Josiah Henson (1789-1883)
Text from the plaque
After escaping to Upper Canada from slavery in Kentucky, the Reverend Josiah Henson became a conductor of the Underground Railroad and a force in the abolition movement. The founder of the Black settlement of Dawn, he was also an entrepreneur and established a school, the British-American Institute. His fame grew after Harriet Beecher Stowe stated that his memoirs published in 1849 had provided "conceptions and incidents" for her extraordinarily popular novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin. Henson's celebrity raised international awareness of Canada as a haven for refugees from slavery.
Transcribed from the marker, not summarised.
Find the place
The Municipality of Chatham-Kent
In Dresden, at the Henson Family Cemetery
at the corner of Park Street (Road 40) and Uncle Tom's Road
N 42 35.127 W 82 11.798
Recorded June 2009. Check current access before visiting.
More information
More views
Where it stands
