Otterville African Methodist Episcopal Church and Cemetery Historical Plaque

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Otterville African Methodist Episcopal Church and Cemetery

Photos by Alan L Brown - Posted June, 2008

Plaque Location

The County of Oxford
The Township of Norwich
In Otterville, on Church Street/Pick Line
about .6 km north of Otterville's Main Street (Road 19)

Coordinates: N 42 55.888 W 80 36.525

Plaque Text

Encouraged by local Quakers, free Blacks and escaped slaves fled persecution in the United States and found homes in the Otterville area beginning in 1829. As skilled tradespeople and farmers, these people made significant contributions to local development. In 1856, trustees of the African Methodist Episcopal Church purchased this .2 ha lot and built the first Black church in Oxford County. Later that year, the church was transferred to the newly established British Methodist Episcopal denomination. The church and cemetery served the local Black community until the late 1880s. The small white-painted frame church had disappeared by the early 20th century. Its cemetery is one of the few preserved Black pioneer burial grounds in Ontario.

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