffalo. Following the performance, a panel discussion will explore abolition history, civil resistance, the impact of the arts, and the ways historic narratives influence our shared future.
The program includes:
Sharon Owens, Mayor of Syracuse, NY
Natalie Stetson, Executive Director, Erie Canal Museum
Nancy Harvey, Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer, New York Power Authority
Kyle Bass, Playwright, Screenwriter, Librettist and Professor
Ckristina Bennett, Educator, Syracuse City School District
Robert Searing, Curator of History, Onondaga Historical Association
Yao Kahlil Newkirk, Multidisciplinary Artist, Scholar, Poet and Author
Derrick Pratt, Deputy Director, Erie Canal Museum
Images:
Jerry Rescue Monument, Clinton Square
Jerry Rescue Building Print ECM 76.1583.246
West-looking View of Clinton Square ECM 00.1717.5
