
Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation is encouraging New Yorker’s to explore the city’s historical civil rights sites this Black History Month.
Village Preservation has been documenting, preserving and celebrating NYC’s architectural and cultural heritage since 1980. By advocating for more than 1,250 buildings across NoHo, East Village and Greenwich Village, Village Preservation has acquired zoning protections for almost 100 city blocks.
Notable accomplishments over the past four decades include the recent landmark designation for Julius Bar, the honor of receiving the Preservation League of New York State Excellence in Historic Preservation Award and their growing Children’s Education Program.
In honor of Black History Month, Village Preservation has expanded and updated their Civil Rights & Social Justice Map. More than 200 sites related to significant people, events and and movements involved in civil rights history across Greenwich Village, East Village and NoHo are pinned.
Explore the map for yourself below:
Highlights include everything from the first free Black settlement in North America to locations where the 1863 Draft Riots took place. Other available maps to explore include the South of Union Square Map and the Greenwich Village Historic District: Then & Now Photos and Tours.
They’ll also be launching a new Black History in Greenwich series this February, which will consist of various walking tours and lectures.
Currently, Village Preservation is working towards preserving several sites surrounding African American and civil rights history such as: 50 West 13th Street (previous home of Jacob Day, an anti-slavery leader), 285-2287 East 3rd Street (previous home to poet and writer Steve Cannon, the founder of A Gathering of the Tribes) and various sites in the proposed South of Union Square Historic District (including the publishing site of The Autobiography of Malcolm X).
You can help the Village Preservation in their efforts to protect these African American history sites here.