Oakville in Halton Region, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)

Burnet Street and Oakville’s Black Community

Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 15, 2025

1. Burnet Street and Oakville’s Black Community Marker

Inscription. As an official Port of Entry into Canada, Oakville saw the arrival of many African Americans; free and those escaping slavery. As one of the major destinations along the Underground Railroad, it was the first glimpse of freedom for many. The Underground Railroad saw over 40,000 African American people migrating from the United States to Canada between 1850 and 1860 alone.

Samuel Adams, a free African-American from Maryland, moved to the Oakville area circa 1855. He came with his wife and young family and set up a successful blacksmith practice in Bronte. His subsequent invention of an implement used to lift flat stones from the bottom of Lake Ontario, known as a stonehooker, made him a wealthy man. He used this wealth to help freedom seekers make a life for themselves in Upper Canada.

Samuel Adams worked with Reverend William J. Butler to organize a group of devout Black settlers who, in 1891, laid the cornerstone for the Turner African Methodist Episcopal Church, The Church was not only a large part of Oakville's Black religious community, but it also served as a hub of social activity. Samuel's son, Jeremiah B.

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Adams, was a dedicated member of local society who worked at the Chisholm brothers' mill and volunteered at the Church.

In 1909, Jeremiah and his wife Eliza, the daughter of Reverend Butler, purchased a home at the southwest corner of Burnet and Kerr streets. It was a two storey stucco clad house where they raised their four daughters and two sons, Jeremiah and Eliza celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary together, both passing away shortly after in 1948. They left the house to their unmarried daughter, Nina Adams. From Nina, the house passed to other descendants of Jeremiah Adams in the Wayner, Duncan, and Skeete families and remained in the possession of Jeremiah Adams' descendants for over 100 years.

The house was demolished in 2016 and stone from the foundation was salvaged for commemorative purposes.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Abolition & Underground RR • African Americans. A significant historical year for this entry is 1850.

Location. 43° 26.361′ N, 79° 40.371′ W. Marker is in Oakville, Ontario, in Halton Region. It is at the intersection of Burnet Street and Kerr Street, on the

Photographed by Tim Boyd, August 15, 2025

2. Burnet Street and Oakville’s Black Community Marker

right when traveling east on Burnet Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 76 Burnet Street, Oakville ON L6K 1B8, Canada. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Toronto,

specifically on the Golden Horseshoe,

in the Hamilton-Halton-Brant Area,

and specifically in the Toronto Metropolitan Area.

It is also in Central Canada.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Great Lakes,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony,

the Viceroyalty of New France,

the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

and Rupert’s Land.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Lyon’s Log Cabin (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); William Chisholm’s Vision (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); Days of Sail and Steam (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); The Evolution of a Port Town (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); Oakville: Resort Town on Lake Ontario (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); Oakville’s Yachting Heritage (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); The Young Port Matures (approx.

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0.4 kilometers away); The Temperance Movement (approx. 0.4 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Oakville.

Also see . . . . Ontarians should know more about the Black history of Oakville (TV Ontario)

Between 1850 and 1860, approximately 400 Black people settled in Oakville, representing 20 per cent of the town’s population of 2,000 people, according to the city’s archives. These free Black residents had escaped slavery through the Underground Railroad, along with the 36,000 other Black fugitives who made their way to Canada, which had abolished slavery in 1834 as part of Britain’s Slavery Abolition Act.

(Submitted on August 15, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario.)

Credits. This page was last revised on August 16, 2025. It was originally submitted on August 15, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. This page has been viewed 79 times since then and 11 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 15, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.