The New York African Burial Ground: Unearthing the African Presence in Colonial New York
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W&M ScholarWorks Anthropology Articles & Book Chapters Anthropology 2009 The New York African Burial Ground: Unearthing the African Presence in Colonial New York Michael L. Blakey College of William and Mary, [email protected] Lesley M. Rankin-Hill Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/anthropologypub Part of the Anthropology Commons Recommended Citation Howard University Press: in association with the General Services Administration, (2009). THE NEW YORK AFRICAN BURIAL GROUND: Unearthing the African Presence in Colonial New York. Blakey, M. L., & Rankin- Hill, L. M. (Eds.). This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Anthropology at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Anthropology Articles & Book Chapters by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Skeletal Biology of the African Burial Ground, Part 1, is the revised version of Skeletal Biology Final Report, Volume I (2004), and was posted on the World Wide Web at http://www.africanburialground.gov/ABG_FinalReports. htm. Skeletal Biology of the African Burial Ground, Part 1, will be posted on the Web site of the National Park Service at http:www.nps.gov. Application has been filed for Library of Congress registration. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. General Services Administration or Howard University. Published by Howard University Press 2225 Georgia Avenue NW, Suite 720 Washington, D.C. 20059 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 09 1 2 3 4 5 ISBN 0-88258-252-6 978-0-88258-252-8 Howard University’s New York African Burial Ground Project was funded by the U.S. General Services Administration under Contract No. GS-02P-93-CUC-0071 Technical editing and graphics support by Statistical Research, Inc. Layout and design by Simpson & Convent. Typeset and printed in the United States of America. Printed on acid-free paper. Cover Images: Detail of the Maerschalk Plan (Francis Maerschalk, 1754) Artifacts from the New York African Burial Ground (Photographs by Jon Abbott): Enameled cuff link face, Burial 371, Catalog No. 1875-B.001. Bead Type 12, Burial 340, Catalog No. 01651-B.79. Oval turquoise enamel face, Burial 211, Catalog No. 1186 -B.001. Pins, Burial 12, Catalog Nos. 253-B.001, .002. Ring, copper alloy with glass insets, Burial 310, Catalog No. 1486-B.001. Bead Type 9, Burial 340, Catalog No. 01651-B.78. Bead Type 15, Burial 340, Catalog No. 01651-B.75. Button, bone, turned. Burial 171, Catalog No. 931-B.002. Cast silver pendant, Burial 254, Catalog No. 1243-B.001. Burial 335 (Photography by Dennis Seckler) Cover design by Star Bullock + Associates, Mark A. Bartley Contributors PROJECT DIRECTOR AND SCIENTIFIC April Flint DIRECTOR Gabriel Franke, M.A. Michael L. Blakey, Ph.D. Paul Gattis Oumuyiwa Gbadegesin LABORATORY DIRECTOR AND Richlyn Goddard, Ph.D. OSTEOLOGIST Karyn Goodwin Mark E. Mack, M.A. Yasin Gregg Janna Gruber OFFICE MANAGER AND ADMINISTRATIVE Fayola Herod ASSISTANT Michael Hunter Reba Brewington, B.A. Keisha Hurst OSTEOLOGIST Joseph Jones, M.A.*, A.B.D.* M. Cassandra Hill, M.A., Ph.D.* Antoinette Kearney Irina Koretsky, M.S. OSTEOLOGICAL TECHNICIANS Dannette Lambert Autumn Barrett, M.A., A.B.D.* Teresa Leslie, M.A.,* Ph.D.* Allison Davis Arion Mayes, M.A., Ph.D.* Reynard Davis (deceased) Moses Nwulia Ena Fox Auriel Perkins Shannon Mahoney, M.A., A.B.D.* Keisha Rankine Susan Good-Null, M.A., Ph.D.* Clifford Russell Monde Imoh, Ph.D. Joann Sampson Christopher Null, M.A., A.B.D.* Jobita Smith Kenya Shujaa, M.A.* Azhar Talibi, M.A., M.D.* Rachel Watkins, M.A., Ph.D.* Brent Terry, M.A. Emile Webster OSTEOLOGICAL TECHNICIAN ASSISTANTS Shani Wright Valarian Abrams Paula Allen RESEARCH ASSISTANTS Marc Alston Pamela Brown Darious Annis Songhai Carter Augustus Billy Christa Dickey Alan Blanc Lesley Payne Antonia Christian Arana Hankin Jeffrey Coleman Nicole Harvey Lauren Collins Jeffrey Lim Cyndi Douglas Jacinta Elder-Arrington Chad Taylor Nardos Fessaha, Ph.D.* Walidah West IV • ContrIbutors SENIOR MEDICAL PHOTOGRAPHER Edna Medford, Ph.D., Associate Director for Otto Edwards History, Howard University Sherrill D. Wilson, Ph.D., Director, Office of Public DATA SYSTEMS MANAGER Education and Interpretation Douglas Fuller, M.A. Alan H. Goodman, Ph.D., Associate Director for Javier Urcid, Ph.D. Chemical Studies, Hampshire College Christopher Null Jean Howson, Ph.D., Archaeology Laboratory Director, Howard University SECRETARIES Fatimah L. C. Jackson, Ph.D., Associate Director Denise Joseph for Genetics, University of Maryland Marna Lewis Mark E. Mack, M.A., Cobb Laboratory Director, Andrea Reid Howard University Raquel Scott Warren Perry, Ph.D., Associate Director for Percival Taylor Archaeology, Central Connecticut State Sharon Wiltshire University BOTANISTS Lesley M. Rankin-Hill, Ph.D., Associate Director Lafayette Frederick, Ph.D. for Skeletal Biology, University of Oklahoma Monde Emoh, Ph.D. Warren Barbour, Ph.D., Associate Director (1992–1994) CONSULTANTS FOR THIS REPORT AFRICAN BURIAL GROUND PROJECT Richard Kittles, Ph.D. ADMINISTRATION/MANAGEMENT Matthew George, Ph.D. Thomas Stafford, Ph.D. O. Jackson Cole, Ph.D., Executive in Charge, Shomarka O.Y. Keita, M.S., M.A., M.D. Howard University James A. Donaldson, Ph.D., Project Manager, AFRICAN BURIAL GROUND PROJECT Howard University DIRECTORS *Degree received post-recordation. Michael L Blakey, Ph.D., Scientific Director, College of William and Mary, and Howard University THE NEW YORK AFRICan BURIAL GROUND Contents List of Figures ...........................................................................................................................................................................XI List of Tables ......................................................................................................... ................................................................XVII Foreword ..................................................................................................................................................................................XXI Editorial Method ................................................................................................................................................................. XXIII Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................................................................... XXV Section I: Background of the New York African Burial Ground Project 1. Introduction by Michael L. Blakey ..............................................................................................................................................................3 Historic Background and Significance of the Cemetery ..................................................................................................................3 Recent Public Significance of the African Burial Ground .................................................................................................................8 Significance of the Project’s Analytical Approach .........................................................................................................................10 Report Scope, Limitations, and Future Directions .........................................................................................................................15 Organization of the Report ...........................................................................................................................................................16 2. History and Comparison of Bioarchaeological Studies in the African Diaspora by Michael L. Blakey ............................................................................................................................................................19 Origins of African Diaspora Studies...............................................................................................................................................20 Physical Anthropology and the Negro ..........................................................................................................................................24 Conception of African Diaspora Archaeology ................................................................................................................................28 The Birth of African American Bioarchaeology .............................................................................................................................33 3. Theory: An Ethical Epistemology of Publicly Engaged Biocultural Research by Michael L. Blakey ............................................................................................................................................................41 Critical Theory ..............................................................................................................................................................................42 Public Engagement ......................................................................................................................................................................42 Multiple Data Sets ........................................................................................................................................................................45 Diasporic Scope ............................................................................................................................................................................46