The Lukens family were one of the most well-known families in Montgomery County, PA. They played a special role in their respective communities, including Gwynedd Township before the 1891 split. One of their most important was during the time of the Underground Railroad, where George Lukens and his son Seth helped fugitive slaves find their way up North.
Son of an Abolitionist
Seth Lukens (1814-1901) was born on March 20 in Towamencin Township, PA. His father George Lukens (1768-1849) was a well-known abolitionist in the township. In 1805, his parents sold him the family farmstead that once stood where the current Christopher Dock High School administration building is located. The farmstead was deeded to George and his wife Ester in 1810 where they raised their 10 children including Seth Lukens.
Fun Fact # 1: The Lukens family was one of the most influential Quaker families attending the Gwynedd Friends Meeting.
His home was one of the stations of the Underground Railroad in Montgomery County. It was said that his home became a stop for fugitive slaves as early as 1819. There were times during the 1830s and 40s fugitive slaves stayed at his home for a few days, and continued their journey to Quakertown to the home of Richard Moore is located.
"'While yet a young man, and engaged in teaching, in Skippack township, the door of the school-house began to open very slowly in an apparently cautious manner, and a dark face and woolly head protruded through the open space, and inquired whether that was the road to George Lukens'. George Lukens belonged to Quakers and was a friend of the enslaved, and the colored man had been directed to his house. This was before the agitation of the abolition of slavery had assumed an aggressive form."
- Historical Society of Montgomery County, PA (71-72)
After his father died, Seth continued his father's efforts with the help of his brother in-laws Dr. James Hamer (1819-1900) and Charles Todd Jenkins (1812-1899). He was part of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society as well as being the pioneer of the temperance movement in Montgomery County.
Fun Fact # 2: Seth Lukens, James Hamer, and Charles Jenkins were amongst the founders of the Republican Party of Montgomery County.
In 1845, Seth married Mary Magdalene Hamer. They lived at his father's farmstead from 1845 to 1871 when they moved to Gwynedd. They lived there for 23 years. Like her husband, Mary took an active part in the anti-slavery and the temperance movements by entertaining those involved in the movements at their Gwynedd home.
Bibliography
Cope, Gilbert. Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs of Chester and Delaware Counties, Pennsylvania, Volume 1. (New York: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1904): 122.
"Gwyneddite Is Aged 95." Ambler Gazette. March 2, 1916. Page 7. https://digitalarchives.powerlibrary.org/papd/islandora/object/papd%3Awivp-gazett_8981.
Hagey, Brian. "Paper, Quill and Ink: Being A Primer On Towamencin Township History and The Diaries of George Luken, Towamencin Township Quaker Farmer, Schoolmaster, Abolitionist." Mennonite Historians of Eastern Pennsylvania 13, n. 4 (2010): 3-9. https://www.mhep.org/files/PDF/inventories/manuscript/HM1-187transcription.pdf.
Historical Sketches. A Collection of Papers Prepared for the Historical Society of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Volume 2. (Norristown: Herald Printing and Binding Rooms, 1900): 70-72.
Morris, William E, and Smith & Wistar. Map of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania: from original surveys. [Philadelphia: Smith & Wistar, 1849] Map. https://www.loc.gov/item/2012590207/.
Quinn, James A. "The Underground Railroad and Gwynedd Monthly Meeting." Friends Journal. Accessed May 26, 2024. https://www.friendsjournal.org/legacy/abington/gwynedd/underground.html.
Scott, J. D. Montgomery County 1877, Gwynedd, North Wales, Ambler, Royer's Ford, Limerick Station, 1877.
"The Late Seth Lukens." Ambler Gazette. October 3, 1901. Page 6. https://digitalarchives.powerlibrary.org/papd/islandora/object/papd%3Awivp-gazett_4053.
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