Footsteps to Freedom - A Local Black History Bus Tour

This impactful bus tour features 3 key stops in the learning journey of our local Black history in and around Simcoe County. We begin in Barrie at 9:30 am and travel north to the Oro African Church, a restored historical site. A local family descendant will provide an engaging history of the Black settlers who made a home in the surrounding area and where the church brought the community together. The bus tour takes us over to the outskirts of Collingwood to the Sheffield Park Black History & Cultural Museum, where we will meet another family descendant and tour the many small buildings containing artifacts, memorabilia and recreations of the Black settler's early days in the area. A culturally inspired lunch will be served, and a chance to wander the grounds at your own pace. We then return to Barrie but have a short stop at the Bethel Union Cemetery, the first multi-cultural cemetery in Simcoe County. There lies a beautiful monument to the many Black settlers and enslaved who lived and worked in the area. The tour will take us back to Barrie, where we started at approximately 4 pm. There will be toilet facilities at each location and food and water. The Bus Tour travels rain or shine, so please dress for the weather and for walking on uneven ground.

Host or Publisher Making Change