Black History Month

The Round Table on Black History Month is a non-profit organization that promotes activities highlighting both the history and the contemporary situation of Black communities in Quebec.

This exhibit reveals how a group of about 800 Black immigrants, invited to settle here by Governor James Douglas, helped to stabilize British colonial communities and keep this area of Western Canada from American hands.

Slavery formally ended in Canada in 1834 after the British Parliament passed an act abolishing the institution throughout the Empire.

Links to Black History resources including blogs, newspapers, historical sites and museums...

Nova Scotia has been home to people of African descent for over 400 years, centuries that saw struggle, achievement and the formation of communities that thrive to this day. Nova Scotia Archives is proud to care for and make available archival records that are powerful touchstones to this past, helping us to understand the present and allowing us to move together toward the future.

Slavery to Freedom traces the perilous path of these 19th century Blacks as they fled to the sanctuary of the north along the silent tracks of the Underground Railroad, assisted by abolitionists and sympathizers on both sides of the border. By following this journey, we will learn much about the evolution and abolition of slavery in Ontario, across the British Empire and in the United States.

The BC Black History Awareness Society in partnership with the Royal BC Museum presents Hope Meets Action: Echoes Through the Black Continuum, the story of Afro-diasporic “British Columbia” history, past, present and future.

The Amherstburg Freedom Museum, previously known as ‘the North American Black Historical Museum’, is located in Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada. It is a community-based, non-profit museum that tells the story of African-Canadians’ history and contributions. Founded in 1975 by local residents of Amherstburg, it preserves, presents artifacts and tells the story of African-Canadians’ journey and contributions, by preserving and presenting artifacts that educate and inspire.

The genesis of the Black Cultural Centre lay in a proposal put forward in 1972 by Reverend Dr. William Pearly Oliver for the creation of a Cultural Educational Centre to meet the needs and aspirations of the Black Communities of Nova Scotia.

The home of the largest free black settlement in the 1780’s where people voted with their feet for freedom. This unique historical site is nestled in beautiful Birchtown Bay on the western shores of Shelburne Harbour, the third largest natural harbour in the world.

The Raleigh Township Centennial Museum was officially opened in 1967 as part of the township's Centennial celebrations. The Museum's main purpose is to collect, preserve, exhibit, and interpret historical artifacts related to the Elgin (Buxton) Settlement from its founding in 1849 to the late 19th century. A related purpose is to provide the personal histories and genealogies of the original settlers and their descendants through on-going historical research.

The Harriet Tubman Institute for Research on the Global Migrations of African Peoples is a unique research facility focused on the global diaspora of Africans and their descendants.

The Saskatchewan African Canadian Heritage Museum Inc. is a provincial organization whose primary purpose is to celebrate, explore, research, document and preserve the history, heritage and contributions of people of African ancestry. It is dedicated to helping people of African ancestry preserve and gain access to information about their history, appreciate their heritage and recognize the contributions that African descent individuals have made in Saskatchewan.

The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, one of The New York Public Library’s renowned research libraries, is a world-leading cultural institution devoted to the research, preservation, and exhibition of materials focused on African American, African Diaspora, and African experiences.

Known as “Uncle Tom” through his connection to Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 anti-slavery novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Josiah Henson was one of the most famous Canadians of his day. Henson's celebrity raised international awareness of Canada as a haven for refugees from slavery. Uncle Tom’s Cabin Historic Site recognizes the accomplishments of Josiah Henson through interpretive videos, interactive exhibits, numerous artifacts and tours that reflect the Black experience in Canada.

At the entrance to the John Freeman Walls Historic Site and Underground Railroad Museum, there's a historic plaque that reads; In 1846 John Freeman Walls a fugitive slave from North Carolina built this log cabin on land purchased from the Refugee Home Society. This organization was founded by the abolitionist Henry Bibb, published of the Voice Of The Fugitive, and the famous Josiah Henson. The cabin subsequently served as a terminal of the Underground Railroad and the first meeting place of the Puce Baptist Church. Although many former slaves returned to the United States following the American civil war, Walls and his family chose to remain in Canada. The story of their struggles, forms the basis of the book "The Road That Led To Somewhere" by Dr. Bryan Walls erected by Proverbs Heritage Organization with the assistance of Maidstone Township and the ministry of culture and recreation.

Artists appearing in Here We Are Here, the ROM's show about Black Canadian contemporary art, share their picks

The Centre for the Study of Black Cultures in Canada welcomes you to African Canadian Online. Our site provides information on African Canadian artists and their work, links to other Canadian resources on the web, and updates about the activities of the Centre.

Challenge yourself to think differently about the deep-rooted histories and enduring presence of Black Canadians, gain a new and multifaceted understanding of Canada, through these unique and visually compelling installations.