The Seneca Village Collection is now at the Repository!

Seneca Village was once the largest community of free African-American property owners in mid-19th century New York.  It was first settled in the 1820s and by the 1850s the community included over 250 people who were primarily of African ancestry. The land was taken by the State in the late 1850s through eminent domain to create Central Park. The Seneca Village Project, directed by Cynthia Copeland, Nan Rothschild, and Diana Wall, was formed in 1998 and they have been working with an Advisory Committee of scholars and community members to assess and better understand the significance of the site.  The archaeological collection is from recent archaeological fieldwork that was completed to assess what traces of the settlement may remain and the final report should be completed this summer.  For more information please see: Seneca Village Project