Prologue: The Great Chicago Exodus -- Introduction: Freedom Seekers and the Underground Railroad -- Slavery and Freedom in Illinois, 1800-1838 -- The Underground is Underway, 1839-1844 -- Leaders and Travelers, 1845-1854 -- Open Secrets and Railroads, 1855-1861 -- Epilogue: On Freedom Seekers -- Acknowledgments -- Appendix A: Population patterns in Northeastern Illinois -- Appendix B: Freedom seekers and underground railroad sites in Northeastern Illinois

"Onward to Chicago charts the evolution of the northeastern Illinois freedom network and shows how, despite its small Black community, Chicago emerged as a point of refuge. While traditional histories of the Underground Railroad in Illinois start in 1839, and focus largely on the romanticized tales of white men, Larry A. McClellan reframes the story, not only introducing readers to earlier freedom seekers, but also illustrating that those who bravely aided them were Black and white, men and women"--