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We intend to address systemic racism by honouring the forgotten for their lived experience, rather than for their long-ago deaths. We propose to recast the past local people of African descent not as helpless victims seeking refuge, but as freedom fighters to be admired for their strength, courage and resilience.
Our Mission & Vision
Friends of the Forgotten in Niagara-on-the-Lake was formed to honour the final resting place of Niagara Baptist Church parishioners, who were part of the Niagara-on-the-Lake historic Black Community, by transforming the current unremarkable site into a memorial landscape.
The Niagara Baptist Church burial ground is a point of pride for NOTL as a respectfully restored, serene, memorial and historical site that honours the parishioners buried there, their role in the town’s heritage, and the importance of Black history in NOTL.
George Webber - Friends of the Forgotten
Inactive Burial Sites
Discover important burial sites that we will be addressing in the near future.
Ball Cemetery
Hunter Road, Niagara-on-the-Lake
Steele Village Cemetery
St. Davids, Niagara-on-the-Lake
1
Active Sites
11
Inactive Sites
15
Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground Known Graves
1829
Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground Established
Did you know?
The Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground was established in 1829 and abandoned in 1878.
George Webber
Friends of the Forgotten
The Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground is an open field, below which lie the bodies of 15 known Canadian settlers and their headstones.
George Webber
Friends of the Forgotten
The land is now owned by the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake and governed by the Bereavement Authority of Ontario.
George Webber
Friends of the Forgotten
The current state of the cemetery is certainly not what John Oakley (former British soldier turned teacher and minister) would have foreseen
George Webber
Friends of the Forgotten
Our Committee
Get to know our dedicated volunteers.
Our Objectives
Our goal is to bring the same level of attention, care and respect to the the Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground as is given to other significant historical sites in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
Engage
Engage professionals and historians to properly restore the burial ground.
Educate
To create educational pieces that authentically convey Black history in NOTL.
Search
Search for living descendants in Canada and elsewhere.
Identify
Identify the individuals buried on the site.
Social Buzz
Friends of the Forgotten partners with Shaw Festival Theatre.
@friendsoftheforgottennotl
Rotary Club of NOTL becomes first Friend of the Forgotten. Thank you for your generosity.
@friendsoftheforgottennotl
Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground Stage 1 Archeological Assessment Complete.
@friendsoftheforgottennotl
Friends of the Forgotten gets council support in Niagara-on-the-Lake effort to clean up inactive cemeteries.
@friendsoftheforgottennotl
Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground
The Niagara Baptist Church congregation was established in 1829. By the late 1840s, the church’s membership was predominantly Black.
The history of the Niagara Baptist Church was documented by Natasha Henry, Assistant Professor, African Canadian History at the university of Toronto and president of the Ontario Black History Society. Her research uncovered the names of at least 15 people known to be buried in the graveyard.
Learn more about Niagara-on-the-Lake's Black History
Niagara Baptist Church
R.I.P.
- George D. Wesley Jr.
- Susan Augusta Oakley
- Marion Bright
- Charles Lewis
- George Wesley Sr.
Niagara Baptist Church
R.I.P.
- Frances Hoyt
- James Robinson
- Caroline York
- William Henry Duke
- Margaret Warrs
Niagara Baptist Church
R.I.P.
- Mary York
- Jacob Greene
- Herbert Holmes
- Solomon Ten Broek
- Warner Johnson
Strength to Love
The time is always right to do what’s right.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.
Martin Luther King Jr.
1963
$ 10 k
Funds Raised to Date
$ 60 k
Funds Needed for Next Stages
$ 6 k
Funds Raised for Next Stages
$ 44 k
Funds Still Needed for Next Stages
Become a Friend
Help us by donating today and become a friend of the forgotten.
Media
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Friends of the Forgotten
New QR code sign installed at the Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground
- 18 October 2023
OUR PARTNERS
We are grateful for our wonderful partners.
Contact
We look forward to hearing from you.