Historic Marker Unveiling

Upper Darby Underground Railroad Historic Marker Unveiling 

Upper Darby, PA- Mayor Edward Brown proudly invites the public to join him, along with students from Holy Child Academy, at the unveiling of the Riverview House / Cleveland Farm Underground Railroad historic marker. The event will take place at Holy Child Academy, 475 Shadeland Ave, Drexel Hill, PA 19026, at 11:00am on Friday, April 25, 2025.   

This historic marker is located at the second stop of the Upper Darby Underground Railroad Tour. The Riverview House was the birthplace of Thomas Garrett, a dedicated abolitionist, who helped over 2,700 enslaved people escape to freedom, including members of Harriet Tubman’s family. 

The Upper Darby Underground Railroad Tour self-guided tour was created in 2021, by former Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer and the Upper Darby Historic Commission, to highlight local history of the Underground Railroad and early American life in Delaware County.  

The unveiling of the historic marker is open to the public and media.  

For more information on the Upper Darby Underground Railroad please visit www.upperdarby.org/UndergroundRailroadWalkingTour. Stops include:  

• Garrett House/Thornfield; 3218 Garrett Road 

• Riverview House (now Holy Child Academy); 475 Shadeland Avenue 

• Riverview Farm/Museum at Arlington Cemetery, 2900 State Road 

• Hoodland/Sellers Library; 76 S. State Road 

• Former location of Howard House (now Pica's); 7803 West Chester Pike 

• Sellers Hall; 150 Hampden Road 

• Friends Cemetery; 236 Powell Lane 

Contact:  

Rob Ellis 

Public Information Officer 

Upper Darby Township 

Email:  rellis@UpperDarby.org 

Cell: 267-736-6136 

History of the Riverview House/ Cleveland Farm (Holy Child Academy) 

Thomas Garrett was born at Riverview House on August 21, 1789, to his parents Thomas Garrett Sr. and Sarah Price. In 1790 the house was enlarged and a date stone with “G T S 1790” was inserted by the Garretts. The house, torn down in 1969, was located in the playground area of Holy Child Academy, on the back and left side property area. In 1822 Thomas Garrett Jr., his wife Mary Sharpless, and children would move to the slave state of Delaware where from his new home in Wilmington he would help approximately 2,700 people to freedom in the north, including members of Harriet Tubman’s family. 

 Thomas Garrett Jr. would forward freedom seekers to his friends and relatives. In Upper Darby, this included Edward Garrett and his wife, Abigail Sellers (daughter of George and Ann Ash Sellers, owners of Sellers Hall). They inherited Riverview House and about 140 acres in 1839. In an 1858 letter from Thomas Garrett to Philadelphia abolitionist and Underground Railroad stationmaster William Still he states, “a color’d woman and 7 children was taken to my brother Edwards in Upper Darby” This was Ann Maria Jackson and her children.  

The year 1858 was a monumental one in the lives of Ann Maria Jackson and her family. In that year, she bravely took destiny into her own hands and escaped from her Maryland enslaver. With her, she took seven of her nine children, ranging from two to about sixteen years old. William Still helped the family on their way north to Canada. In his book, The Underground Railroad, Still remarked how unusual it was to see a woman with so many young children taking such a risk in making a bid for their freedom.