All Over Albany

The Schuyler Flatts Burial Project

The Schuyler Flatts Burial Project is working to honor and provide a burial for the remains of 14 people found in Menands, whom research indicates were slaves during the 18th and 19th century. From the project description:

In 2010, bioarchaeological analysis was completed by the NYS Museum. The analyses determined that the remains are about 200 years old and represent 6 women, 1 man, 2 children, and five infants. DNA analysis concluded that four of the individuals are of African descent. (West/East and Central Africa) Two sets of remains are descendants of women from Madagascar (off the coast of Southeast Africa). One individual, who may have been of mixed ancestry, was descendant from a Native American woman (possibly Micmac Tribe: Eastern Canada and the Northeastern corner of the United States). The burial ground was dated between the 1700s and early 1800s. Historical research indicates that the burial ground was part of a large estate owned by the colonial Schuyler family who owned a number of slaves in the 18th and 19th centuries. The Schuyler Flatts Burial Ground Project Committee is in the process of planning and implementing a ceremony at St Agnes Cemetery located in Menands, NY on Saturday, June 18th 2016.

A handful of artists have been recruited to create burial containers for the remains. And this Saturday, April 30 at the State Museum there will be a public meeting and presentation about the work. It's at 1 pm in the museum's Huxley Auditorium. It's free.