Dr. Larry McClellan, author of Onward to Chicago: Freedom Seekers and the Underground Railroad in Northeastern Illinois (Southern Illinois University Press, 2023), shares untold stories of enslaved people escaping north to Illinois and the Chicago area. McClellan’s research explores multiple escape routes, including the pivotal role of the I&M Canal.

Larry McClellan is co-founder of Governors State University in Chicago’s southland, where he taught Sociology and Community Studies for 30 years. He was mayor of University Park (then Park Forest South) and has served as pastor with diverse congregations. His research focuses on freedom seekers and the Underground Railroad, and on African American and regional history south of Chicago. In 2022, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Illinois State Historical Society for his contributions to Illinois history.