Did you know slavery was legal and practiced in Canada in the 1700s? Early French settlers enslaved both black and Indigenous people. A bill was passed in 1793 that stopped the transport of slaves into Upper Canada, though many were enslaved for years after.
Despite this tragic beginning, black families persisted and played a pivotal role in Essex County’s early history. The first black man recorded to own land in Essex County was James Robertson, who owned a 23-acre lot in Colchester Township in 1787. The end of the War of 1812 marked an influx of black refugees from America, their path of safehouses to Canada referred to as The Underground Railway.
The narrowing of the Detroit River along Sandwich Town made it an ideal place to escape into Canada. After crossing, many formerly enslaved people remained in the area because of its mild climate. In the 1840s and 1850s, black communities sprang up in Maldon, Anderdon, Colchester, Grosfield, Sandwich, Amherstburg, and Maidstone. Strong abolitionist organizations formed across Essex County, one of the most notable being the Refugee Home Society, founded by Henry and Mary E. Bibb in 1851 (see photo of Henry Bibb above). This organization raised money to purchase 2,000 acres of land in Maidstone and Sandwich for formerly enslaved people, offered job training, and provided robust community support.
Henry Bibb was a formerly enslaved man from Kentucky who settled in Essex County with his wife, Mary. Their contributions to black history in Essex County were many; Henry set up the first black newspaper in Canada called The Voice of the Fugitive and Mary established a school for black children and adults. A plaque commemorates this incredible couple just west of Mackenzie Hall on Sandwich Street.
For more information about Essex County’s early back history, visit these incredible black heritage sites and follow us on social media – we are taking a deep dive into local history in our video series!
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