Скачать или смотреть The Black Canadian Town You've Never Heard Of | Black History

Greetings to you, the Dark Set, Congregation of the Learned.
This video tells the story of the Elgin Settlement—also known as the Buxton Settlement—in Kent County, Ontario. It was one of the most successful Black settlements in Canadian history, built in the mid-1800s by formerly enslaved people who had escaped the United States.

Led by Reverend William King, a man who once owned enslaved people through marriage but later became determined to help them live freely, the settlers arrived in southwestern Ontario just as the Fugitive Slave Act made even the “free states” of the U.S. dangerous. In Canada, they found both opportunity and resistance.

They cleared raw forest land, built homes, established farms, and opened schools that provided a higher level of education than many white communities at the time. Over time, the Elgin Settlement grew into a self-sustaining, industrious community with skilled tradespeople, farmers, and students who would go on to become teachers, doctors, and more.

They faced racist opposition from local politicians and citizens, but still managed to secure 9,000 acres of land, which they transformed through hard work and a strong sense of purpose. The motto of the settlement was simple: Work, or sink.

Today, the Buxton National Historic Site and Museum keeps that history alive. And every year, the descendants of the original settlers gather for the Buxton Homecoming to honor what their ancestors built.

This video looks back at how the Elgin Settlement came to be, what made it work, and why its legacy still matters.

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