Much of Thaddeus Stevens’s life is well documented, but not so with his involvement with the Underground Railroad. Helping fugitive slaves was against the law and secrecy was of the utmost importance. But over the last century and a half, more information has been found that reveals Stevens’s participation.
It has been generally accepted that Stevens’s Caledonia iron mill near Chambersburg, PA which he owned from 1837 to 1868, was a stop of the Underground Railroad since it had large African-American workforce and freedom seekers could blend in. He was also involved as an attorney in many fugitive slave cases while he lived in Gettysburg and Lancaster.
An 1847 letter from Stevens to a colleague tells about how he had a “spy on the spies” and would warn freedom seekers of slave catchers lurking in the area. The double agent was later identified as Edward H. Rauch, who told a reporter that he was part of a secret organization that Stevens formed to thwart slave catchers in the Lancaster area. Rauch said he would act as if he was in league with the slave catchers and then relay the information to Stevens…