@amherstburgfreedom
Black History… Universal Inspiration The Amherstburg Freedom Museum tells the story of African-Canadians’ journey and contributions, by preserving stories and presenting artifacts that educate and inspire.
#OTD 225 years ago, March 2, 1801, Abraham Doras Shadd, farmer, shoemaker, abolitionist, Underground Railroad operative, first Black Canadian elected official, was born in Mill Creek Hundred, Delaware. In 1858 he was elected to the Raleigh Township Council, Canada West (Ontario.) He died in 1882.
#OTD Feb. 27, 1895, the Halifax Eurekas and Dartmouth Jubilees played the first game of what would become the Colored Hockey League of the Maritimes, growing to twelve teams and hundreds of players. The League introduced a faster, more physical style of play, the slapshot, and butterfly goaltending.
#OTD 175 years ago, February 26, 1851, the Anti-Slavery Society of Canada was founded at Toronto City Hall. With a focus on helping to end slavery in the United States and to affect both public sentiment and public policy in Canada, the Society also raised funds to support refugees from slavery.
#OTD February 24, 2002 three-time Olympian Jarome Iginla became the first Black man to win a gold medal at the Winter Olympics when Canada defeated the United States in the men's gold medal hockey game in Salt Lake City. In the 5-2 victory over the U.S., Ignla contributed two goals and an assist.
#OTD February 19, 1928, boxer Earl Walls was born in Maidstone Township, near Puce, Ontario. At his peak, he was ranked the number one boxer in the British Commonwealth. Known as "the Hooded Terror" during his pro career, Walls knocked out 27 opponents and won 36 out of 43 fights.
#OTD Feb. 18, 1860, Mary Branton Tule was born in Chatham. She lived in Amherstburg for several years, attended Spelman College, became a missionary and teacher in South Africa, opposed South Africa's unjust racial policies, was banned, and ministered and taught in Liberia until her death in 1923.
Happy Family Day! The Amherstburg Freedom Museum's Family History Collection helps many people to trace their roots. Numerous Black families from Amherstburg and the Windsor-Essex Region are featured digitally at amherstburgfreedom.org/family-histo.... Photos: Simpson, Harris, Alexander, Christian.
#OTD, February 14th, we recognize the birthday of abolitionist, orator, publisher, statesman Frederick Douglass, born in 1818 in Maryland. Douglass, formerly enslaved, had no birth record but February 14th was his "chosen" birthday. He remembered that his mother had called him "little Valentine."
#OTD Feb. 10, 1915, pastor and civil rights activist Rev. Lloyd O. Jenkins was born in Chatham. He ministered for 50 years including at Nazrey AME Church (National Historic Site, now part of our museum.) In 1988, Jenkins, as AME Presiding Elder for Canada, preached at Nazrey's final Sunday service.
#DYK that Josiah Henson defended Amherstburg during the 1837-1838 Upper Canada Rebellion? As Captain of the 2nd Essex Company of Coloured Volunteers which defended Fort Malden from December 1837 through May 1838, Henson participated in the capture of the rebel schooner Anne. #BlackHistoryMonth
#OTD February 4th, 1964, Leonard Brathwaite, MPP for Etobicoke, used his first speech at Queen's Park to address segregated schooling in Ontario. Braithwaite worked with the South Essex Citizens' Advancement Association who sought to close S.S. #11 in Colchester South in favour of full integration.
#OTD five years ago, February 2, 2021, the City of Windsor officially dedicated Mary E. Bibb Park, Windsor's only park named after a Black woman, honouring the teacher, abolitionist, entrepreneur, co-founder of The Voice of the Fugitive, and Person of National Historic Significance in Canada.
Canada's theme for Black History Month 2026 is “30 Years of Black History Month: Honouring Black Brilliance Across Generations — From Nation Builders to Tomorrow’s Visionaries.” For a list of Windsor-Essex Black History Month events and activities, visit amherstburgfreedom.org/bhm.
If you missed yesterday's virtual presentation by Dr. John F. Leeke and Ananda Leeke, you can find it on our YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8ut...
#DYK there are dozens of virtual Black history presentations available on the museum's channel? Happy exploring! youtube.com/playlist?lis...
#OTD Jan. 24, 1885, Dr. Martin Delany, physician, abolitionist, newspaper publisher, writer, political candidate, explorer, noted advocate for Black emigration beyond the United States, 1850s Chatham, Ontario resident, described by many as the Father of Black Nationalism, died in Wilberforce, Ohio.
January 24th is the World Day for African and Afrodescendant Culture, honouring the many vibrant cultures of Africa and global African Diasporas. We invite you today and always to visit the Amherstburg Freedom Museum and explore the rich heritage of Black Canadians in our region!
Happy #LincolnAlexanderDay ! #OTD January 21st, 1922, the Honourable Lincoln MacCauley Alexander, CC, OOnt, QC, was born in Toronto--Canada's first Black Member of Parliament, first Black Cabinet Minister, and first Black Lieutenant Governor in any province or territory. (He served in Ontario.)
#OTD January 15, 1929, civil rights activist and Baptist pastor the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia. #DYK Dr. King spoke twice in Windsor, to thousands gathered for Emancipation in 1956 at Jackson Park and at the 1963 Brotherhood Banquet held at Cleary Auditorium?
Join us for the next event in our Virtual Black History Series, Monday, Jan. 26th at 3:00 p.m. Eastern, The Leeke Family's Legacy of Freedom Seekers from Hagerstown to Amherstburg. Learn how Peter and Catherine Leek escaped with 14 children! To join the presentation and q & a, visit bit.ly/4pDYaDS.
#OTD January 12th, 1956, Sam Langford, boxer, eventually Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame inductee and Person of National Historic Significance, died in Cambridge, MA. Born March 4th, 1886 in Weymouth Falls, NS, the "Boston Bonecrusher" achieved fame in multiple weight classes throughout his career.
#OTD January 11, 1941, Abdullah the Butcher was born Lawrence (Larry) Shreve in Windsor, Ontario. Known throughout his professional career as "The Madman from the Sudan," the charismatic wrestler held many world championships throughout the years and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011.
#OTD January 6, 1908, boxer George Dixon passed away in New York City at age 37. #DYK Born in Africville, Nova Scotia in 1870, Dixon was the first Black person to become a world boxing champion, the first champion of more than one weight class, and the first ever Canadian-born boxing champion.
#OTD January 5, 1943, George Washington Carver passed away. Born enslaved on an unknown date, Carver went on to become a renowned botanist, agronomist, educator, longtime Tuskegee Institute faculty member, and inventor of hundreds of crop-based products, as well as a talented writer and painter.
175 years ago #OTD, January 1, 1851, The Voice of the Fugitive began publication in Sandwich, Canada West. The newspaper, founded and edited by Henry and Mary (Miles) Bibb, reported on slavery, abolitionism, Black Canadian communities, emigration, education, race relations, and current events.
Happy New Year from all of us at the Amherstburg Freedom Museum! As our fiftieth anniversary year comes to an end, we wish to express our gratitude to everyone who has supported us in the past or present. Reminder: the museum is closed January 1st and 2nd, reopening January 3rd. #HappyNewYear
To round out our fiftieth anniversary year, we are sharing video content from our special anniversary exhibit at the Amherstburg Freedom Museum. See A View from the Past, A Vision for the Future through January 2026.
youtu.be/_yNGgVVkdPo?...
To round out our fiftieth anniversary year, we are sharing video content from our special anniversary exhibit at the Amherstburg Freedom Museum. See A View from the Past, A Vision for the Future through January 2026. www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_Cy...
To round out our fiftieth anniversary year, we are sharing video content from our special anniversary exhibit. See A View from the Past, A Vision for the Future at the Amherstburg Freedom Museum through January 2026. Here's to the next fifty years! www.youtube.com/watch?v=jN8W...
#OTD December 26, 1923, Fred Thomas (professional basketball, football, baseball player, RCAF pilot, teacher, and coach) was born in Windsor, Ontario. His honours include Windsor's Fred Thomas Park, Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, Windsor-Essex County Sports Hall of Fame, and two murals in Windsor.
Happy holidays from all of us at the Amherstburg Freedom Museum!