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Slavery

New York Streets Named for Slave Traders

September 3, 2018 by Alan J. Singer 20 Comments

slavery in new york city historyIn the 17th and 18th century, as New Amsterdam grew from a trading post into a village, a village into a town, and then a town into the port city of New York, its wealthiest residents were financially invested in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. And because they were among the most prominent of its early citizens, many of the city’s oldest streets are named after slaveholders and slave traders. An online database, New York Slavery Records Index, created by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice of the City University of New York, opens this forgotten history to public view.

During the past year a mayoral commission held public hearings and recommended that a statue of James Marion Sims, a 19th century American physician who experimented on enslaved African women, be removed from the Central Park wall at 103rd street and 5th Avenue in the City of New York. Unfortunately, the commission ignored much of the city’s deep connection to slavery and the trans-Atlantic slave trade. [Read more…] about New York Streets Named for Slave Traders

Filed Under: African American History, History, Public History Tagged With: New Netherland, New York City, Slavery

Hall of Fame Inducts Three Who Resisted Fugitive Slave Laws

July 8, 2018 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

Frances E. W. HarperThe National Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum (NAHOF) has announced the induction of three nineteenth century abolitionists on Saturday, October 20, 2018 in Peterboro NY.

The Inductee Committee recommended these three inductees to the NAHOF Cabinet of Freedom according to the results of reviews of public nominations by scholars in the field: [Read more…] about Hall of Fame Inducts Three Who Resisted Fugitive Slave Laws

Filed Under: African American History, Events, History Tagged With: Abolition, Abolition Hall of Fame, Slavery

Kidnapped! Black New Yorkers Caught in the Slave Trade

July 3, 2018 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Author David Fiske is set to give lecture on Free blacks from New York State who were kidnapped and sold into slavery before the Civil War has been set for July 17, 2018 at 6:30 pm at the Warrensburgh Museum of Local History, 3754 Main Street.

In “Kidnapped! Black New Yorkers Caught in the Slave Trade,” Fiske will tell the stories of several New Yorkers who were kidnap victims – some from upstate communities and others from New York City. [Read more…] about Kidnapped! Black New Yorkers Caught in the Slave Trade

Filed Under: African American History, Events, History Tagged With: Slavery, Warrensburg

New Paltz: Enslavement Among Dutch Reformed Churches

March 19, 2018 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Wendy E. Harris and Helene van Rossum are set to give a lecture on African enslavement among the Dutch Reformed Churches of New York’s Ulster County and New Jersey’s Raritan Valley on Saturday, April 7th at 4 pm at Deyo Hall, 6 Broadhead Avenue, New Paltz. [Read more…] about New Paltz: Enslavement Among Dutch Reformed Churches

Filed Under: African American History, Events, History Tagged With: New Jersey, New Netherland, New Paltz, Rutger's University, Slavery, Ulster County

Slavery and the Palatines Lecture at Clermont Sunday

March 8, 2018 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

Two men pointing to a boy by Jan Luyken 1711Travis Bowman is set to give a lecture on slavery in New York on Sunday, March 11th at 1 pm, at the Clermont State Historic Site, 1 Clermont Avenue, Germantown.

Bowman will examine how slavery evolved in New York under the Dutch, British, and American systems of government and how the institution was utilized at a local and personal level among the Palatine immigrants and their descendants in the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys. [Read more…] about Slavery and the Palatines Lecture at Clermont Sunday

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Clermont State Historic Site, Slavery

New York State Slavery Database Launched

February 12, 2018 by Editorial Staff 4 Comments

Birth registration of a slave in 1803John Jay College of Criminal Justice has announced the first New York Slavery Records Index, a publicly searchable compilation of records that identify individual enslaved persons and their owners, beginning as early as 1525 and ending during the Civil War.

The index will help to deepen the understanding of slavery in the State of New York. [Read more…] about New York State Slavery Database Launched

Filed Under: African American History, History Tagged With: John Jay College, Slavery

Frederick Douglass and the July 5th Movement

December 7, 2017 by Richard White Leave a Comment

Frederick Douglass“The Fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn.”

These were Frederick Douglass’ unyielding words from his momentous “Fifth of July Speech”* to the Ladies Anti-Slavery Society in Rochester’s Corinthian Hall in 1852.

Douglass had been asked to speak on Independence Day but with entrenched slavery supported by the recently adopted Fugitive Slave law, how could he? After all, he declared with authority, “What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? Are the great principles of political freedom and natural justice, embodied in the Declaration of Independence, extended to us….I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary.” But he was included “within the pale” of another anniversary which was annually observed by African Americans in the State, and it was a chief reason why he chose to speak the following day. During this pre-war period, the July 5th Movement captured and shaped blacks’ identity as a cohesive, active community. [Read more…] about Frederick Douglass and the July 5th Movement

Filed Under: History Tagged With: Abolition, Frederick Douglass, Slavery

Abolition Hall of Fame Weekend Planned

October 17, 2017 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

2016 Induction Webber Stewart LandThe National Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum (NAHOF) commemoration ceremonies for the 2016 inductees will be held Saturday, October 21, 2017 at NAHOF, 5255 Pleasant Valley Road, Peterboro NY.

The inductees are Rev. John Gregg Fee, Beriah Green, Angelina Grimké, and James W.C. Pennington. This is the last year of the two year induction-commemoration cycle. Beginning in 2018 inductions and commemorations will be completed in one year.

At 3 on Saturday, October 21 Christopher L. Webber, who nominated Pennington to the Hall of Fame, will present James W.C. Pennington: Pastor and Abolitionist for the Abolition Symposia. Webber, the author of American to the Backbone: The Journey of James W.C. Pennington from Slavery to World Leader, will use his research to present Pennington’s remarkable story. Pennington was born in slavery in Maryland in 1808. At the age of 19, scared and illiterate, James escaped from slavery. Moving finally to Brooklyn he found work as a carriage man and took advantage of night schools. In 1829 Pennington participated in the first Negro National Convention of which he became the presiding officer in 1853. Pennington served congregations in Long Island, Hartford, and Manhattan and traveled three times to England, Scotland, and the continent of Europe as an anti-slavery advocate. He was so respected by European audiences that the University of Heidelberg awarded him an honorary doctorate, making him the first person of African descent to receive such a degree.  Pennington was accepted as the first black student at the Yale Divinity School and was accepted for ordination in the Congregational Church. April 26, 2014 Yale University celebrated the opening of the James W.C. Pennington Christian Ministry Center. [Read more…] about Abolition Hall of Fame Weekend Planned

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Abolition, National Abolition Hall of Fame, Political History, Slavery

Solomon Northup Class Planned For SUNY Adirondack

September 20, 2017 by David Fiske Leave a Comment

Solomon Northup in a Sketch from Twelve Years a SlaveThis October, a class offered through SUNY Adirondack’s Continuing Education division will provide details on the life of Solomon Northup. Northup was a free black man who was kidnapped from Saratoga Springs, New York in 1841, and sold into slavery.

Following his release in 1853, Northup penned a narrative, Twelve Years a Slave, which was the basis for the Academy Award winning film, 12 Years a Slave. The title of the class is “The Real Solomon Northup from 12 Years a Slave,” and the instructor is local author David Fiske. [Read more…] about Solomon Northup Class Planned For SUNY Adirondack

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Education, Saratoga, Slavery, SUNY Adirondack

A Report From Peterboro Emancipation Day Gathering

August 8, 2017 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

emancipation day 2017Families, friends, presenters, and supporters of the Gerrit Smith Estate National Historic Landmark gathered from across the state and country to participate in the 8th Annual Peterboro Emancipation Day August 5, 2017 in Peterboro NY.

The sun shone on the outdoor gathering in front of the barn whence carriages drove to carry fugitives to Oswego to cross by boat to Canada. Organizers Jim Corpin, Carrie Martin, and Max Smith, opened the morning session. [Read more…] about A Report From Peterboro Emancipation Day Gathering

Filed Under: Events, History Tagged With: Emancipation Days, Peterboro, Slavery

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