African Burial Ground National Monument

A Guide to Exploring Colonial New York City in 2025

"I found the African Burial Ground to be a powerful reminder that around 25% of colonial New York’s population were enslaved Africans: this site—once called the Negroes Burial Ground—is the largest colonial-era cemetery for free and enslaved Black Americans (studies estimate up to 15,000 burials in the 17th and 18th centuries). Designated a U.S. National Monument and National Historic Landmark, it opened a monument and visitor center in 2007 where exhibitions, films and dioramas explain how enslaved people were brought to the city, what their funerals were like, how they lived and what archaeologists discovered when exhumations were carried out; it’s a stop on the Slavery and Underground Railroad walking tour and is open Tuesday–Saturday 10am–4pm with free admission." - Matthew Kepnes