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FRIENDS OF THE FORGOTTEN

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

George Webber

Inactive Burial Sites

Discover important burial sites that we will be addressing in the near future.

Ball Cemetery

Ball Cemetery

Hunter Road, Niagara-on-the-Lake





Baptist Cemetery

Baptist Cemetery

Virgil, Niagara-on-the-Lake

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Chrysler Cemetery

Chrysler Cemetery

Line 8 at Creek Road, Niagara-on-the-Lake

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Clement Cemetery

Clement Cemetery

St. Davids, Niagara-on-the-Lake

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Homer Cemetery

Homer Cemetery

Old Highway 8 at Canal, Niagara-on-the-Lake

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Methodist United Church Cemetery

Methodist United Church Cemetery

Virgil, Niagara-on-the-Lake

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Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground

Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground

Niagara-on-the-Lake

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River Road Cemetery

River Road Cemetery

Browns Point, Niagara-on-the-Lake

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Servos Cemetery

Servos Cemetery

Niagara-on-the-Lake

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Steele Village Cemetery

Steele Village Cemetery

St. Davids, Niagara-on-the-Lake





Sterling Cemetery

Sterling Cemetery

Line 6, Niagara-on-the-Lake

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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

Media

Keep up-to-date with our latest news.

The Local

The NOTL Local

Friends of the Forgotten still raising funds for burial ground

  • 28 February 2024
Niagara Now

Friends of the Forgotten

New QR code sign installed at the Niagara Baptist Church Burial Ground

  • 18 October 2023
Media Archive

Media Archive

Read past news releases by the Friends of the Forgotten

  • 2022 - 2023

OUR PARTNERS

We are grateful for our wonderful partners.

Contact

We look forward to hearing from you.

Friends of the Forgotten

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON