Rush Sloane was one of Ohio’s most well known abolitionists. He was a lawyer in Sandusky, and elected the Mayor of Sandusky in 1879. In 1852 seven runaway slaves arrived in Sandusky on the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad. Some men claiming to be the slave owners arrived in Sandusky and wanted the slaves to be returned. Mr. Sloane, after an investigation into the matter, found no legal authority for the fugitives to be arrested, and they were set free.
A short time later, one of the men from Kentucky proved ownership of one of the slaves. As a result, Rush Sloane went to trial under the Fugitive Slave Act. He was fined $3000 plus court costs. African American citizens of Sandusky presented Rush Sloane with a silver-headed cane, in appreciation of his efforts on behalf of the runaway slaves. The cane is on display at The Follett House Museum in Sandusky, Ohio.
While Rush Sloane was admired by many, not all Sandusky residents trusted him. In the book SANDUSKY’S EDITOR, by Charles E. Frohman, you can read about the many conflicts between Rush Sloane, and the editor of the Sandusky Register, Mr. I. F. Mack.
Rush Sloane died in 1908. He is buried on the North Ridge of Sandusky’s Oakland Cemetery.
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