Remembering Mississauga's connection to the Underground Railroad

Modern Mississauga and Heritage Mississauga have come together to present an ongoing series called “Way Back Wednesday.”
We’ll share information about the history of Mississauga here and answer your questions.

Today’s topic is about Mississauga's connection to the Underground Railroad

In connection to Black History Month in February, we will explore some of our historic links to early Black history in Mississauga.

The Underground Railroad was a name given to an informal network of secret routes, safe houses, and “conductors” (people) that focused on assisting former and fugitive Black slaves to escape from the United States into Canada, where many abolitionists were sympathetic to their plight. Houses and buildings that offered safe refuge along the route were often lit with a solitary lantern in an attic window during the night as a signal.

The Underground Railroad operated from about 1820 until 1865, and was at its height just prior to and during the American Civil War. Estimates suggest that between 30,000 and 100,000 slaves escaped to Canada via the “Railroad”. The routes taken by slaves were varied, and harbours and actual railroads were often used. Local to historic Mississauga, for example, the harbour at neighbouring Oakville was one terminus, while Orangeville was rumoured to be another. From these locations, escaped slaves often dispersed, settled nearby, or joined established Black communities elsewhere in Southern Ontario. There were those, as fugitive slaves, who came to reside in historic Mississauga, such as Benedict Duncan, Samuel Carter, “Dr. Ben”, Alexander Hunter and John (or James) Sheppard, likely amongst others.

The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 in the United States sought to stem the tide of those seeking to escape slavery. Slave catchers, emboldened by the Act, were documented in Toronto, and in part led to gaining support for the formation of the Anti-Slavery Society of Canada. At the same time, abolitionist newspapers such as The North Star, Voice of the Fugitive and the Provincial Freeman championed the abolitionist movement, published slave narratives, and promoted the freedom offered in Canada. Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, published in 1852, helped to propel the abolitionist movement.

The Underground Railroad was a secret network of abolitionists who helped fugitive slaves escape from the American South to free Northern states or to Canada. The Underground Railroad operated from about 1820 until 1865, and estimates suggest that anywhere between 30,000 and 100,000 former slaves escaped to Canada via the “Railroad”.