Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site
Encyclopedia
Located near Dresden, Ontario
, Canada
, Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site is an open air museum
and African American
history centre that includes the home of Josiah Henson
, a former slave, author
, abolitionist, and minister, who was the inspiration for Harriet Beecher Stowe
's title character in her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin
. The 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) complex is part of the original 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of land purchased in 1841 to establish the Dawn Settlement, a community for escaped slaves.
The original Henson cabin was located on a different location nearby and opened as a museum in the 1940s by an area farmer, William Chapple. The house was moved to the existing location in 1964 by J.D. Thomson, and subsequently was owned and operated by Kent County, Ontario
and then the St. Clair Parkway Commission. Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site has been owned by the Ontario Heritage Trust
since 2005.
Site facilities include:
The Museum is affiliated with: CMA
, CHIN
, and Virtual Museum of Canada
.
Dresden, Ontario
Dresden is a community in southwestern Ontario, Canada, part of the municipality of Chatham-Kent. Dresden is best known as the home of Josiah Henson, the former U.S. slave whose life story was the inspiration for the novel Uncle Tom's Cabin...
, 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...
, Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site is an open air museum
Open air museum
An open-air museum is a distinct type of museum exhibiting its collections out-of-doors. The first open-air museums were established in Scandinavia towards the end of the nineteenth century, and the concept soon spread throughout Europe and North America. Open-air museums are variously known as...
and African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
history centre that includes the home of Josiah Henson
Josiah Henson
Josiah Henson was an author, abolitionist, and minister. Born into slavery in Charles County, Maryland, he escaped to Ontario, Canada in 1830, and founded a settlement and laborer's school for other fugitive slaves at Dawn, near Dresden in Kent County...
, a former slave, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, abolitionist, and minister, who was the inspiration for Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe was an American abolitionist and author. Her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin was a depiction of life for African-Americans under slavery; it reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the United States and United Kingdom...
's title character in her novel Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1852, the novel "helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War", according to Will Kaufman....
. The 5 acres (20,234.3 m²) complex is part of the original 200 acre (0.809372 km²) of land purchased in 1841 to establish the Dawn Settlement, a community for escaped slaves.
The original Henson cabin was located on a different location nearby and opened as a museum in the 1940s by an area farmer, William Chapple. The house was moved to the existing location in 1964 by J.D. Thomson, and subsequently was owned and operated by Kent County, Ontario
Kent County, Ontario
Kent County, area 2,458 sq km is a historic county in the Canadian province of Ontario. Population in 2006 was 108,589.The county was created in 1792 and named by John Graves Simcoe in honour of the English County. The county is in an alluvial plain between Lake St...
and then the St. Clair Parkway Commission. Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site has been owned by the Ontario Heritage Trust
Ontario Heritage Trust
The Ontario Heritage Trust is a non-profit agency of the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Culture, responsible for protecting, preserving and promoting the built, natural and cultural heritage of Canada's most populous province. It was initially known as the Archaeological and Historic Sites Board...
since 2005.
Site facilities include:
- Josiah Henson House - Josiah Henson lived in the cabin during much of his time in the area, from 1841 until his death in 1883. Although the cabin has been moved more than once, it remained on the original Dawn Settlement lands. Opened as a museum in the 1940s, it was moved to its present location in 1964, and restored to an 1850 appearance in 1993–94.
- Josiah Henson Interpretive Centre - a visitor centre and museum with 19th Century books and artifacts related to abolitionAbolitionismAbolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
and Henson's life. The North Star Theater offers educational films. - Underground Railroad Freedom Gallery - features the geographic journey and history of enslaved people in the United States, from the path from Africa through slavery in the United States, and on to freedom in British North AmericaBritish North AmericaBritish North America is a historical term. It consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary War and the recognition of American independence in 1783.At the start of the Revolutionary War in 1775 the British...
. The gallery also includes exhibits about the life and times of Josiah Henson. - Outbuildings: a sawmillSawmillA sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
, smokehouseSmokehouseA smokehouse is a building where meat or fish is cured with smoke. The finished product might be stored in the building, sometimes for a year or more.-History:...
, and an 1850 pioneer church—including the pulpitPulpitPulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
from the original church from which Rev. J. Henson preached in Dresden - Harris House - one of the oldest houses in the area, and one of several final stops on the Underground RailroadUnderground RailroadThe 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,...
- Henson Family Cemetery - adjacent to the church, the cemetery includes a Josiah Henson memorial stone and National Historic Plaque. Across the road is the burial ground for the Dawn Settlement and the British-American InstituteBritish-American InstituteThe British-American Institute was a school started in 1842 by Josiah Henson near Dresden, Western District, Canada West, Province of Canada, as part of the Dawn Settlement, a community of fugitive slaves who had escaped to Canada. The institute was a school for all ages designed to provide a...
, a school started by Josiah Henson. - A gift shop
The Museum is affiliated with: CMA
Canadian Museums Association
The Canadian Museums Association is a national organization for the promotion of museums in Canada.The Canadian Museums Association is the national organization for the advancement of the Canadian museum sector, representing Canadian museum professionals both within Canada and internationally. The...
, CHIN
Canadian Heritage Information Network
The Canadian Heritage Information Network is a Canadian government-supported organization that provides a networked interface to Canada's heritage, largely through the World Wide Web. It aims to give access to Canada's heritage for both Canadians and a worldwide audience, by supporting the...
, and Virtual Museum of Canada
Virtual Museum of Canada
The Virtual Museum of Canada is Canada's national virtual museum. With a directory of over 3,000 Canadian heritage institutions and a database of over 600 virtual exhibits, the VMC brings together Canada's museums regardless of size or geographical location.The VMC includes virtual exhibits,...
.
External links
- Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site, near Dresden, Ontario
- National Historic Person plaque, and cemetery photo near Dresden, Ontario