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It is located on the original property purchased by Josiah Henson. As an important Canadian
historic site, Uncle Tom's Cabin will provide visitors with known facts and education
on the life of fugitive slaves in the Dresden area. Focusing on the life
of Josiah Henson, the site will demonstrate the growth in black people or any
race through determination and perseverance. Through tourism revenues, Uncle
Tom's Cabin Historic Site will be operationally self-supporting and contribute
to the St. Clair Parkway Commission overall tourism efforts.
Vision
Uncle Tom's
Cabin Historic Site will be a living site representative of the Dawn Settlement.
Tours and interpretive program will allow our visitors to learn new, ever-changing
facts on the life and accomplishments of Josiah Henson. Efforts will continue
to maintain the property, artifacts, and buildings for future generations to enjoy,
and to continue to develop new visitors and services to be a self-sufficient site
within St. Clair Parkway Commission.
The
Museum Complex
The property
containing Uncle Tom's Cabin Historic Site is part of 200 acres of land, purchased
in 1841, to establish the Dawn Settlement, a refuge for the many fugitives who
escaped to Canada from the United States.
The site includes:
The Josiah Henson Interpretive Centre which houses a collection of 19th century
artifacts and rare books pertinent to the abolitionist era as well as other information
regarding the Reverend Josiah Henson. Included are a rare early edition
of Josiah's autobiography and a signed portrait of Queen Victoria presented to
him in 1877.
Included in the centre are:
The North Star
Theatre which provides the venue for an audio-visual slide show.
The
Underground Railroad Freedom Gallery which follows the path of history for
fugitive slaves leaving Africa, their enslavement in the United States, and the
flight north to freedom.
The Gift Shop offers a wide selection of
African art and souvenirs, as well as an extensive selection of books. The
Harris House which is to be one of the oldest structures in the area where
fugitive slaves sought refuge. The Sawmill, represents one
of the methods by which the land was cleared. Profits went to support
the British American Institute. The
Smokehouse, housed in the trunk of a sycamore tree, was once used for curing
and preserving meat. The
Josiah Henson House is the dwelling where Josiah Henson and his wife Nancy
lived during the latter part of his life. The home was restored to the period
circa 1850 in 1993-94. The
Henson Family Cemetery is located adjacent to the church. The Josiah
Henson memorial stone and National Historic Plaque are located here. Across
the road is the British American Institute burial ground where many gravestones
of the settlement have been preserved.
The Pioneer Church, which dates back to 1850, contains the organ and pulpit
from the original church where Reverend Henson preached in Dresden, Ontario. Museum History
The Henson house has been moved approximately three times, always on original
Dawn Settlement property. An area farmer, William Chapple, first used it
as a museum in the 1940's. The house was moved to the existing five-acre
location, which is part of the original Dawn Settlement, in 1964 by J.D. Thomson
to establish the "Uncle Tom's Cabin" Museum. Kent
County purchased the site buildings and artifacts in 1984. The county operated
the site as a museum until 1991. In the following year, ownership of Uncle
Tom's Cabin Historic Site was transferred from Kent County to the St. Clair Parkway
Commission. At that time, the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Recreation
agreed to fund the redevelopment of the site and provided the Commission with
$1.2 million for that purpose.
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