DETROIT (AP) — Michigan residents can learn about one woman's escape from slavery on the Underground Railroad during an event hosted by the Detroit Historical Museum.

Kimberly Simmons will share the story of her ancestor Caroline Quarlls at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the museum. Simmons is the third great-granddaughter of Quarlls and chair of the historical society's Black Historic Sites Committee.

The museum says Quarlls escaped from St. Louis at the age of 16 in July 1842. After making her way to Wisconsin, Quarlls traveled 1,000 miles across the Midwest. She became free when she crossed the Detroit River later that year and settled down in Sandwich, Ontario, in Canada.

The event is part of the museum's Scholar Series and is free.

______

ONLINE:

http://bit.ly/tWTL9h