The Amherstburg Freedom Museum marked International Archives Day on June 9, 2026, by highlighting its role in helping people trace family roots and explore Black history. The museum posted on X, reminding the community that its archives are open to researchers, especially those looking into genealogy, both in person and remotely.
“The Amherstburg Freedom Museum welcomes many researchers, especially genealogists, who use our archives each year; staff also assist remote researchers from North America and beyond,” the post read. The post used the hashtag #IAW2026 for International Archives Week, which runs from June 8 to 12. This year’s theme is #ArchivesForJustice: Rights, Memory & Futures, organized by the International Council on Archives.
The museum offers both staff-conducted and self-conducted research, and recent digitization of some archival collections has made it easier for people to dig into history from afar. Requests come in from across North America, as descendants of freedom seekers look for clues about their ancestors who came through the Underground Railroad.
The museum was founded in 1975 by local couple Betty and Melvin “Mac” Simpson, originally called the North American Black Historical Museum. It sits at 277 King St. in Amherstburg and includes the Nazrey African Methodist Episcopal Church, a National Historic Site that was a stop on the Underground Railroad, and the Taylor Log Cabin, once home to a formerly enslaved man named George Taylor and his family.
