Where to Learn About NYC's Black History Landmarks

Where to Learn About NYC’s Black History From museums to burial grounds, important landmarks and destinations across the boroughs.

By Kemi Ibeh Published on 2/18/2022 at 6:15 PM

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York Public Library

From descendants of enslaved Africans who established NYC’s first Black settlement ("Land of the Blacks”) during the 17th century, to the Great Migration and growing communities of immigrants from the Caribbean and continental Africa, Black history in NYC coincides with the history of the city itself.

Currently, the city’s 1.9 million Black residents make up 22% of NYC’s population made up of a diverse array of residents (from Black American to Trinidadian to West African et al) that express their various cultures through music, art, dance, and food across the five boroughs. And to honor the journeys of past generations, whether it's through museums or landmarks showcasing individuals and events that have shaped the city, we’ve compiled 13 places in NYC to learn about Black history. From Underground Railroad sites to historic houses, celebrate the undeniable impact of Black culture in NYC all year round, and be sure to dine at these stellar Black-owned restaurants between visits.

Archie Spigner Park (Formerly Addisleigh Park) Sayres Ave & 172nd St, St. Albans, Queens Addisleigh Park in St. Albans, Queens, is a historic neighborhood once famous for its African American jazz musician residents like Ella Fitzgerald and John Coltrane, along with other luminaries like Lena Horne and Jackie Robinson. In the early 1940s, even with widespread Jim Crow laws in the United States that forbade them from living in neighborhoods with a majority white population, African American musicians and families began moving into this racially restrictive area. By 1948, the Supreme Court case of Shelley v. Kraemer ruled these racial restrictions as unconstitutional, and African Americans moved into the area seduced by its seclusion and space. Renamed in 2022 by the New York City Department of Parks & Recreations as Archie Spigner Park, a Musician’s Oval was unveiled to honor the numerous Black jazz celebrities who once called Addisleigh Park home.

African Burial Ground National Monument

African Burial Ground National Monument 290 Broadway, Civic Center, Manhattan Near the Jacob Javits Federal Building on Broadway and Reade lies the remains of over 10,000 enslaved and free Africans unearthed in 1991 during building construction. In the 1620s, the Dutch introduced slavery to New Amsterdam (now NYC) and Africans were interred separately on the outskirts of the city, from Dutch colonial era through the British takeover in the 1660s.

The burial ground closed in 1794 with the expansion of the city northwards. This five-acre public space is now a National Historic Landmark stretching from Foley Park to City Hall Park, with a granite sculpture memorializing the Middle Passage of Africans to the New World.

El Museo del Barrio

El Barrio Upper East Manhattan Stretching several blocks from East 96th to East 125th Street towards the East River, this area was home to predominantly German and Italian immigrants until after World War II, when Puerto Rican, Dominican Republic, and Haitian immigrants subsequently arrived. Also known as Spanish Harlem, El Barrio boasts diversity in the form of murals, restaurants, gardens, and community centers, depicting the rich tapestry of Afro-Latin, Latinx, and Caribbean heritage.

Virtual tours of the neighborhood are available from El Museo del Barrio, a historic museum showcasing Latinx and Caribbean art.

Lewis Latimer House Museum

Lewis H. Latimer House 34-41 137th St., Flushing, Queens Born in 1848 to parents who were fugitive enslaved people, Lewis H. Latimer served in the Union Navy during the Civil War. He was gifted with engineering abilities and worked for the United States Electric Light Company where in 1879, he patented improvements to the incandescent lighting system that would ultimately be used around the world. The self-taught inventor who was gifted in art and poetry also worked under Alexander Graham Bell and for Thomas Edison as chief engineer. Latimer lived in this home until his passing in 1928. In 1988, the landmarked home was moved to its present location to avoid demolition. Currently, the Lewis H. Latimer House is a cultural institution offering educational programs in science, art, poetry, and is dedicated to innovators of color who have contributed inventions to American life.

caribBEING

Little Caribbean Flatbush, Nostrand, Utica, and Church Avenues, Brooklyn Located within Prospect-Lefferts Gardens and its main avenues of Flatbush, Church, and Nostrand, Little Caribbean has the largest and most diverse diaspora of Caribbeans outside the Islands. With plenty of local restaurants, shops, and small businesses, in 2017, Shelley Worrell of caribBEING—an enterprise highlighting Caribbean culture, community, and commerce—led the efforts to designate the community with this special moniker. In November 2021, the MTA also named the Newkirk Avenue Station as “Little Haiti,” recognizing the contributions of the Haitian community as it stands as the biggest immigrant group in Flatbush.

Louis Armstrong House | Flickr/Wally Gobetz

Louis Armstrong House 34-56 107th Street, Corona, Queens After growing up in New Orleans, one of the most popular African American jazz trumpeters of his day, Louis Armstrong and his Bronx native wife, Lucille, chose a home in Corona, Queens, as their residence. Today, the Louis Armstrong House is a National Historic Landmark that preserves the legacy of the artist and visitors can listen to trumpet recordings, audio clips of Louis’ voice, and view his Japanese-inspired garden.

Mannahatta Park | Flickr/Diego Maia

Mannahatta Park Wall Street between Pearl St. and Water St., Manhattan In 1711, a municipal market auctioning enslaved Africans as laborers was established in Downtown Manhattan, in what is now the Wall Street area between Pearl Street and Water Street. The market also traded corn and grains that were a staple in the colonial-era diet and it continued to function until 1726. Presently, the area is known as Mannahatta Park, an open space with benches and a view of the East River.

MoCADA Museum

Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts 80 Hanson Place, Fort Greene, Brooklyn Founded in 1999 by Laurie Cumbo, the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) puts on educational programming, art exhibitions, and community events related to issues faced by those of the African Diaspora. Past exhibitions include Playful Rebellion, an interactive game exploring history, heritage, and innovation—and past art presentations include pop up murals and streetside exhibitions. It is open to tour and accepts volunteers for events.

Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground Conservancy

The Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground 46th Ave. & 164th St. & 165th St, Flushing Following smallpox and cholera epidemics during the 1840s, the Town of Flushing purchased separate interment land for residents who were concerned about contamination of burial grounds by infected corpses. This land was expressly for the African American and Native American communities—about 60% of the population—as family and church burial plots were overflowing from the epidemics. It’s estimated that the remains of 1,000 people are located here, and in 1914, the New York City Department of Parks & Recreations acquired the site and turned it into a neighborhood green space and playground. After going through several name changes like “Town Ground” and the “Colored Cemetery of Flushing,” the site was officially renamed The Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground in 2009.

Sandy Ground Community/Historical Society

1538 Woodrow Rd., Staten Island In the 1830s, Sandy Ground was a thriving community of free African Americans and is the oldest, continuously inhabited free Black settlement in the U.S. Like many African American men who initially settled in the area, Captain John Jackson, the first documented Black man to purchase land here, was lured by work and land ownership prospects on Staten Island. Once previously named “Little Africa,” Sandy Ground is on the National Register of Historic Places and descendants of the original settlers still reside in the community. The site is still under archeological study and its museum retains African American traditions like quilt-making, music, and arts, for visitors to experience.

Lisa Herndon/Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture 515 Malcolm X Blvd, Harlem, Manhattan Founded in 1925 during the Harlem Renaissance by Arturo A. Schomburg, an intellectual born in Puerto Rico to a Black mother and white father, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is devoted to the research and exhibition of materials relating to African American and African Diaspora experiences. Over his years, Schomburg amassed a large collection of books, art, writings, manuscripts and journals, which were purchased by the 135th Street branch of the New York Public Library in 1926. The Center is currently open with exhibitions like Boundless: 10 Years of Seeding Black Comic Futures, which documents the evolution of Black comic books via a special festival started in 2013.

The Bowne House and Bowne House Historical Society

Underground Railroad Safe Houses Flushing, Queens Flushing, Queens, has been documented as a part of the Underground Railroad—a clandestine network of people, houses, and routes that transported Africans escaping enslavement in the South to freedom in the North—and one of its most important stops was Bowne House. As the oldest building in Queens that was built in 1661, its rich history of three centuries documents the Bowne family’s abolitionist activities and role in anti-slavery movements, and not only is it an official New York City landmark, but it’s also on the National Register of Historic Places. An additional documented historic landmark connected to the Underground Railroad is the Flushing Quaker Meeting House, built in 1694 by John Bowne and other Quakers as a monument to early religious freedom in the colonial United States.

Weeksville Heritage Center

Weeksville Heritage Center 158 Buffalo Ave., Brooklyn Founded in 1838, Weeksville was named after James Weeks, the first African American man to purchase a plot of land in this area of Brooklyn. Over time, the community grew and became self-sufficient with numerous Black professionals and entrepreneurs, schools, and clubs. In 1863, it served as a safe haven for African Americans fleeing violence in Manhattan and those who participated in abolitionist movements. Over decades, the community faded but in 1968, it was re-discovered by historian James Hurley, who worked with volunteers and researchers to document the history of Weeksville. Remnants of this once-thriving community are seen in the Historic Hunterfly Road Houses, now restored and open at Weeksville Heritage Center.

Currently, the center holds Black Diaspora art exhibitions, archival photo collections, and educational programming about the community.

Kemi Ibeh is a contributor for Thrillist.

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