Published: July 29, 2007 10:34 pm            

UNDERGROUND RAILROAD: Whirlpool among bike rally stops

A celebration bike tour along the Underground Railroad from Buffalo to Canada will be making a pit stop at the center of the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge.

City officials and other local representatives are scheduled to meet with tour members at 11 a.m. Tuesday in the middle of the bridge for a 10-minute ceremony that will include a proclamation by Mayor Vince Anello and the presentation of the key to the city.

“It’s really going to be a significant moment,” said Ginny Sullivan, coordinator for the Underground Railroad Bike Tour for the Adventure Cycling Association. “I think it will be a really fun event.”

The Whirlpool Bridge was prominently used by slaves seeking freedom in the mid-1800s along the Underground Railroad from Maryland to Canada. Abolitionist Harriet Tubman is believed to have made numerous trips leading slaves to Canada over the bridge, which was then known as the Suspension Bridge.

Kevin Cottrell, who hosts Underground Railroad tours in the area, said the fact the bike tour will stop at the Whirlpool Bridge and pay homage to Tubman is an honor.

“The symbolism is pretty transparent — the Underground Railroad is alive and well in Niagara Falls and Canada,” he said.

The Underground Railroad Bicycle Route is the latest historical trail developed by Adventure Cycling. Overall, the tour stretches 2,058 miles from Mobile, Ala., to Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada. As part of the celebration tour beginning today, a total of 90 cyclists from throughout North America are expected to travel the final 292 miles on the route, which will begin in Buffalo and go across the International Peace Bridge into Canada and then to the Whirlpool Bridge ceremony before continuing on to Owen Sound.

“This is going to be an amazing journey,” said Jim Sayer, executive director of Adventure Cycling and a participant in the tour. “Bikes are an exceptionally great way to see and understand the Underground Railroad. They’re fast enough that you can get a sense of the geographic sweep of this epic journey, but they’re slow enough that you can begin to get a feel for how challenging it was to reach freedom.”

Several presentations have been scheduled for the kick-off of the ride Monday at Nichols school in Amherst. Cottrell will be among those presenting, and will talk about regional history and give an overview of the sites along the route.

The brief ceremony at the center of the Whirlpool Bridge will only include a few of the riders and a handful of city officials, including Cottrell and Anello, who will present the proclamation and key to the city.

“It certainly is appropriate for the tour to make a stop at the Whirlpool Bridge,” Anello said. “That bridge holds a great historical significance.”

Contact reporter Rick Forgioneat 282-2311, ext. 2257.

        

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