Chris Vallillo

Songs of the Illinois Freedom Road

Award winning folk musician and folklorist Chris Vallillo brings the music and stories of the Underground Railroad in Illinois to life in this engaging and powerful show featuring first person accounts of Freedom Seekers as well as performances and insights into the music that drove this historic movement. “While traditional accounts of the underground railroad generally dismiss Illinois, our state had more miles bordering slave states than any other” said Vallillo “and those borders were rivers which made for excellent escape routes.”

Vallillo extensively researched the subject going back to primary source documents such as the 1857 Slave Narratives of Canada and numerous other slave narratives, as well as much of the most recent scholarly work on the subject. “These are amazing accounts of self determined people who took tremendous risks to gain their freedom, often with virtually no knowledge of the world beyond their immediate location” said Vallillo. “It’s a testament to the resilient human desire for freedom.”

The show features rare first person accounts of freedom seekers who passed through Illinois such as John and Mary Little who traveled one hundred and forty miles to get to the Ohio River, crossed the river on a log, and walked barefooted through Illinois up to Chicago.

Along with the stories are the songs that were sung as a way to inspire and share knowledge. The Gospel music that told of the Israelites escape from Egypt, resonated powerfully with the Freedom Seekers and inspired many to seek their own emancipation. Songs like Go Down Moses and Steal Away were universally known and sung by the enslaved. Vallillo performs eleven of these songs as he weaves in the stories of the lives of these heroic men and women.

Audience Recommendations

This program is intended for audiences of all ages, particularly those interested in Illinois history. Examples might include a history club, a Civil War Round Table group, African American Studies groups, Theater students, young musicians.

Program Logistics

The program runs approximately 55 minutes and is followed by a Q&A. This program requires a sound system, which the artist will provide in most cases. Photography is permitted without flash (please share copies with the artist), video is restricted to short snippets and must be limited to a two-week period of use unless additional permission is granted in writing.