Sandy Ground Historical Museum

Last updated

Sandy Ground Historical Museum
Sandy Ground Museum.jpg
Sandy Ground Historical Museum
Location1538 Woodrow Rd
Staten Island, New York City
Website https://www.nyc-arts.org/organizations/341/sandy-ground-historical-society

The Sandy Ground Historical Museum, located within the Sandy Ground community of Rossville in the borough of Staten Island, is dedicated to the oldest continuously inhabited free black settlement in the United States. [1] [2] The museum is home to the largest documentary collection of Staten Island's African-American culture and history and it may also be home to the only intact 18th -century African cemetery in America. [3] As of February 2023, it is temporarily closed due to maintenance and operational issues [4]

Contents

The museum is operated by the Sandy Ground Historical Society and its annual festival is a celebration of black history, culture and freedom. [5] The museum is also chartered by the New York State Department of Education to bring education and awareness of Sandy Ground to adults and children alike through guided tours, exhibits, interactive activities including arts and crafts, and lectures. Sandy Ground reaches about 10,000 people a year in these education initiatives (about 4,000 children and about 6,000 adults.) [6] The museum also preserves artifacts from the early years of the town such as art, quilts, letters, photographs, film and rare books.

Town history

Within Rossville is Sandy Ground, among the oldest surviving communities in the United States, which was founded by free African Americans prior to the American Civil War, with the first documented land purchase by an African American named Captain John Jackson on February 23, 1828, just months after the abolition of slavery in New York. Sandy Ground was originally called Harrisville, soon being changed to Little Africa before receiving its current name of Sandy Ground for the infertility of the land [7] Several of the community's historic structures are still extant, including five that have been designated as New York City landmarks, including a church, a cemetery, and three homes. Some residents also live in the original community. [1]

After slavery in New York was abolished in 1827, freedmen settled in the area known since colonial times as Sandy Ground, which was located in the area around what is now the intersection of Bloomingdale and Woodrow Roads in Rossville. These early settlers were skilled in the oyster trade, and brought this knowledge with them to Staten Island. MAAP (Mapping the African American Past ) talks about the link from the Maryland Oyster Workers in the 1800s and Sandy Ground. [8] Oyster harvesting Staten Island was mainly conducted on the island's south shore. Prince's Bay was the main hub and was within walking distance from Sandy Ground. Sandy Ground also served as an important stop on the Underground Railroad, and is the oldest continuously settled free black community in the United States. [9] [1] Oyster farming ended around 1916 due to water pollution in the harbor. [1]

The records of the Sandy Ground African Methodist Church go back to 1850. [10]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staten Island</span> Borough and county in New York, United States

Staten Island is the southernmost borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York. The borough is separated from the adjacent state of New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull and from the rest of New York by New York Bay. With a population of 495,747 in the 2020 Census, Staten Island is the least populated New York City borough but the third largest in land area at 58.5 sq mi (152 km2); it is also the least densely populated and most suburban borough in the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theodore S. Wright</span> African-American abolitionist and minister

Theodore Sedgwick Wright (1797–1847), sometimes Theodore Sedgewick Wright, was an African-American abolitionist and minister who was active in New York City, where he led the First Colored Presbyterian Church as its second pastor. He was the first African American to attend Princeton Theological Seminary, from which he graduated in 1828 or 1829. In 1833 he became a founding member of the American Anti-Slavery Society, an interracial group that included Samuel Cornish, a Black Presbyterian, and many Congregationalists, and served on its executive committee until 1840.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tottenville, Staten Island</span> Neighborhood of Staten Island in New York City

Tottenville is a neighborhood on the South Shore of Staten Island, New York City. It is the southernmost neighborhood and settlement in both New York City and New York State, as well as the westernmost neighborhood in New York City. Tottenville is bounded on three sides by water: the south side abuts the New York Bight while the west and north sides are bordered by the Arthur Kill. Nassau Place, Bethel Avenue and Page Avenue form the neighborhood's eastern border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mariners Harbor, Staten Island</span> Neighborhood in Staten Island

Mariners Harbor is a neighborhood located in the northwestern part of New York City's borough of Staten Island. It is bordered by Lake Avenue to the east, Forest Avenue to the south, Richmond Terrace to the north, and Holland Avenue to the west. The northwestern section of Mariners Harbor is often known as Arlington.

Prince's Bay is the name of a neighborhood located on the South Shore of New York City's borough of Staten Island. Prince's Bay is bordered to the north by Huguenot, to the south by the Raritan Bay, and to the west by Pleasant Plains. The neighborhood is represented in the New York State Senate by Andrew Lanza, in the New York State Assembly by Michael Reilly, and in the New York City Council by Joe Borelli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charleston, Staten Island</span>

Charleston is a neighborhood, or section, of New York City's borough of Staten Island. It is located on the island's South Shore, with Tottenville to the south, Pleasant Plains to the East, Rossville to the north, and the Arthur Kill to the west. The neighborhood is represented in the New York City Council by Joe Borelli and in the New York State Senate by Andrew Lanza.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Shore, Staten Island</span> Area in New York City

The term North Shore is frequently applied to a series of neighborhoods within the New York City borough of Staten Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lemon Creek (Staten Island)</span> Urban stream in Staten Island, New York

Lemon Creek is a stream located on the South Shore of Staten Island in New York City. It is one of the few remaining ground-level creeks in New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodrow, Staten Island</span>

Woodrow is a neighborhood located on the South Shore of Staten Island, New York, United States. The neighborhood is represented in the New York State Senate by Andrew Lanza, in the New York State Assembly by Michael Reilly, and in the New York City Council by Joe Borelli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rossville, Staten Island</span> Neighborhood of Staten Island in New York City

Rossville is a neighborhood of Staten Island, New York, on the island's South Shore. It is located to the north of Woodrow, to the west of Arden Heights, and to the south and east of the Arthur Kill. Rossville is located within Staten Island Community Board 3.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Demographics of Staten Island</span> Borough of New York City in the United States

Richmond County, also known as Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States. Staten Island is the least populated of the five boroughs with 475,000 people but is the third largest in area at 59 sq mi (153 km2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oyster bar</span> Restaurant that serves oysters

An oyster bar, also known as an oyster saloon, oyster house or a raw bar service, is a restaurant specializing in serving oysters, or a section of a restaurant which serves oysters buffet-style. Oysters have been consumed since ancient times and were common tavern food in Europe, but the oyster bar as a distinct restaurant began making an appearance in the 18th century.

Freetown is an unincorporated hamlet in the Town of East Hampton, NY, settled in the 19th century by free people of African and Native American descent, as well as people of European descent. Freetown retained its multicultural character throughout the 20th century, evolving into a largely working-class neighborhood occupied by East Hampton's labor force. During the 2010s and 2020s, surviving historic properties in Freetown are increasingly threatened by demolition and intensive redevelopment to make way for luxury real estate and other out-of-scale and out-of-character new construction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conference House Park</span> Public park in Staten Island, New York

Conference House Park is a park in Tottenville, Staten Island, New York City. The park is located along the Arthur Kill coast where the kill opens into Raritan Bay. It contains clay bluffs, part of the terminal moraine, formed when the Wisconsin Glacier receded 10,000 years ago. Ward's Point, the southernmost point in New York state, is in the park.

The Cultural Institutions Group (CIG) is a coalition of institutions providing cultural and educational resources to the public in New York City that are subsidized by the city government. The group originated with the new location for the American Museum of Natural History in 1869, and as of 2024, the CIG includes 34 cultural institutions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary and Eliza Freeman Houses</span> United States historic place

The Mary and Eliza Freeman Houses are historic residences in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The simple, clapboard-covered dwellings were built in 1848 in what became known as Little Liberia, a neighborhood settled by free blacks starting in the first quarter of the nineteenth century. As the last surviving houses of this neighborhood on their original foundations, these were added to the National Register of Historic Places on February 22, 1999. The houses are the oldest remaining houses in Connecticut built by free blacks, before the state completed its gradual abolition of slavery in 1848. The homes and nearby Walter's Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church are also listed sites on the Connecticut Freedom Trail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Peter's Church (Staten Island)</span> Building in New York, United States

The Church of St. Peter is a parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Staten Island, New York City in the neighborhood of New Brighton. St. Peter's is the oldest of the 36 Roman Catholic parishes on Staten Island, having been established in 1839, before the second-oldest St. Mary's (1852) and the third-oldest St. Joseph's (1855).

This is a timeline of Staten Island.

<i>Ollis</i>-class ferry Staten Island Ferry vessels

The Ollis-class ferries are a trio of passenger ferries on the Staten Island Ferry, the first of which entered service in 2022. The class is named after US Army Staff Sergeant Michael Ollis, a Staten Islander who was killed in action during the War in Afghanistan in 2013.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Lee, Donna (November 7, 2008). "On Visionary Soil, the Dream Turns Real". The New York Times . Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  2. "Sandy Ground Historical Society Library Museum". Visit Staten Island. Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  3. "Sandy Ground Historical Society". NYC-Arts . Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  4. "Who Will Step Up?" . Retrieved February 9, 2023.
  5. Bailey, Rob (June 20, 2013). "Sandy Ground Fest celebrates freedom, art, music and Secret Sauce, June 22 on Staten Island". Staten Island Advance . Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  6. "SANDY GROUND HISTORICAL SOCIETY". sandygroundmuseum.org. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  7. "Sandy Ground Historical Society - NYC-ARTS". NYC-ARTS. Retrieved June 17, 2016.
  8. "Sandy Ground". Columbia University MAAP Mapping the African American Past. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  9. "Black history lives at Sandy Ground". Staten Island Advance. April 24, 2005. Archived from the original on September 26, 2007.
  10. Mitchell, Joseph (September 15, 1956). "Mr. Hunter's Grave". The New Yorker. ISSN   0028-792X . Retrieved February 9, 2019.

40°32′28″N74°12′59″W / 40.540982°N 74.216508°W / 40.540982; -74.216508