Robert Purvis Founds Philadelphia Vigilance Committee

Robert Purvis, a wealthy mixed-race Philadelphian and leading abolitionist, founded and chaired the Philadelphia Vigilance Committee in 1838, the most active Underground Railroad operation in the country. The committee assisted hundreds of freedom-seekers annually, providing them with money, transportation, legal aid, and shelter. Purvis also helped found the American Anti-Slavery Society and was a fierce, lifelong opponent of the American Colonization Society's plans to remove free Black people from the United States.