William K. Donnegan

William K. Donnegan is one of the more known Underground Railroad conductors in Springfield. He moved to the city in 1845 and worked as a shoemaker on Adams St. where he even made shoes for Abraham Lincoln. In his house between Eighth and Ninth streets, he hid and assisted freedom seekers for many years. Donnegan was one of the few murdered during the 1908 Race Riot in Springfield when he was lynched outside his home.

Life in Springfield

William K. Donnegan was born in Kentucky around 1832 and later became a prominent African American man who resided in Springfield, Illinois. He moved to Springfield in 1845, and lived between Eighth and Ninth streets on the north side of Jefferson, however, his original home no longer exists. In town, he worked as a shoemaker, or cobbler, with a shop located on the north side of Adams Street between Seventh Street and the Public Square, not too far from the Lincoln-Herndon Law Office. In fact, Abraham Lincoln was one of the customers whom Donnegan made shoes for on at least one occasion. Donnegan did well in his business ventures and lived a good life in Springfield. Outside of his cobbling and other work, he was known to assist freedom seekers on the Underground Railroad in Springfield, using his home as a station.

Donnegan as an Underground Railroad Conductor

Donnegan claimed that when it came to the Underground Railroad, he had helped “scores” of people seeking their freedom by hiding them or helping them escape through Springfield. In 1898, he discussed this work in an interview for Springfield’s The Public Patron, a magazine from the time. In it, he describes a harrowing event in which he helped a freedom seeker through Springfield around 1858. According to Donnegan, a teenage, female freedom seeker was dropped off at his home and he was tasked with getting her out of town, or at least as far as the next station near the Farmingdale area of Sangamon County. However, the task became increasingly difficult as many problems involving a posse of men trying who were tracking her whereabouts arose during the journey.

Ultimately, Donnegan was able to bring the girl to safety with the assistance of his brother and others. It should be noted that while this story can be true, there is no other known evidence that exists that proves this event took place. If you are interested in reading the full story, check out Richard Hart’s book Lincoln’s Springfield: The Early African American Populations of Springfield, Illinois (1818-1861), made available online through the Abraham Lincoln Association.

Donnegan and the 1908 Springfield Race Riot

While Donnegan’s work on the Underground Railroad would end less than a decade after this event, his history in Springfield does not. Springfield had never truly been kind to African Americans, and even decades after the Civil War and emancipation, many whites were still threatened by their presence in town. Fifty years after Donnegan had claimed to have helped freedom seekers in Springfield, came the Springfield Race Riot of 1908. By this point in time, Donnegan and his third wife, Sarah Ann Bowers, had moved to a home on Edwards Street, across from where the Illinois State Museum resides today. Because Donnegan had become fairly wealthy through his businesses and was married to a white woman, a target was easily placed on his back by the white mobs during the event. 

When the riot started on Friday, August 14, Donnegan and his wife were actively seeking assistance from the police and authorities for protection against the mobs; protection that would never come. A white mob had made its way to their residence by the late evening on August 15 and wasted no time in breaking into their home, beating the elderly Donnegan, slitting his throat, and finally hanging him from a tree in the neighboring schoolyard. It was not until the next morning that the police and National Guard found him, still alive, before taking him to St. John’s Hospital where he would succumb to his injuries on August 16, 1908.

After the riot had ended and news of the event was spread, Donnegan’s name became known all over the country, and it did not go unnoticed. The riot and his lynching became catalysts for the creation of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) and ultimately led to the fight for civil rights in the decades that followed. While it may be difficult to read or hear about events like lynchings or race riots, they are an important part of our history and these stories need to be told to ensure we learn from our mistakes. William K. Donnegan and his wife Sarah are buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, Illinois.

Sources Used:

- Carole Merritt, Something So Horrible: The Springfield Race Riot of 1908, (Springfield: Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation, 2008).

- C.S. Williams, Williams’ Springfield Directory City Guide, and Business Mirror, for 1860-61: To Which is Appended a List of Post Offices in the United States and Territories, Connected Up to Date, (Springfield: Johnson & Bradford, Booksellers and Stationers, 1860). 

- Daily Illinois State Journal (Springfield, Illinois), February 19, 1931: 6. NewsBank: America’s News – Historical and Current. https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=AMNEWS&docref=image/v2%3A13D09C142C972071%40EANX-NB-14AACD86DA9C59E6%402426392-14AA25E2C48B318B%405-14AA25E2C48B318B%40.

- “Our History,” NAACP, last modified May 11, 2021. https://naacp.org/about/our-history.

- Richard Hart, Lincoln’s Springfield: The Early African American Populations of Springfield, Illinois (1818-1861), (Spring Creek Series, 2008).

- State Journal-Register (Springfield, Illinois), June 1, 2008: 56. NewsBank: America’s News – Historical and Current. https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=AMNEWS&docref=image/v2%3A13D0A597A7997365%40EANX-NB-167CE04D26F60038%402454619-167C0F122225C3DE%4055-167C0F12222. 

- U.S. Census Bureau. 1900 United States Federal Census. Census Place: Springfield Ward 4, Sangamon, Illinois; Roll: 343; Page:14A; Line: 16-17; Enumeration District: 0093.

Want to learn more? Join us for Walk, Hike, and Bike events where you can learn more about Donnegan and others like him by signing up here.