The center developing on this site (as of 2024) will help to address centuries of inequity in the area punctuated in the story of the Black Pioneers who settled here first but suffered through displacement, a smallpox epidemic and government neglect. Eventually many of the pioneers moved on to New Brunswick lead by Thomas Peters. By 1792 many Blacks had had enough and again led by Thomas Peters, over 1000 of them departed for Sierra Leone. Those that remained in Nova Scotia established a number of small communities including Jordantown, Acaciaville, and Conway. Though overshadowed by the community of Birchtown, this area has numerous site of significance for Black history. Many we are only beginning to understand.
Images:
Map based on Hatfield Grant of 1801 showing Negro Town, originally called Brinley Town, located left of middle along the Little Joggin of the Basin of Annapolis – https://www.uelac.org/PDF/Brinley-Town-Black-Cemetery-at-Conway-Nova-Scotia-by-Brian-McConnell.pdf
