Asher and Cathrine Aray, free Blacks living in Pittsfield Township, were part of a system that helped self-emancipated people get to Canada in the years before the Civil War. Although slavery was not allowed in the North, slave catchers were still a constant threat, not just to the escapees, but to any person of color, as they often were going by vague descriptions that could include almost anyone of color. Thus Canada was the safest place to be since their laws stated that anyone living in Canada was free.
