A sign marking the Enslaved African Burial Ground site in Van Cortlandt Park was unveiled in June 2021. A newly-awarded grant from the Mellon Foundation seeks proposals to redesign the site.
Photo courtesy of the Van Cortlandt Park Alliance
A recently-announced grant will bring new prominence to the Enslaved African Burial Ground in Van Cortlandt Park — a site that is notoriously difficult to locate and not well-marked, despite its historical significance.
The Van Cortlandt Park Alliance announced on Sept. 18 that the Mellon Foundation has provided a $310,000 two-year grant and that the group has opened Request for Proposals (RFP) to help formulate a design plan.
The first phase of the multi-phase project will involve engaging the community — especially those descended from enslaved people — along with artists and designers to submit ideas to “reimagine” the site. Plans could include a public art installation, signs, a memorial grove or other ideas.
“This project not only honors the untold stories of the Enslaved African people who shaped our park, but also exemplifies our commitment to creating a more inclusive and respectful space for our community,” said Van Cortlandt Park Alliance Board Chair Charlie Samboy.
Research found that enslaved African and Indigenous people worked on the Van Cortlandt plantation for over 100 years and that they were buried at the site adjacent to the family, according to the Enslaved People Project, which documents the history of the plantation.
But records and research remain “incomplete,” and many questions remain about how the enslaved people lived.
“All that we know about the enslaved here at Van Cortlandt is about two percent of a jigsaw puzzle,” said historian and educator Cheyney McKnight in a 2021 presentation hosted by the park alliance.
In recent years, park and community leaders have worked to increase public awareness of the burial site. In a 2021 ceremony marking the…
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