This Clintonville chapel was an Underground Railroad safe house ➡️ Over 187 years of existence, the chapel has served many purposes: a home, a dairy barn, a horse barn, an apartment house, a prohibition-era speakeasy, an art studio, a funeral home, and now, a childcare facility. But in 1828, it was the Clinton Chapel. Methodist minister Thomas Bull funded its construction. He purchased about 600 acres along the Columbus-Worthington Pike (now High St.), and upon his death, willed that a half-acre be set aside for a Methodist Church. Thomas Bull’s three sons went on to establish the village of Clintonville, where the church operated until 1910. The Bull family were abolitionists, and some reports suggest that as many as 300 freedom seekers sought refuge in the chapel, hiding in a small room on the first floor. The building itself is remarkably sturdy. Glacial boulders make up the foundation and are reported to be several feet deep. The bricks were dug from clay on the property and ba...