The Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia is located in

Cherrybrook, Nova Scotia Cherry Brook is a predominantly African Canadian rural community located to the north of Trunk 7 between Lake Loon and Lake Major, and just a few miles east of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Cherry Brook is a rural community with a few small farms. Mo ...

, in the

Halifax Regional Municipality Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...

. The centre is a museum and a library resource centre that focuses on the history and culture of

African Nova Scotians Black Nova Scotians (also known as African Nova Scotians and Afro-Nova Scotians) are Black Canadians whose ancestors primarily date back to the Colonial United States as slaves or freemen, later arriving in Nova Scotia, Canada, during the 18th ...

. The organization of the Black Cultural Society was incorporated as a charitable organization in 1977 and the centre opened its doors in 1983, with a goal to ''educate and inspire'' and to protect, preserve and promote Black culture in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. The centre is located on Trunk 7 at 1149 Main Street. The centre holds many events on a weekly basis and is open to the public. The centre also has a permanent display about the former community of Africville.

Background

The Black Cultural Centre was the "brainchild" of

William Pearly Oliver William Pearly Oliver (February 11, 1912 in Wolfville, Nova Scotia – May 26, 1989 in Lucasville) worked at the Cornwallis Street Baptist Church for twenty-five years (1937–1962) and was instrumental in developing the four leading organizati ...

(1934 – 1989). By 2007, the Cultural Centre had been successful in acquiring an

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the cen ...

medal and thirty Victory Medals from eBay. The Victory Medals had been originally awarded to Black soldiers who had served during World War I in the

No. 2 Construction Battalion The No. 2 Construction Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF), was raised in Nova Scotia and was one of two predominantly Black battalions in Canadian military history and the only Canadian battalion composed of Black soldiers to serve i ...

—"Canada's first and only black battalion." The Centre worked with Dave Thomson of St. George, Ontario who had helped purchase medals for the Centre. In February 2007, the family of Sapper PR. P.F. Fenton learned that his medal was being auctioned on eBay. The community raised thousands of dollars towards the purchase price of over CDN$7,400 so the medal could be placed at the Centre.

Public transit

There is a

Halifax Transit Halifax Transit is a Canadian public transport service operating buses and ferries in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Founded as Metro Transit in March 1981, the agency runs two ferry routes, 66 conventional bus routes (including corridor, local, and expre ...

bus stop outside the Black Cultural Centre served by routes "61 North Preston" and "68 Cherry Brook". These operate all day and connect to nearby Portland Hills Terminal.

References

{{coord, 44.70316, N, 63.47189, W, display=title African-American museums in Canada History of Black people in Canada Culture of Nova Scotia Buildings and structures in Halifax, Nova Scotia Museums in Halifax, Nova Scotia Black Canadian organizations