sentences:  Founded in 1836, it was the first town in the United States platted and registered by an African American before the American Civil War.The founder Free Frank McWorter was a former slave who was able to save money from work and his own business to purchase the freedom of his wife, himself and 13 members of his family in Kentucky.The town site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005, and designated a National Historic Landmark in 2009.