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What are the largest African American communities outside the states? I recall an article about 3,000 ( includes Afro Carribeans too) Black Americans in Accra, Ghana. What about England, Canada, or even Mexico?
What are the largest African American communities outside the states? I recall an article about 3,000 ( includes Afro Carribeans too) Black Americans in Accra, Ghana. What about England, Canada, or even Mexico?
In Canada, you have the black population in the Maritime provinces, primarily Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to a lesser degree that are mainly descendants of African Americans. They left the US as "Loyalists" after the Revolutionary War and War of 1812 or on the Underground Railroad. Some came from the Caribbean as well. http://web1.bccnsweb.com/ Our History
Some in southern Ontario also are descendants of those that arrived in that area via the Underground Railroad to places like the Buxtons, Chatham, Niagara Falls, Windsor, Sandwich, Amherstburg, etc. Actually, Amherstburg(just east of Windsor) had a black mayor in the recent past: https://windsorstar.com/news/hurst-c...as-aburg-mayor
Some came as Pullman Porters that lived in other cities across the country, like Montreal's Little Burgundy, which was known for its black population or to Vancouver, where Jimi Hendrix's grandmother lived: https://fotoeins.com/2018/02/19/my-v...ck-strathcona/
In Canada, you have the black population in the Maritime provinces, primarily Nova Scotia and New Brunswick to a lesser degree that are mainly descendants of African Americans. They left the US as "Loyalists" after the Revolutionary War and War of 1812 or on the Underground Railroad. Some came from the Caribbean as well. http://web1.bccnsweb.com/ Our History
Some in southern Ontario also are descendants of those that arrived in that area via the Underground Railroad to places like the Buxtons, Chatham, Niagara Falls, Windsor, Sandwich, Amherstburg, etc. Actually, Amherstburg(just east of Windsor) had a black mayor in the recent past: https://windsorstar.com/news/hurst-c...as-aburg-mayor
Some came as Pullman Porters that lived in other cities across the country, like Montreal's Little Burgundy, which was known for its black population or to Vancouver, where Jimi Hendrix's grandmother lived: https://fotoeins.com/2018/02/19/my-v...ck-strathcona/
I read about them but what's the total size of that community?
I read about them but what's the total size of that community?
Which one or are you referring to the population as a whole? I believe there are about 20,000 or so in Nova Scotia, with some of those spread out throughout the country. In southern Ontario, there probably about 10-15,000 or so. I'd guess that there are about 100,000 Black Canadians of African American descent, but that is a wild guess.
Which one or are you referring to the population as a whole? I believe there are about 20,000 or so in Nova Scotia, with some of those spread out throughout the country. In southern Ontario, there probably about 10-15,000 or so. I'd guess that there are about 100,000 Black Canadians of African American descent, but that is a wild guess.
I should of said I read about Black Canadians history before and familiar with their roots. I was aiming at taking as much information to list them among the diaspora from largest to smallest. I think Black Canadians around 60,000.
I should of said I read about Black Canadians history before and familiar with their roots. I was aiming at taking as much information to list them among the diaspora from largest to smallest. I think Black Canadians around 60,000.
Are you referring to those of African American descent?
Quite a few in Southern Ontario particularly in Niagara, Windsor and Chatham-Kent, home of the infamous Uncle Tom's Cabin. North Buxton Ontario has about 200 people and is home to exclusively descendents of ex- slaves.
Contrary to popular belief, African Americans were not openly welcomed in Canada. They were given refuge and certainly Canadians were very strongly anti-slavery but they were very much viewed as refugees and not immigrants. After the US Civil War and slavery was abolished, Canada and Canadians made it very clear that they were no longer welcome and should go back home.
Old post but wanted to note that I am African American and have connections to southern Ontario and that not all of the black people who moved there were enslaved persons. In North Buxton and Raleigh, Ontario area, the Shadd family were prominent and they were not slaves when Abraham Doras Shadd moved there. He and his daughter Mary Ann Shadd Cary encouraged the free black population of the US to move to Canada instead of following the American Colonization Society's goal of sending black people "back" to Africa or to Haiti or Mexico. They felt Canada was closer culturally to what free black Americans were used to, the climate was similar and that Canada, even though there was prejudice and racism there, the laws protected the rights of black people in the court system in most cases, which was not true in America even in northern/free states.
My family mirrored the movements of the Shadd family, whereas they lived in Wilmington, DE, then moved to Chester County, PA (which was a hotbed of Underground Railroad activity of black abolitionist) and then they moved to the North Buxton Community in Ontario. I still have family members who live in Ontario who are descendants of our free black ancestors.
I am also connected to the Shadd family via marriage as one of my distant great uncles married a younger daughter of Abraham Doras Shadd. That family line that married into the Shadd family is not the same one from DE/PA but they were also free and moved to Canada to escape oppression they were facing in Indiana. Prior to that they were from North Carolina and had been free since at least 1740 that I've researched. Most of the black people who moved back to the USA did so because they didn't like the climate in Canada and there were more jobs in the USA.
I've never run across anything where any of my lines (and a large amount of my maternal ancestry hails from Canada, including being the descendants on another line of enslaved Africans who were brought to Canada by slave owning, white loyalist families) were encouraged to leave Canada due to racial issues. Most left due to economic issues or the fact that they never wanted to stay full time. My DE/PA relatives a large amount of them actually came down to the US and fought in the US Colored Troops during the Civil War. After the war, they went back to Canada and got their families and moved to Michigan or Ohio.
Today, there are over 1 million Black Canadians. They primarily live in Toronto and are descendants of recent immigrants from the Caribbean. In the 19th century various estimates prior to the Civil War place the black population around 25,000-50,0000.
Old post but wanted to note that I am African American and have connections to southern Ontario and that not all of the black people who moved there were enslaved persons. In North Buxton and Raleigh, Ontario area, the Shadd family were prominent and they were not slaves when Abraham Doras Shadd moved there. He and his daughter Mary Ann Shadd Cary encouraged the free black population of the US to move to Canada instead of following the American Colonization Society's goal of sending black people "back" to Africa or to Haiti or Mexico. They felt Canada was closer culturally to what free black Americans were used to, the climate was similar and that Canada, even though there was prejudice and racism there, the laws protected the rights of black people in the court system in most cases, which was not true in America even in northern/free states.
My family mirrored the movements of the Shadd family, whereas they lived in Wilmington, DE, then moved to Chester County, PA (which was a hotbed of Underground Railroad activity of black abolitionist) and then they moved to the North Buxton Community in Ontario. I still have family members who live in Ontario who are descendants of our free black ancestors.
I am also connected to the Shadd family via marriage as one of my distant great uncles married a younger daughter of Abraham Doras Shadd. That family line that married into the Shadd family is not the same one from DE/PA but they were also free and moved to Canada to escape oppression they were facing in Indiana. Prior to that they were from North Carolina and had been free since at least 1740 that I've researched. Most of the black people who moved back to the USA did so because they didn't like the climate in Canada and there were more jobs in the USA.
I've never run across anything where any of my lines (and a large amount of my maternal ancestry hails from Canada, including being the descendants on another line of enslaved Africans who were brought to Canada by slave owning, white loyalist families) were encouraged to leave Canada due to racial issues. Most left due to economic issues or the fact that they never wanted to stay full time. My DE/PA relatives a large amount of them actually came down to the US and fought in the US Colored Troops during the Civil War. After the war, they went back to Canada and got their families and moved to Michigan or Ohio.
Today, there are over 1 million Black Canadians. They primarily live in Toronto and are descendants of recent immigrants from the Caribbean. In the 19th century various estimates prior to the Civil War place the black population around 25,000-50,0000.
Interesting post thanks for sharing. I grew up around quite a few people of African American background in Nova Scotia. Pretty interesting history when you think about how much they moved around and what their ancestor endured.
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