17871787–1808 · Freetown

Founding of Freetown by freed Black settlers

Engraving of Freetown around 1856, seen across the Sierra Leone River beneath its green hills — Archival image: John Leighton Wilson or an uncredited artist. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

British abolitionists founded a 'Province of Freedom' in Sierra Leone in 1787 for Black Londoners. In 1792 about 1,100 Black Loyalists who had escaped American slavery sailed from Nova Scotia and founded Freetown, joined by Jamaican Maroons in 1800. After 1808 the Royal Navy landed tens of thousands of Africans freed from slave ships here, creating the Krio community.

Sites

Site 1: Cotton Tree site and State House areaWhere the 1792 settlers gave thanks; the old tree fell in a storm in 2023.Map ↗
Site 2: King's Yard GateGateway through which tens of thousands of Africans freed from slave ships entered the colony after 1808.Map ↗
Site 3: St John's Maroon ChurchSmall church of 1822 built by the Jamaican Maroon settlers.Map ↗

Guides who take you there

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Also in Freetown

More from the 18th & 19th Century

Read more: reference. Summary written by History-Tours.com.