The Interior Department said Thursday that a study will soon assess whether the former home of a prominent Ohio abolitionist and entrepreneur should become a new national park.
The study by the National Park Service will evaluate the restored home of John P. Parker in Ripley, Ohio.
Parker’s house was considered an important stop on the Underground Railroad and helped secure freedom for hundreds of enslaved people.
Congress ordered the study in December 2022 when the measure was included in a year-end spending bill.