South Buxton, Ontario
Encyclopedia
South Buxton is an unincorporated community in Chatham-Kent
, Ontario
, Canada
. The population is approximately 78. The majority of the population is retirees. South Buxton has only two roads and a single church. It is near the South Buxton raceway. The closest towns are North Buxton
and Merlin
.
. Despite resistance from nearby residents, The Elgin Association was able to purchase 9,000 acres of land which was then divided into 50 acre farms. The town grew quickly, with 400 residents after 3 years, and more than 800 residents after 7 years.
The church, St. Andrew's, was built by escaped slaves for Rev. William King. A liberty bell cast in 1800 was used to signal the beginning of church service until the 21st century. The bell originally was rung every time a freed slave reached South Buxton. South Buxton was once larger, but as rural Ontario developed into urban Ontario the population decreased.
Christopher Paul Curtis
wrote a book set in historic Buxton (in the years just before the American Civil War) called Elijah of Buxton.
Chatham-Kent, Ontario
Chatham–Kent is a unitary authority in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Mostly rural, its centres of population are Blenheim, Chatham, Dresden, Ridgetown, Tilbury and Wallaceburg. Modern Chatham–Kent was created in 1998 by the merger of Kent County and its municipalities.- History :The former city of...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The population is approximately 78. The majority of the population is retirees. South Buxton has only two roads and a single church. It is near the South Buxton raceway. The closest towns are North Buxton
North Buxton
North Buxton is a rural community located in Southwestern Ontario. It rests in the Chatham-Kent municipality with a population of approximately 200 almost exclusively Black Canadians. North Buxton's historic population has been over 2000 residents, almost exclusively descendants of freed and...
and Merlin
Merlin, Ontario
Merlin is a small farming community inhabited by 750 residents located in Southwestern Ontario. It lies five kilometres due north off the shores of Lake Erie in the municipality of Chatham-Kent.Merlin is the hometown of country music singer Michelle Wright....
.
History
South Buxton was founded in 1850 by the Elgin Association, an organization begun by Rev. William King that was designed to negotiate with the government in order to obtain land in order to form a settlement for Rev. King's 15 freed slaves as well as any escaped slaves who could make it to Canada by means of the underground railroadUnderground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
. Despite resistance from nearby residents, The Elgin Association was able to purchase 9,000 acres of land which was then divided into 50 acre farms. The town grew quickly, with 400 residents after 3 years, and more than 800 residents after 7 years.
The church, St. Andrew's, was built by escaped slaves for Rev. William King. A liberty bell cast in 1800 was used to signal the beginning of church service until the 21st century. The bell originally was rung every time a freed slave reached South Buxton. South Buxton was once larger, but as rural Ontario developed into urban Ontario the population decreased.
Christopher Paul Curtis
Christopher Paul Curtis
Christopher Paul Curtis is an American children's author and a Newbery Medal winner who wrote The Watsons Go to Birmingham: 1963 and the critically acclaimed Bud, Not Buddy. Bud, Not Buddy is the first novel to receive both the Coretta Scott King Award and the Newbery Medal...
wrote a book set in historic Buxton (in the years just before the American Civil War) called Elijah of Buxton.
External links
- Articles
- Government of Canada
- South Buxton at Geographical Names of Canada