Africville developed as a black community on the fringes of Halifax. It was founded by blacks from refugee settlements at Preston and Hammond Plains who had been attempting, without much success, to establish farms. The land at Africville was not considered of great value at the time, so they were allowed to settle there and eventually received titles to their small lots. As the map shows, the settlement was located near a slaughter house, an infectious diseases hospital and the city prison.
