Symbol of Underground Railroad.

PositionLOCAL NEWS

Byline: Brian Lee

LEICESTER - Family and historians say they eagerly await Becker College's efforts to restore the iconic house that once belonged to the abolitionist Rev. Samuel May.

In 1966, the college purchased The May House, which was designated a part of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom by the U.S. National Park Service in 2008.

Abby Kelley Foster's Liberty Farm in Worcester is also a stop on the Underground Railroad, an effort described by the park service as "sometimes spontaneous, sometimes highly organized," a network of people - black and white - places and means of transportation that helped slaves escape bondage.

It is estimated that more than 100,000 people sought freedom in the North, but also in Canada and Mexico, through the Underground Railroad.

Three years ago, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, visited Becker's Leicester campus to announce the award of $380,000 in federal funding to transform The May House to a town visitor center and a museum dedicated to the Underground Railroad.

The project is on schedule to be completed by year's end, though work has paused for the winter, according to school spokeswoman Sandy Lashin-Curewitz.

Drawings for the work are almost done, Jack Glassman, director of historic preservation at Bargmann, Hendrie and Archetype Inc. in Boston, said earlier this month.

The first phase of work includes restoring three first-floor rooms focused on interconnecting themes: the May family, the Underground Railroad and the town's history, Mr. Glassman said.

So far approximately $40,000 from the federal grant has been received to cover architectural, environmental and legal costs, said Ms. Lashin-Curewitz.

Before the grant was awarded, Becker invested about $50,000 in the house. The college hasn't raised additional funds since the grant was awarded; it has focused its fundraising on the Leicester campus center that will open at the end of summer, and the 80 Williams St. property at the Worcester campus, said Ms. Lashin-Curewitz.

Additional phases, such as work on the second floor, will be completed as funding becomes available, officials said.

The Rev. Samuel May, who lived from 1810 to 1899, was a leading antislavery figure for more than three decades. His wife Sarah was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution as well as an outspoken proponent for women's suffrage.

His great-great-grandson, S. Judson May , 64, said studying the minister's history is "a lifelong...

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