Bryan and Shannon Prince are from Canada’s historic Elgin Settlement and Buxton Mission, which was a haven for fugitive slaves prior to the American Civil War. They have been married for 43 years and, along with their four children, continue to farm where their ancestors found freedom generations ago. Both are active with the Buxton National Historic Site & Museum, where Shannon is Curator and Bryan is a Director. Both have been members of several organizations in Canada and the United States including Ontario’s Underground Railroad Alliance; The African Canadian Heritage Network; York University’s Harriet Tubman Institute; joint projects with Millersville University, Pennsylvania, and are featured in The Road To Freedom concert series and CD. They have lectured extensively across North America for entities including Yale University, Organization of American Historians and the U.S. National Parks Service and at fascinating places which include Queen’s Park and Osgood Hall in Toronto, an historic Quaker Meeting House in Wilmington, Delaware and the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.
The couple have received numerous awards including the 2011 Underground Railroad Free Press international prize for “The Advancement of Knowledge” and 2017 “Harriet Tubman Commitment with a Purpose” Award by the Ontario Black History Society