Rankin House State Memorial

6152 Rankin Rd. Ripley, Ohio 45167 • (937) 392-1627
Ohsweb.OhioHistory.org

John Rankin was a Presbyterian minister and educator who devoted much of his life to the antislavery movement. In 1826 he published his antislavery book, Letters on American Slavery. In 1834 he founded the Ohio Anti-Slavery Society in Zanesville. From 1825 to 1865 Rankin and his wife Jean, with their Brown County neighbors, sheltered more than 2,000 slaves escaping to freedom, with as many as 12 escapees being hidden in the Rankin home at one time. Visit website for months, days and hours of operation.