Oyster workers in maryland, 1894, MAAP Columbia University, Courtesy Alice Austen Collection, Staten Island Historical Society
A Journey through Sandy Ground’sLiving LandmarksWhen most of us open our textbooks, we learn a version of American history filtered through white narratives. This is particularly true for New York City’s early history. White narratives and colonization are inseparable from our early written accounts, shaping the stories we’ve shared and the ones we’ve left out centuries later–like how expansive and abundant oyster reefs once characterized New York City’s shorelines and dining room tables, or how that extant industry helped build a haven for free Black landowners and a crucial stop on the Underground Railroad. Where you’ll find the legacy of New York City’s booming oyster industry and the Black oystermen who built it, is in the stories of residents and landmark structures of Sandy Ground on Staten Island–the nation’s oldest continuously settled free black community–five generations later.
Welcome to Sandy Ground–America’s Oldest Continuously Settled Free Black Community
Robert McKinney, Jeffrey Moody, Catherine McKinney, Denise Pedro and Warren Landin, from left, Rossville, STATEN ISLAND, 1967, JOhn Padula, Staten Island Advance
“When you come here and put your feet on this dirt, that’s the dirt that people lived on.”
— Julie Moody Lewis, Sandy Ground Historical Society
Located in Rossville, Staten Island, Sandy Ground is one of the oldest surviving communities in the United States founded by free African Americans before the Civil War. Its legacy traces back to New York’s first black landowners, Captain Jackson and Mr. Holmes, and their early purchases of farmland on Staten Island. Soon, more free black landowners—among them Moses and Silas Harris—began to settle on other parts of the island, leading to the birth of Harrisville (a.k.a Africa, Little Africa, or (as we know it today) Sandy Ground, near Prince’s Bay.The growing community of Harrisville and its proximity to the abundant oyster reefs off Prince’s Bay, became attractive to Black oystermen working in the Chesapeake and trading in New York Harbor. Forming relationships with the current residents of Sandy Ground, these skilled oystermen from Maryland quickly became the oystermen of New York Harbor, settling in the community around 1850 and bolstering its future of prosperity and strength of protection for African Americans escaping enslavement on the Underground Railroad, recognized today as an Official Louis Napoleon Site on the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Trail. At its peak, Sandy Ground was home to 150 families and is still home to their descendants (five generations later) today. Against the pressures of New York City’s rapid and constant change, Sandy Ground’s longevity is a testament to the communities foundational strength. Sandy Ground is currently an authentic historic site, listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the New York State Register of Historic Places. Head there today, and you can catch a glimpse of early Black history yourself at these significant locations and landmark structures below.
Prince’s Bay
Staten Island’s South Shore, near Sandy GroundLong before industrialization, Prince’s Bay was renowned for its abundant oyster beds. In the early 1800s, free Black oystermen from Maryland brought their expertise north and established prosperous businesses on Staten Island. Their enterprises thrived until 1916, when pollution and new restrictions on raw oyster sales crushed the industry—effectively erasing the longstanding leadership of Black oystermen in New York’s maritime economy.
Photo of Princes Bay Beach on the South Shore, https://www.oldstatenisland.org
Rossville A.M.E. Zion Church
Location: 584 Bloomingdale RoadEstablished in 1850, the Rossville A.M.E. Zion Church provided refuge for freedom seekers along the Underground Railroad. Protected by a strong community of oystermen and landowners, many formerly enslaved people found safe harbor here. The church’s cemetery dates to 1852 and holds over 500 graves of Sandy Ground residents, a poignant record of the generations who shaped this historic community.
Photos by Owen Reiter for the Staten Island Advance
The Reverend Isaac & Rebecca Gray Coleman House
Location: 1482 Woodrow RoadBuilt before 1859, this original Sandy Ground home was owned by Reverend Isaac Coleman and his wife, Rebecca Gray Coleman. Once one of 150 Black-owned homes and businesses in the area, the Coleman House stands as a testament to a thriving Black maritime economy rooted in faith, industry, and activism.
Photos of Reverend Issac Coleman and home in 1900 & 2010, NYC Landmark Preservation Commission
Baymen’s Cottages
Location: 565 & 569 Bloomingdale RoadConstructed between 1887 and 1898, these “Baymen’s Cottages” represent a vanishing piece of Sandy Ground’s architectural history. Once common throughout the neighborhood, few remain today—preserving the memory of Black oystermen who built successful livelihoods at the height of New York’s oyster industry.
Photos of 565 & 569 Bloomingdale Rd. 1940 & 2010, NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission
The Sandy Ground Historical Museum
Location: 1538 Woodrow RoadFor more than 40 years, the Sandy Ground Historical Museum has led efforts to preserve and promote the community’s unique legacy—both as part of the Underground Railroad and as a cornerstone of New York’s oyster trade. Housed on what is likely the only intact 18th-century African burial ground in America, the museum safeguards the largest collection of Staten Island’s African American history, including art, quilts, letters, photographs, and rare books. Though currently closed to walk-ins for maintenance, the museum continues to offer educational programming online and outdoors.
Photos of the museum house a t 1538 in 1939-41 & Current from NYC Municipal Archives Digital Collections & Sandy Ground Historical Society
Environmental and human history are inseparable. We can’t restore one without the other. New York City’s identity cannot be separated from its natural resources and those who cared for, utilized, and lived off of them before us. To revive local waterways without upholding the history and knowledge of those who experienced their former state is an incomplete endeavor. By celebrating Sandy Ground’s maritime legacy and supporting institutions like the Sandy Ground Historical Museum this #BlackHistoryMonth and year-round, we can ensure that both NYC’s ecological recovery and cultural history move forward together.
SUPPORT OUR PARTNERSBy championing the museum’s work, we honor Sandy Ground’s enduring story of freedom, entrepreneurship, and environmental stewardship—bridging the past with our present and future. Help repair and maintain the Sandy Ground Historical Museum—an irreplaceable link to New York’s Black and environmental history with a donation this year. Click below to give and learn more.
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Many thanks to Julie Moody Lewis for her contributions to this piece, the historical society’s longterm partnership, and support for Billion Oyster Project’s restoration work in New York Harbor.
Sources & Further Reading: Sandy Ground Historical Society: The museum’s online resources, archives, and contact information for more detailed records of Sandy Ground’s history. NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission: “Discover NYC Landmarks” or “Research” sections for designations, historical reports, and documents related to Sandy Ground and/or specific properties like the Coleman House.Staten Island Advance Archives: Archival articles referencing early Sandy Ground, Captain Jackson & Mr. Holmes, and more can be searched or requested on inquiry. Read more on Rossville AME Zion Church and check out the gallery, Historic Sandy Ground | Then and Now. National Park Service - Underground Railroad Network to Freedom
