papers before allowing entry to his home, it was never searched and escaping slaves had been transported to other locations by the time the slave hunters returned with the documents. During the 1840s, pressure was brought to bear on the Quaker communities that helped escaping slaves. In 1842 the leaders of the Religious Society of Friends (Quaker) advised their members to cease membership in abolitionist societies and end activities assisting runaway slaves. The leaders insisted that legal emancipation was the best course of action. Coffin continued to take an active role in assisting escaping slaves, and the following year the Quaker society expelled him from membership. Coffin and other Quakers who supported his activities separated and formed the Antislavery Friends; the two rival groups remained separate until a reunification occurred in 1851. Despite the opposition, the Coffin family's desire to help the runaway slaves only increased. Coffin's wife, Catherine, who was also dedicated to the effort, organized a sewing society that met at their home to produce clothing to give to the runaways. She also provided meals and shelter to runaway slaves in the Coffin home. Other aid was obtained from neighbors and others sympathetic to the cause, but were unwilling take the fugitives into their homes. Through these activities, Coffin was able to secure a steady supply of goods to assist in the ongoing operations. Over the years, Coffin came to realize that many of the goods he sold in his business were produced with slave labor. Through his travels Coffin learned of organizations in Philadelphia and New York City that only sold goods produced with free (non-slave) labor. He began to purchase stock from these organizations and marketed free-labor goods to his fellow abolitionists, though the products provided him with little profit. Free-labor proponents in the East also wanted to create a similar organization in the western states. In the 1840s, members of the Salem Free Produce Association approached Coffin to see if he would be interested in managing the proposed Western Free Produce Association. At first he declined, saying he lacked the money required to fund the venture, and that he did not want to move into the city. In 1845 a group of abolitionist businessmen opened a wholesale mercantile business in Cincinnati and the Free Produce Association raised $3,000 to help stock the new warehouse with goods. Different groups continued to pressure Coffin to accept a