Historical Society Lecture: Lower Manhattan African Burial Ground
Thursday, February 21 at 7:30 pm
Eugene Boesch, a professional archaeologist and cultural resource and historic preservation specialist will be our speaker. From about the 1690s until 1794 both free and enslaved Africans were buried in a 6.6 acre burial ground in Lower Manhattan just outside of the boundary of old New Amsterdam. The grounds were lost to history and were rediscovered in 1991 by archaeologists. In all, 419 bodies were discovered. Estimates exist that well over 10000 still lie under the foundations of Lower Manhattan. Information will be given of physical/forensic, social, economic, ritual, and other aspects of the interred enslaved population. Also given will be information on the period’s buried freedmen and other marginal peoples as obtained from the investigations. Open to all, All are welcome!