The Heritage Singers (Photo: Maurice Munroe)

Emancipation Day 2022

Celebrate Emancipation Day 2022
The debut of new site name

Saturday, July 30 from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Join us for Emancipation Day at Uncle Tom’s Cabin Historic Site – an annual celebration of hope and freedom commemorating the end of slavery in the British Empire. This year is extra special as we unveil a new name that better reflects the true history of the site – don’t miss out!

Everyone is welcome for this free, fun and educational day featuring music, poetry and presentations. Seating is available or you can bring your own lawn chair.

Can’t join in person? We’ll be sharing a livestream on the Ontario Heritage Trust’s social media platforms on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Schedule of activities:

Debut of new name - Join us for the unveiling of the new site name at Noon

Amaria Phillips
10:40 a.m. and 1:45 pm.

Amaria Phillips is the co-founder and President of Concordia University’s Black Student Union. She’ll present two original works of poetry.

Tracy Cain
10:50 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Gospel musician Tracy Cain is a fifth-generation Black Canadian with roots in North Buxton, St. Catharines and the Queen’s Bush settlement. Her warm, smooth vocal stylings are influenced by gospel, jazz and R&B.

Terrence Vick
11 a.m.

Great-great-grandson of Josiah Henson, Reverend Terrence Vick will bring remarks on behalf of the Henson family.

Kwame Delfish
11:15 a.m. and 1:50 p.m.

An artist and designer commissioned by the Royal Canadian Mint to design the Underground Railroad commemorative coin for Black History Month 2022, Delfish will speak about his creative process and his work in commemorating Black history and the Underground Railroad.

Susan Cooke Soderberg
11:35 a.m.

A public historian and freelance writer from Maryland, Soderberg is the author of an upcoming biography entitled The Real Josiah Henson: One Man's Journey from Enslavement to Celebrity.

Heritage Singers Canada
11:55 a.m. and 2 p.m.

A crowd favourite, Heritage Singers Canada return to Emancipation Day to conduct a musical journey from slavery to freedom.

An Enduring Dawn: Dresden’s Black presence in the 19th century
All day

A photographic exhibit highlighting the role people of African descent have played in the early development of the town of Dresden.

Culture Craft
10 a.m. to Noon

Art activity for kids.

Lunch is available for purchase, with food and desserts from Dresden Sidestreets Youth Centre.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin Historic Site
29251 Freedom Road (formerly 29251 Uncle Tom’s Road)
Dresden, Ontario