Letters

Do you know the history of Seneca Village and beautiful iconic Central Park? Let’s learn together.

Seneca Village was a 19th century settlement of mostly African American landowners in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, within what would become present-day Central Park. Seneca Village was founded in 1825 by free Black Americans, the first such community in the city, although under Dutch rule there was a “half-free” community of African-owned farms north of New Amsterdam. At its peak, the community had approximately 225 residents, three churches, two schools, and three cemeteries. The settlement also was later inhabited by Irish and German immigrants.

Seneca Village existed until 1857, when, through eminent domain, the villagers and other settlers in the area were forced to leave, and their houses were torn down for the construction of Central Park. The entirety of the village was dispersed. Several vestiges of Seneca Village’s existence have been found over the years, including two graves and a burial plot.

The settlement was largely forgotten until the publication of Roy Rosenzweig’s and Elizabeth Blackmar’s book “The Park and the People: A History of Central Park in 1992.”

Brenda Simmons

Founder

Southampton African American Museum