
"THE DAWN SETTLEMENT" - Dresden
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Hard Oiler
N 42° 35.088 W 082° 11.774
17T E 401842 N 4715402
Located at the Uncle Tom’s Cabin Historic Site in Dresden, the plaque recognizes the establishment of the Dawn Settlement as a refuge for escaped slaves.
Waymark Code: WMWAP
Location: Ontario, Canada
Date Posted: 10/24/2006
Views: 216
In 1841, Josiah Henson, a slave who escaped to Upper Canada via the Underground Railroad, moved his family to Dresden and helped to establish the Dawn Settlement.
The settlement was established to provide a refuge and a new beginning for former slaves. Through his leadership, the British American Institute, one of Canada's first industrial schools, was founded. The school was intended for the advancement of fugitive slaves.
Josiah Henson's name became synonymous with the central character "Uncle Tom" in Harriet Beecher Stowe's famous novel Uncle Tom's Cabin.
