West Union Friends Meeting House: Cornerstone of the community

A church, a school, a cemetery and freedom — this is what the Quaker people of North Carolina brought to the Monrovia area when they settled in Morgan County in the early 1800s.

On State Road 42, east of Monrovia, you will find the West Union Friends Meeting House at its original setting of 1832. It was the first established church in the area, and its members were the first leaders of the Monrovia community. The structures have changed over the years, but the church has continuously operated since its founding.

Almost immediately upon arrival, the Quakers who founded West Union Friends Meeting House started a school. Education, and especially early education, was a tenet of the Quakers. Attendance grew so quickly that a separate schoolhouse had to be built to accommodate the local children and the many who wanted to attend the school from other areas. Initially, fees were charged for attending the school, but by 1859, it was designated a free, public school.

One notable student at the West Union Friends school in the mid-1880’s was young Joseph Cannon, who eventually served as Speaker of the House for the U.S. Congress from 1903 to 1911. His father, who was a doctor, served as the school’s teacher. The Cannon family had come to Monrovia from North Carolina to live among their Friends who had similar political and religious beliefs. Eventually, the Cannons left the area and moved to Illinois.

The West Union Friends were declared abolitionists. They came to Indiana to get away from the practice of slavery in their home state. But they did not ignore the cause. Their deep belief in freedom inspired many of the Friends to help slaves escape to Canada through the Underground Railroad system. It has been recorded that many of the children who attended the West Union Schoolhouse would catch glimpses of slaves waiting for assistance in the heavy woods near the school.

West Union Friend Hannah Thompson Haydock, an active abolitionist, is depicted in the famous Charles T. Weber 1893 painting entitled The Underground Railroad, where Hannah is helping Levi Coffin and his wife assist runaway slaves.

The beautiful West Union Cemetery lies to the west of the Meeting House. It was established in 1832—the same year as the church. Buried there are multiple generations of community members. Some were early settlers, some were war heroes, some were business leaders, farmers or teachers---all contributing to the fabric of Morgan County.

NOTABLE GRAVESITES

• ORVAL V. DILLON: one of four Monrovians KIA World War I

• HANNAH THOMPSON HAYDOCK: Abolitionist Conductor of the Underground Railroad

• GEORGE HUBBARD: Co-founder of the Town of Monrovia

• GIDEON JOHNSON: Co-founder of the Town of Monrovia

West Union Friends Meeting House & Cemetery is located at 2038 W. State Road 42.

(Prepared by the Morgan County Leadership Academy Class of 2022 on behalf of the Morgan County Bicentennial Committee)