Buxton National Historic Site and Museum

The Buxton National Historic Site and Museum in North Buxton, Southwestern Ontario, is possibly one of the most important historic sites in the in the history of the abolition of slavery.

It is a tribute to the Elgin Settlement, now known as Buxton, which became a safe haven for freed and fugitive slaves coming from the United States, as part of what was known as the Underground Railroad, a network of safe havens and houses for slaves in North America during the 18th century.

How it began…

The settlement was established in 1849, when Rev. William King, a former slave owner who became an abolitionist, acquired 9,000 acres of land in Southwestern Ontario with the blessing of Governor General Lord Elgin, and created a safe haven for freed slaves, including some of the ones he had previously owned himself.

The community eventually became self-sufficient, housing and providing high levels of education for an estimated 2,000 Blacks, even if some eventually returned to the United States, and others used the settlement merely as a stop on their ultimate journey.

Nowadays…

The descendants of the first Black settlers keep the history and abundantly rich heritage of the Buxton Settlement and the site has become of the most important in Canada, as well in the history of America’s slavery abolition, documented at the sites of the Underground Railroad network.

And although the population had dwindled to a tenth of its peak demographics, they are proud of being part of Canada’s history, and celebrate it through the historic site and its museum, which was inaugurated in 1967, a little over 100 years from the arrival of the original settlers.

At the venue…

Visitors can not only find the museum, which holds exhibitions on Canada’s Black and Slavery history and heritage, featuring historic artifacts from the settlers and their time, but also a an extensive library, as well as a schoolhouse built by the Black settlers in 1861 among a group of three, which once stood in the settlement, and is still the only of its kind that remains standing in Canada, a log cabin which dates back to 1854 and a barn. I

n the surrounding areas, visitors can also visit historic churches’ cemeteries, where they can perhaps find their heritage.

Besides these features…

Open to individuals as well as groups of visitors, the Buxton National Historic Site and Museum offers an extensive number of resources both on site and online for visitors and researchers, which include the opportunity to research their local roots as well as peruse historical documents from the Buxton Historical Society, which can be done both via web or at the Museum.

For those that can’t personally visit the site, there are also further online resources such as virtual exhibitions, an eBook and previews of the three collections present at the museum about the original Settlement Library, which housed about 500 books, William King’s Household Artifacts and Slave Craftsmanship.

Last but not least…

In honor of the settlement’s original philosophy, which valued education as one of its pillars, the Buxton National Historic Site and Museum also offers a Learning Center, with educational programs and resource materials which can be used at schools to teach subjects related to Black History and the Buxton Settlement and school visits can be arranged are certainly encouraged.

Additional resources…

They can also be found at the Museum’s gift shop, which has an extensive collection of both youth and adult literature on offer for visitors to take home and enjoy learning more about Buxton’s people and their stories.