Tour Guides’ Bios

These are our tour guides’ pseudonyms and their equally creative bios:

Presentation	Pseudonym	Bio
Introduction Past, Present, and Future: The Impact of the Underground Railroad in Ithaca	Brenna Carlin	Brenna Carlin is a freshman at Cornell studying amusement park engineering. In her free time she enjoys mountain climbing and plans to climb Mount Everest next fall. She is also a world famous table tennis player and was the youngest player to ever compete in the table tennis world tour. Brenna is originally from Bloomington, Indiana; she is left-handed and a dog lover.
Help at the Hanford House: How Altha Todd Hanford Made Her Mark in the Antislavery Movement	Bella Williams	Bella Williams is a student in the College of Arts and Sciences. She loves crocheting clothing, white-water rafting, and discovering new cities. She’s interested in public health and society and is excited to talk about her studies of the Underground Railroad in Ithaca!
A Double Life: A Barber and a Forbidden Hero	Joseph Kennedy	Joseph Kennedy is a historian working with Cornell University on research pertaining to the Underground Railroad. More specifically, he focuses on the fugitive slave laws and their implications on the treatment of Black people before and after emancipation. His passions lie between creative writing, exploring sites in Ithaca concerning the abolitionist movement, and taking photographs of these sites.
From Broad to Narrow: Conductors on the Most Secret Railroad	John Johnson	John Johnson is a student at Cornell University studying biology. He enjoys petting dogs and watching them chase their own tail – cats are cool, too. But instead of a dog or cat, he has a pet mountain goat that’s always ending up on the roof of his house – his name is Gordon Ram-say but he also responds to Chewbacca. In his free time, John enjoys purifying water using pinecones and watching “The Muppet Show”.
The Ithaca Chief Station: St. James AME Zion Church	Eugene Garcia	Eugene is a hardworking and passionate person. She enjoys a good piece of music and poetry. She believes that taking action will produced a reaction; so she lives her life pushing herself to take the first step in order to get what she yearns for.
A Journey to Freedom: The Story of Aunt Elsie Brooks	Lillyanne Jones	A descendent of slaves whose ancestors were victims of the British slave trade. She enjoys creative writing, abstract painting, and wild adventures. She is most often found by herself, observing the anthropological foundations of people. She believes everyone has a higher purpose to fulfill so, in her opinion, there is no such thing as a coincidence.
What’s Underneath the Trap Door? Benjamin Halsey and His Daughter	Maya Cantrera	Maya Cantrera is a senior at Cornell University studying Africana studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. She has always been interested in the Underground Railroad and is glad to be able to share her newfound knowledge with others.
Risking It All: The Story of Henry Moore	John Smith	John Smith is an American academic. He enjoys long walks in the park and extreme skiing. Smith uses his spare time to read books and save lives as a first responder. Writing is an escape for Smith as he uses it as a release from his daily stresses. Balancing his college life with his passions and hobbies has been a struggle for Smith. However, it is all worth it as he takes his world experiences and uses them to enrich and deepen his writing.
Burnt in Retaliation: The History Behind Alexander Murdock’s House	Julia Stewart	Julia Stewart is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University who loves to dance and explore new places. She is excited to go study abroad next semester and explore different cultures. She can’t wait for everyone to read her work regarding the Underground Railroad!
The Bloodgood House: The Underground Railroad and White Savior Complex	Fred Milton	Hailing from Long Island, Fred is a freshman at Cornell University’s College of Arts & Sciences. He is passionate about politics, music, and history—especially as it pertains to historiography (the study of how we teach history). Additionally, Fred is involved with the Cornell Glee Club and sings in one of Cornell’s acapella groups in his free time.
Uncovering History: Frederick Douglass and the Abolitionist Movement in Ithaca	John Clay	John Clay is from Northern Canada and is a junior in the College of Arts and Science studying Government and Math. In his freetime, he enjoys hiking through the wilderness, skydiving, and cliff-jumping. He is looking forward to graduating and getting involved in research after college.
The Old Speed Homestead: Peter Webb and the Shocking Past of a Farm in Caroline	Hannah Engles	Hannah Engles is a sophomore at Cornell University. She is currently undecided in the College of Engineering, but considering a major in electrical and computer engineering. In her free time, she enjoys scuba diving, hiking and exploring new places. On campus, she is also involved in a social sorority, a performing arts group and a debate club. She is from the Bay Area, CA and is looking forward to returning after graduation.
The Black History Collection: Tompkins County’s Rich, Revolutionary, and Important History	Stella Star	Stella Star is a sophomore at Cornell University studying Economics and Government. In her free time she enjoys long walks on the beach and skydiving. She is excited to take on a project with as much rich history as Ithaca’s legacy of abolition and participation in the Underground Railroad.
Conclusion: Preserving the Past and Inspiring the Future	Laz Cal	Laz Cal is a sophomore at Cornell studying computer science and math. He wishes to go into A.I. work after college. In his free time, he enjoys reading fiction, playing games, and occasionally some soccer. After reading about the significance of the Underground Railroad in Ithaca, he is excited to share his knowledge on the subject.