African Burial Ground imagery

African Burial Ground National Monument

A memorial site near City Hall where a historic graveyard was discovered

THINGS TO DO

EXHIBITS: The interim Visitor Center offers viewings of documentary films, an exhibit of historical images relating to the site and commemorative artwork commissioned for the site. Historical images include replicas of artifacts found in the burials, such as shroud pins, buttons and beads, and historical and contemporary images related to the burial ground, such as the 1711 auction block on Wall Street and the ceremony for the ancestral remains. Hours: Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm.

TOURS: National Park Service Ranger site tours of the commemorative artwork and memorial site are offered to the public free of charge Monday-Friday, at 10am and 2pm. Groups are urged to make reservations for tours to ensure adequate preparation and ranger availability.

The African Burial Ground has been called one of the most important archaeological, historical, cultural and spiritual finds of our time. Unearthed in 1991 during the construction of the Ted Weiss federal building in Lower Manhattan, an estimated 15,000 free and enslaved Africans were interred during the 17th and 18th centuries in this seven-acre burial ground, making it the oldest and largest African cemetery excavated in all of North America. 419 ancestral remains were removed in 1991 and taken to Howard University for scientific study. They were re-interred on October 4, 2003 at the site that is now the African Burial Ground National Monument.

In 2006, the burial ground was designated by President Bush as a national monument and in October, 2007, the site opened to the public. The outdoor memorial designed by Rodney Leon is a living tribute to past, present and future generations and the only U.S. National Monument that memorializes the struggles of Africans forcefully brought here and so many others of African descent who have endured the injustices of slavery, segregation and discrimination. An interim visitor center is currently open on the ground floor of the Ted Weiss Federal Building at 290 Broadway.