African Burial Ground National Monument

African Burying Ground
Location: New York, New York
Area: 0.345 acres (0.140 ha)
Architect: Rodney Leon
Visitation: 117,113 (2010)
Governing body: National Park Service
NRHP Reference#: 93001597[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP: April 19, 1993
Designated NHL: April 19, 1993
Designated NMON: February 27, 2006

African Burial Ground National Monument at Duane Street and African Burial Ground Way (Elk Street) in Lower Manhattan (New York City) preserves a site containing the remains of more than 400 Africans buried during the 17th and 18th centuries. Historians estimate there may have been 15,000-20,000 burials there. The site's excavation and study was called the most important historic urban archeological project in the United States. The site has been designated a National Historic Landmark and National Monument.

African Americans in New York City

Slavery in the New York City area was introduced by the Dutch in New Netherland in the early 17th century. Africans were imported only as slaves, but some became half-free during Dutch times, before New Amsterdam was captured by the British in 1664. Perth Amboy in New Jersey was a busy duty-free center for the importation of slaves. At the time of the Revolutionary War, there were about 10,000 African Americans in New York. They worked in a wide variety of fields, including as skilled artisans and craftsmen associated with shipping, construction, and other trades, as well as domestic servants and laborers. Through much of the 18th century, the African burying ground was beyond the northern boundary of the city at Chambers Street.

New York abolished slavery in 1827; New Jersey abolished slavery only gradually, substituting indentureship for slavery in 1804. At the time of the American Civil War, there were former slaves in New Jersey who were still "indentured for life".[2][3]

Discovery of site and controversy

The historic remains were found in 1991 during the construction of the Foley Square Federal Office Building. The General Services Administration (GSA), which controlled the project, halted construction to properly preserve the remains. Because of the significance of the find, they ordered a redesign of the building to provide adequate room for a memorial. On April 19, 1993, the site was designated a National Historic Landmark.[4][5][6]

Historians believe the site to have been the interment location for as many as 15,000 to 20,000 Black men, women, and children over the years of its use. It was a burying ground from the 17th century to its closure in 1812.[7] Former New York Governor David Paterson is reported to have dubbed the grounds "our Ellis Island".[7]

Critics of the construction project believed the archeological research design originally proposed was not adequate. It did not have a plan for the treatment of uncovered remains. In addition, the African descendant community in New York City was not consulted in the development of the research design, nor were any archaeologists who had experience studying the African diaspora. After protests from a coalition of community members, politicians, and scholars, control of the burial site was transferred to Michael Blakey and his team at Howard University for study.

Memorial

On February 27, 2006, President George W. Bush signed a proclamation designating the federal land as the 123rd National Monument.[8] It was the 390th unit of the National Park System. This is considered the "most important historic urban archaeological project undertaken in the United States." After the Howard University studies, the remains were reinterred at the site in a respectful ceremony.[9]

As part of the dedication ceremonies, Elk Street was officially renamed African Burial Ground Way.[10]

A design competition attracted 61 proposals for a site memorial. The winning memorial design by Rodney Leon in partnership with Nicole Hollant-Denis, AARRIS Architects, was chosen in June 2004 and was dedicated on October 5, 2007. The grounds serve as a location for various cultural exhibitions and events throughout the year.

The memorial design for the 25-foot (7.6 m) granite monument features a map of the Atlantic area in reference to the middle passage [11] and The Door of Return, in reference to "The Door of No Return", a name given to slave ports on the coast of West Africa, from which so many people were transported.[12] The monument was dedicated in a ceremony presided by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and poet Maya Angelou.[12]

Visitor Center

In February 2010, a new visitor center [13] opened in the Ted Weiss Federal Building at 290 Broadway, which was built over part of the archaeological site. The visitor center includes an exhibition created by Amaze Design on the significance of the burial site with a life-sized tableau by Studio EIS depicting a dual funeral for an adult and child. Other parts of the exhibition explore the work life of Africans in early New York and efforts to preserve the burial ground. The visitor center includes a 40-person theater and a shop.

See also

References

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html. 
  2. ^ "Slavery in New York, an exhibition by the New York Historical Society". http://www.slaveryinnewyork.org/. Retrieved 2008-02-11. 
  3. ^ "The Hidden History of Slavery in New York". The Nation. http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051107/slavery_in_new_york. Retrieved 2008-02-11. "In 1991 excavators for a new federal office building in Manhattan unearthed the remains of more than 400 Africans stacked in wooden boxes sixteen to twenty-eight feet below street level." 
  4. ^ = Site "African Burial Ground". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. 2007-09-14. http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=2156&ResourceType = Site. 
  5. ^ Jean Howson and Gale Harris (November 9, 1992). National Register of Historic Places Registration: African Burial Ground. National Park Service. http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NHLS/Text/93001597.pdf 
  6. ^ National Register of Historic Places Registration: African Burial Ground--Accompanying 11 photos from 1992.. National Park Service. November 8, 1992. http://pdfhost.focus.nps.gov/docs/NHLS/Photos/93001597.pdf 
  7. ^ a b Frank Lombardi (October 6, 2007). "Memorial dedicated at African Burial Ground". The New York Daily News. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/10/05/2007-10-05_memorial_dedicated_at_african_burial_gro.html. Retrieved 2007-10-06. "The cemetery was covered by waves of development and forgotten until 1991, when 415 bone artifacts and skeletons were unearthed in preparation to erect a federal office building at 290 Broadway." 
  8. ^ "National Monuments Numbered". National Park Service. http://www.nps.gov/history/archeology/sites/antiquities/fullMap.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-05. 
  9. ^ "African Burial Ground", General Services Administration, accessed 9 Apr 2009
  10. ^ "African Burial Ground Memorial Opening Events". Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. October 1, 2007. http://www.lowermanhattan.info/news/african_burial_ground_memorial_73099.aspx. Retrieved 2007-10-06. 
  11. ^ "Rodney Leon Tapped to Design National Historic Landmark; Winner to Create Memorial for 17th, 18th-Century Africans". Exodus News. May 6, 2005. http://www.exodusnews.com/HISTORY/History025.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-06. 
  12. ^ a b "New York opens slave burial site". BBC News. October 6, 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7031142.stm. Retrieved 2007-10-06. "The late 17th Century burial site was gradually built over as New York expanded, but was rediscovered during an excavation in 1991. Some 400 remains, many of children, were found during excavations. Half of the remains found at the burial site were of children under the age of 12." 
  13. ^ Rothstein, Edward (February 26, 2010). "A Burial Ground and Its Dead Are Given Life". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/26/arts/design/26burial.html. Retrieved 2010-03-01. 

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