Freida C. and Isla B.

 Slavery Abolition Act of 1833

Freida C. and Isla B.
Kamloops Heritage Fair
Kamloops, BC

The Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 was about ending slavery in the British empire. Although Canada abolished slavery in 1793, it was still present in 1833. The act was brought to a vote when 1.3 million people signed a petition to reinforce a law against slavery. It was difficult to abolish slavery because it had been practiced for so long and was thought to be necessary in peoples lives. 

Although there was not one key person who abolished slavery, there was one man who stood out to us - William Wilberforce. William Wilberforce worked for over 20 years trying to end slave trades and started the 1807 Slave Trade Act. He put his life’s work into saving innocent people and we thought he deserved an honourable mention because he helped so many people. Sadly, he did not get to experience the passing of the slavery abolition act as he passed away just days before the act was passed. 

We now have a national holiday called Emancipation Day on August 1 to remember what had gone on in the past - not to celebrate but to reconcile with this history. The meaning of emancipation is letting someone free. That is why we call it Emancipation Day because it was the day the act was passed and when most of the slaves became free. We also learned about the British Empire along the journey of making this project. We learned about slavery and how it affected people’s lives (most of all the enslaved African Americans). In conclusion we hope that you understand our project and that slavery is a horrid thing that should not have ever happened and that we did things in the past that were cruel and hurtful, but we should learn from this and not repeat history. 

What sources and evidence did you consult for your project? What different perspectives did they provide on your topic?

We used Canadian Encyclopedia and Britannica as resources to use as research. We also used primary resources and a historical letter from a slave owner that was from an archival website our school librarian showed us.

What is the historical significance of your topic?

The significance of our topic is that it saved more than 800,000 people and it once and for all made the British Empire a place free from slavery.

Why did you choose this topic? 

We chose this topic because we are very interested in history and want to learn more about the past. We wanted to do something that involved slavery because we feel like people know about slavery, but they don’t understand how much pain was caused because of it. We heard about the Slavery Abolition Act of 1833 because it was such a large scale and it was a major turning point in history.