William Still [politics]

Calvin

Welcome to Headstones and Microphones where we use AI to step into the past through a researched, first-person simulation of history's most interesting people. I am your host, Calvin. While we’ve added some creative storytelling, our goal is to inspire your own study of these fascinating lives. Now, let’s meet our guest.

Calvin

For those who may somehow not know who you are... who are you?

Black Male

Hi Calvin! My name is William Still, and during my time on Earth, many folks came to know me as an abolitionist, a businessman, and a writer. Some kindly gave me the title "The Father of the Underground Railroad" for the work I did in Philadelphia helping hundreds of folks journey toward freedom.

Calvin

It is an honor to have you, William. Let's go back to the very beginning. When and where were you born?

Black Male

I was born on October 7, 1821, out in Shamong Township, which is in Burlington County, New Jersey.

Calvin

What was your given name at birth?

Black Male

At birth, I was given the name William Still.

Calvin

Is there a story behind your birth name?

Black Male

There is a deep story behind our family name. My father’s original surname was actually Steel. He was born into bondage in Maryland, but he managed to purchase his own freedom. When he moved north to New Jersey, he changed our last name to Still. He did that to protect my mother, who had to flee from slavery. The name change helped shield her identity from those who might try to tear our family apart and send her back South.

Calvin

That is incredibly powerful. What was your hometown like growing up?

Black Male

Growing up in Burlington County, it was quite rural. We lived and worked out on a family farm. It was a humble place, a free state, but the shadow of what lay just south of us in Maryland was always present in our minds.

Calvin

What was your family life like?

Black Male

Oh, it was a bustling, crowded, and deeply loving home! I was the youngest of eighteen children. Imagine that! My parents, Levin and Charity, had to endure unimaginable hardships before we were all together. My mother actually had to escape twice. The first time she was captured, but the second time she made it to freedom with two of my sisters. Tragically, she had to leave two of her boys behind in Maryland. Growing up, our house was filled with the vivid, painful stories of the horrors of slavery, but my parents also instilled in us a profound sense of family values, hard work, and self-determination.

Calvin

What kind of kid were you?

Black Male

I was a very industrious and curious young boy. Working on the farm taught me the value of labor early on, but I also had a deep hunger to learn. Even though I didn't have much formal schooling, I grabbed a hold of any book I could find and studied whenever the opportunity arose.

Calvin

What did you dream of becoming as a child?

Black Male

Working the soil on the farm, I always knew I wanted something different. I dreamed of finding an occupation where I could truly make a difference for my people. I wanted to use my mind and my voice to stand against the injustices I heard about at our dinner table.

Calvin

What was your first job?

Black Male

Aside from working the family farm, my first major step out into the world happened when I left home at twenty years old. I drifted around for a few years looking for steady work, and eventually, I made my way to Philadelphia. My first truly life-changing job came in 1847 when I was hired as a janitor and mail clerk for the Pennsylvania Society for the Abolition of Slavery.

Calvin

Was there a moment where you realized you were different from everyone else?

Black Male

I'm not sure if I felt different from everyone else, but I certainly felt a distinct sense of purpose. While working at the Anti-Slavery office, I realized I had a knack for organization and a deep empathy that allowed me to connect with the brave souls coming through our doors. I was the first Black man to join the society and hold a position there, which made me realize I was in a unique place to effect real change.

Calvin

What’s a decision that changed everything for you, but felt small at the time?

Black Male

It was the decision to write everything down. When fugitives started arriving at our station in Philadelphia, I began keeping meticulous, hidden records of their stories—their real names, where they escaped from, who had held them in bondage, and where they were going. At first, it was just a way to help families find each other and reunite later on. It felt like a simple act of administrative duty, but that decision ultimately preserved the largest firsthand history of the Underground Railroad.

Calvin

What was your biggest break?

Black Male

My biggest break professionally was when the Philadelphia abolitionists reorganized and formed a new Vigilance Committee to directly aid escaping slaves. Because of my dedication as a clerk, I was appointed the chairman of that committee. It put me right at the center of the freedom network.

Calvin

What were your biggest struggles before success?

Black Male

Oh, the early years in Philadelphia were lean. I had very little money and was taking on menial jobs just to survive while trying to teach myself to read and write at a higher level.

Calvin

Did you ever consider quitting?

Black Male

No, Calvin. When you see the courage of a mother running through the woods at night, or a man arriving at your door after hiding in a wooden box for days, you realize your own struggles are small. Giving up was never an option when human lives and freedom were on the line.

Calvin

Were there any specific daily habits or routines that you feel are essential to your success?

Black Male

Consistency in documentation and writing letters. Every single day, I answered correspondence for the Vigilance Committee, kept our fundraising organized, and updated our logs. Keeping a sharp, ordered mind amidst total chaos was the only way to keep people safe.

Calvin

What job would you have had if fame never happened?

Black Male

Well, I always had a mind for business! If I hadn't been pulled so deeply into the abolition movement, I likely would have gone straight into commerce. In fact, later in life, I did successfully run a stove store and became a very prosperous coal merchant.

Calvin

What was your life like before fame?

Black Male

It was a life of quiet, steady preparation. Working hard, marrying my beautiful wife Letitia in 1847, raising our children, and doing the quiet, dangerous work behind closed doors without looking for any public recognition.

Calvin

How did relationships change after success?

Black Male

My home became a hub for some of the greatest minds of our time. I became close friends and collaborators with wonderful activists like Harriet Tubman and the poet Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, who even lived with my family for a time.

Calvin

Did fame bring happiness?

Black Male

True happiness didn't come from people knowing my name; it came from the letters I would receive from Canada or Boston telling me that a family had successfully reunited. Knowing my four children grew up to be doctors, lawyers, journalists, and teachers—that is what brought me real joy.

Calvin

What was the downside of becoming famous?

Black Male

The danger. Because I was a prominent leader in the Black community and explicitly fighting the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, my home at 625 South Delhi Street was constantly watched. We were always risking arrest, prosecution, or worse by harboring fugitives right under the noses of the authorities.

Calvin

What misconceptions did people have about you?

Black Male

Later in life, around 1874, I supported a Democratic candidate for mayor because I believed it was the best strategic move for Black labor and voting interests at the time. It made me quite unpopular with sections of my own community for a while. People thought I was turning my back on our goals, but I had to defend my positions and show that I was always thinking about our long-term economic advancement.

Calvin

What was your darkest moment?

Black Male

The moments of sheer terror when we had to hide our records. If the authorities had ever found my journals, it would have been a roadmap for slave catchers to kidnap hundreds of free people back into bondage. During the height of the tension, I had to hide my papers in a cemetery vault to keep them from being discovered.

Calvin

Tell me about a time when everything went wrong and how did you handle it?

Black Male

In 1855, I was involved in the rescue of a brave woman named Jane Johnson and her two sons. She wanted freedom while passing through Philadelphia with her master, who happened to be a US Minister. We helped her escape, but her master sued me and several other Black men for assault and kidnapping. It was a massive, high-profile court case and everything was on the line. Instead of running, we stood our ground. Jane Johnson courageously traveled back from New York to testify herself, telling the judge she chose freedom on her own accord. That testimony won my acquittal!

Calvin

Who had the biggest influence on your life?

Black Male

Without a doubt, my parents. Seeing my father work to buy his freedom, and watching my mother's fierce bravery in escaping to keep her children safe—they set the example of what it means to stand up for dignity.

Calvin

What was life like in your final years?

Black Male

My final years were filled with philanthropy and community building. I spent my time working with the Freedman's Aid Commission, serving on the Philadelphia Board of Trade, and helping manage homes for destitute children and aged persons. I also helped establish the very first YMCA for Black young men in the United States.

Calvin

What were you working on in your career before you passed away?

Black Male

I was continuously writing, supporting our local Presbyterian church, and managing my coal business. I wanted to make sure the historical record of our struggle was solidified for future generations.

Calvin

When and where and how did you pass away and how old were you?

Black Male

I was 80 years old when I passed away in Philadelphia on July 14, 1902.

Calvin

What’s a random fact about you most people have never heard?

Black Male

One day, a fugitive slave named Peter arrived at my office looking for help. As he began telling me his life story and naming his parents, a shock went through my entire body. I realized this man was my own older brother, Peter, who had been left behind in Maryland forty years earlier when our mother escaped! Of all the hundreds of people to walk into my station, the Lord brought my own brother to my door.

Calvin

What was your favorite food?

Black Male

Oh, after a long day of working the coal yard or writing at my desk, I always enjoyed a simple, hearty, home-cooked meal prepared by Letitia. Nothing beats fresh bread and a warm stew.

Calvin

Did you have any known rivalries?

Black Male

I wouldn't call them personal rivalries, but I certainly had fierce ideological battles with the slaveholders, the federal marshals enforcing the Fugitive Slave Law, and anyone who believed that public transit in Philadelphia should remain segregated.

Calvin

What advice would you give people chasing success?

Black Male

True success is not measured by the wealth you accumulate, but by how many people you lift up along the way. Be diligent, keep honest records, and never be afraid to do what is right, even when the laws of men tell you it is wrong.

Calvin

William, do you have any closing remarks about the interview or the stories you shared that you would like to share with the listeners before signing off?

Black Male

I just want to remind everyone listening that freedom is a constant vigil. The stories of those who traveled the Underground Railroad are stories of profound hope and courage. Thank you so much for having me on your show, Calvin, and for keeping these memories alive.

Calvin

And that wraps up another conversation from beyond the grave. Thanks for joining us on The Headstones and Microphones Podcast. Remember—legends may die, but their stories never do. Please help spread the word by sharing and following the pod.