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New Philadelphia today, has acquired a significant status in US history, it was one of the first racially integrated towns in the history of the US. Although today, the town is no more than an interesting archaeological relic, it was one of the bustling towns before and during the American Civil War.
New Philadelphia, was one of the first towns to be established by an Afro-American , Frank McWorter. McWorter was enslaved and brought to the US by his Irish plantation owner, but the worker's industrious nature impressed his master so much that, he was soon raised to a significant position by his master. His hardworking nature encouraged him to work overtime and also allowed him to save his earnings. With his accumulated savings he bought freedom for himself and his wife in 1819 and shifted into the area he had bought for their settlement in 1830.
Frank McWorter had invested his savings in large plots of land that he had bought in Pike county near Illinois and into this place he shifted with his family in 1830. Moving into his land he began selling large tracts of the land to interested buyers who were aplenty because of the agricultural possibility of the place. Even merchants were attracted by the rich fertile soil and with the fact that the town was situated in the Hadley Township, in a position which had,the Mississippi River valley to the west and the Illinois River valley to the east.The town was legally registered by Frank in 1836 and it began developing rapidly.
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The town reached the peak of development during the 1860's with the help of the important rail link to Illinois and a road link to the Mississippi river.
During the turbulent years of the American Civil War, the town became a halting place to the large groups of slave Afro-Americans fleeing from the tyranny of the south. After the Civil War, it became one of the first racially integrated towns of America.
A new rail link was built in 1869, trying to connect the smaller towns in Pike county, with Illinois. However, significantly New Philadelphia was, given a miss and this spelt disaster for the town's economy. Agriculture could not use the rail link and occupation in the place declined rapidly. By 1885,the final curtain was brought down on the town with the issuing of a new order that dissolved the town's legal status. People started moving out of the place in large numbers and by the turn of the century nothing was left of the town except for barren farmlands.
It had remained that way for almost a century until renewed archaeological interest in the place transformed it into a research site for archaeologists,historians and students alike. Their joint efforts has today granted the historical town of New Philadelphia ,a significant stature as an archaeological resource, in the list of the National Register of Historical Places in the US, in August 2005.
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