Africville

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NS Archives: Africville online exhibit http://ow.ly/hg35O

Africville was settled in about the 1840s by people from the Black Refugee communities of Hammonds Plains and Preston. William Brown Sr and William Arnold purchased the land in 1848; the first church congregation (later Seaview African United Baptist) was established in 1849; and an elementary school was opened in 1883. Although geographically a part of the City of Halifax, Africville was always a separate community, with a largely African-Nova Scotian population. Africville struggled for survival throughout its 125-year history. It was divided by railway tracks and encroached upon by factories, sewage disposal pits, slaughter houses, and other non-residential development. The elementary school was closed in 1953 and the children were relocated to racially-integrated schools elsewhere in Halifax. In the mid-1950s, Halifax moved its large open civic dump to within one-half mile of Africville. The City considered Africville to be a suitable site for eventual industrial development, and did not extend water, sewer, police, and other municipal services to the community.

In October 1962, the City decided to eliminate Africville and relocate its residents elsewhere in Halifax. The relocation was part of a broader program of "urban renewal" in Halifax, as in other North American cities, in the 1960s. The process of relocating Africville residents began in 1964; the demolition of the community was largely completed by the end of 1967. In early January 1970 the City bulldozed the building of the last Africville resident, who reluctantly agreed to sell his property to avoid expropriation. The land on which Africville stood is now part of Seaview Memorial Park, named in memory of Seaview African United Baptist Church. Africville was designated a national historic site in 1996 and a plaque was placed at the site in 2002.

Source:
African Nova Scotian Tourism Guide
Historical Black Settlements in Nova Scotia (Google Map)

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