List of Black Nova Scotians

This is a list of notable Black Nova Scotians.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Politicians

• Wayne Adams
• Yvonne Atwell
• Wanda Thomas Bernard, Canadian Senator
• Mayann Francis, first black woman Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia
• Daurene Lewis, first black woman mayor in Canada; recipient of Order of Canada
• Donald Oliver, first black man to have a seat in the Senate; recipient of Order of Canada
• Calvin Ruck, recipient of Order of Canada
• Bill White

Artists

• Dawn Shepherd, circus artist
• Gary Beals, R&B musician
• Keonte Beals, R&B musician
• Walter Borden, actor
• George Boyd, playwright/journalist
• George Elliott Clarke, poet and playwright
• Sterling Jarvis, singer and actor
• Carshae Beals, R&B musician and actor
• Cy McLean, pianist and band leader
• Kaleb Simmonds, R&B musician
• Faith Nolan, folk and jazz musician
• Rob "Blye" Paris of Citizen Kane, rapper
• Jamie Sparks, R&B singer, composer, and brother of Jeremiah Sparks
• Nelson Symonds, jazz guitarist
• Maxine Tynes, poet and educator
• Portia White, operatic contralto

Filmmakers

• Cory Bowles, Actor, Director

Athletes

• Marjorie Bailey, sprinter
• George Dixon, boxer
• Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, American actor and former professional wrestler, son of Rocky Johnson
• Kirk Johnson, boxer
• Rocky Johnson, wrestler, father of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and grandfather of Simone Johnson
• Sam Langford, boxer
• Simone Johnson, American professional wrestler, daughter of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and granddaughter of Rocky Johnson.
• Lindell Wigginton, basketball player
• Bill Riley, hockey player
• Wayne Smith, football player
• Alton White, hockey player
• Tyrone Williams, football player
• Pokey Reddick, hockey player
• Ricky Anderson, boxer
• Leonard Sinclair Sparks, boxer
• Art Dorrington, hockey player
• Stan 'Chook' Maxwell, hockey player
• Clyde Gray, boxer
• David Downey, boxer
• Ray Downey, boxer
• Wayne Simmonds, hockey player

Veterans

• William Hall, Victoria Cross recipient
• Benjamin Jackson, sailor and Civil War soldier
• Jeremiah Jones, World War I soldier
• Joseph B. Noil, sailor and Medal of Honor recipient
• Isaac Phills, World War I soldier and Order of Canada recipient
• William A. White, chaplain of No. 2 Construction Battalion in the Canadian Army in World War I
• Three Black Nova Scotians served in the American Civil War in the 54th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry: Hammel Gilyer, Samuel Hazzard, and Thomas Page.

Activists

• Carrie Best, journalist and social activist
• Viola Desmond, businesswoman and civil rights advocate
• Burnley "Rocky" Jones, political activist
• El Jones, activist
• Joan Jones, political activist, businesswoman
• William Pearly Oliver
• Calvin W. Ruck, author of The Black Battalion

Other notables

• Rose Fortune, considered first black woman police officer in Canada
• Donald D. Skeir, pastor and teacher
• James Robinson Johnston, lawyer and community leader
• Beverly Mascoll, businesswoman
• Maurice Ruddick (1912–1988), citizen of the year for his role in the 1958 Springhill Mining Disaster
• Corrine Sparks, first African Nova Scotian to be appointed to the judiciary and first African Canadian woman to serve on the bench.
• Edith Hester McDonald-Brown, considered first documented Black female painter in Canadian art history.
• John Paris Jr., the first Black person to coach a pro hockey team.