Biography
John Doy was an English-born physician, Kansas free-state activist, and Underground Railroad conductor. On January 25, 1859, armed Missourians seized Doy, his son Charles, and thirteen Black passengers while they were traveling from Lawrence toward Nebraska. Doy maintained that most or all of the passengers were free, but Missouri prosecuted him for abducting enslaved people. After months in the Platte City and St. Joseph jails and two trials, a jury convicted him and imposed five years of hard labor. Ten Kansas abolitionists entered the St. Joseph jail and freed the gravely ill Doy on July 23, 1859; the rescuers became known as the “Immortal Ten.”
The historical script identifies Doy as an English-born physician (1812–1869), married to Jane Dunn, who moved to Kansas in 1854. After his escape he published his narrative and spoke in support of abolition. The five-year Missouri sentence was not time actually served. John Doy’s Escape, Shared Stories of the Civil War, version October 18, 2011, original PDF page 20. Source: https://freedomsfrontier.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/John-Doy_final_10.18.11.pdf#page=20
The historical account gives his birth year as 1812 and identifies circuit judge Elijah Hise Norton in the proceedings. Only the birth year is established; no month or day is supplied.
Freedom’s Frontier and Kansas Humanities Council, John Doy’s Escape, pages 10 and 20.
