Via The Globe and Mail, a fascinating story about a Nova Scotia black pioneer: First the Victoria Cross, now a stamp. Excerpt (but read the whole remarkable account):
It is probably not widely known that the first Canadian to win the coveted Victoria Cross - Britain's highest military award, given for valour in the face of the enemy - was the Nova Scotia son of former American slaves: William Neilson Edward Hall.
Hall won his decoration - the first ever given either to a Canadian, a black or a member of the Royal Navy - for bravery shown during the 1857 siege of Lucknow, in India.
Now, only a few months after the 150th anniversary of his award, Hall is being draped in several posthumous honours, modest compensation for the lack of recognition he was accorded during his life.
On Monday, Canada Post will release a new stamp that bears his image - a painting of Hall set against the water and HMS Shannon. A reception to celebrate the man and the stamp will be held Feb. 3, hosted by the Ontario Black History Society and Her Majesty's Canadian Ship York.
And in various venues across the country, actor and playwright Anthony Sherwood is performing his 30-minute play, the William Hall Project, that will help kick off Black History Month.
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