Freed Will:

This fall, visitors to the Saint Charles Center will have the opportunity to experience one of the most powerful and overlooked stories in Ohio's history. The exhibit, titled Freed Will, opens September 9 and will be on display through October 8, 2025. It tells the story of the Randolph Freedpeople, a group of nearly 400 men, women, and children who were promised freedom and land in Mercer County, only to be met with violence, exclusion, and betrayal.

In 1833, Virginia planter and politician , Virginia, declared in his final will that his slaves were to be freed and settled on land in Ohio. After more than a decade of legal battles, that wish was finally carried out. But when the Freedpeople arrived in Mercer County in 1846, they were threatened with mob violence, denied basic services, and driven from the land that had been set aside for them.

The exhibit follows the Randolph Freedpeople’s journey from Virginia to Ohio, their attempted settlement near Montezuma, their refuge in places like Rossville, and the legacy they built in western Ohio. From early opposition and systemic injustice to the resilience of descendants and ongoing efforts for recognition and justice, the Randolph Freedpeople’s story challenges what we think we know about the history of freedom in a northern state.