8 THE QUEENS COURIER • NOVEMBER 18, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
New plaza pays tribute to African and Native American burial ground
BY GABRIELE HOLTERMANN
editorial@qns.com
@QNS
Elected offi cials, members of the
Olde Towne of Flushing Burial Ground
Conservancy (OTFBGC) and community
members gathered for a ribbon-cutting
ceremony of the new commemorative
plaza at the Olde Towne of Flushing
Burial Ground on Tuesday, Nov. 9.
Th e burial site, located on 46th Avenue
between 164th and 165th streets opposite
Flushing Cemetery, dates back to
1840, and more than 1,000 people, most
of whom were African Americans and
Native Americans, are buried there. Th e
cemetery was also the fi nal destination for
poor white people and wealthy folks who
died during the cholera and smallpox epidemics
in the mid-1800s.
Th e last burial took place in 1898. In
1914, the Parks Department took over the
site, renaming it “Martins Field,” in honor
of tree conversationist Everett P. Martin.
In 1936, at the behest of then-Parks
Commissioner Robert Moses, the last
resting place for so many was paved over
and turned into a playground with a
wading pool and baseball fi eld — no
one seemed to care that workers had
found evidence that the site had been a
burial ground.
OTFBGC board member Sally
Mehreteab shared that Bayside-based
community activist Mandingo Osceola
Tshaka, whose parents told him that
family members were buried at the site,
brought attention to the site’s history
when the Parks Department began
renovating the playground in the 1990s.
He went to the main offi ce of Flushing
Cemetery, where he found records from
1919 indicating that four marble headstones
used to stand on the plot tombstones
that were destroyed during the
construction of the playground.
Death records also showed that 62%
of the interred were African American
or Native American, more than half
were children under 5 and 34% were
unidentifi ed.
Tshaka urged the city to conduct an
archeological survey of the lot in 1996.
Archeologist Linda Stone found that the
site was the fi nal resting for 500 to 1,000
people. However, it took years of advocacy
to have the burial ground recognized
and honor the lives of the dead.
In 2009, “Martin’s Field,” which was
also once known as the “Pauper Burial
Ground” and “Th e Colored Cemetery of
Flushing,” the Parks Department renamed
it “Th e Olde Towne of Flushing Burial
Ground.” In October 2018, Mayor Bill
de Blasio and then-Queens Borough
President Melinda Katz allocated $1.6
million for a new memorial.
Eddie Abrams, an OTFBGC board
member, said it was important that his
children pass the history on to his grandchildren
once he was gone.
“I’m so happy,” Abrams said. “Th is took
a long time, but you could really see
what can happen if people really work
together and put things together and
bring back history.”
NYC Parks Commissioner Gabrielle
Fialkoff described the ribbon-cutting ceremony
for the memorial wall — engraved
with 318 recorded names of those buried
at the site and inscribed with the names of
the four headstones — as “unique.”
“Th is is a solemn occasion in honor of
a sacred space,” Fialkoff said. “In reintroducing
at long last Th e Old Towne of
Flushing Burial Ground, we honor the
approximately 1,000 people laid to rest in
this space.”
She said the memorial will now be a
place to pay respect to “those who came
before us.”
“It is also a space to refl ect on their stories,
their struggles, and their triumphs,”
said Fialkoff , adding that she hopes the
memorial will give New Yorkers a way to
rediscover the sacred and historical place.
Queens Borough President Donovan
Richards said that the unveiling of the
plaza was a signifi cant milestone in a
decades-long eff ort to right a terrible
wrong.
“For far too long, the 314 individuals
whose names are engraved on this new
memorial have not gotten the recognition
nor the respect that they deserve,”
Richards said. “Th e hundreds of other
unidentifi ed people buried here who are
not individually recognized on the memorial
because their names were lost over
time have been similarly disrespected.”
He pointed out that those buried at
the site played a vital part in building the
community and laid the foundation for a
diverse and prosperous Queens.
“Th eir fi nal resting place should be a
place of dignity and respect where their
legacy can be properly honored and
remembered,” Richards said. “Th is land
is our land.”
Congresswoman Grace Meng said that
she wasn’t only attending as a local lawmaker,
but also as a mom.
“It’s important for our children and generations
of children to come to truly learn
a more accurate and complete teaching of
American history here in New York and
around the country,” Meng said.
State Senator John Liu pointed out that
even though New York City was “the
greatest city on the planet,” it also had its
shortcomings and has made grave mistakes.
“Th is terrible mistake that this site was
once a part of is still a legacy of a time in
this city’s history when entire communities
and people were completely disregarded
and disrespected,” Liu said.
Assemblyman Edward Braunstein
acknowledged the tireless work and dedication
of Tshaka and the OTFBGC to
make the memorial happen.
“I’ve watched for years the determination
that took place to get this done,
and our community is better off for it,”
Braunstein said. “Not only do we fi nally
have a proper place to recognize the
sacred land behind us, but we also have
an opportunity where our community
can come and learn the history — the real,
accurate history.”
Councilman Peter Koo reminded
everyone to stay vigilant to ensure that
future generations don’t forget about the
burial ground. He also praised the tenacity
of the burial ground advocates, saying
they refused to “take no for an answer.”
“Th ey fought tooth and nail to make
sure this hollow ground was given the
respect it deserves,” Koo said. “Th ey made
sure that the only acceptable answer was
‘yes.’”
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz
said the project was about correcting past
mistakes.
“Today is about respecting those that
are buried here,” said Katz, who helped
fund the project during her tenure as
Queens borough president.
Robbie Garrison, the OTFBGC cochair,
thanked all conservancy members
for their achievement and elected offi -
cials for their contributions in turning the
memorial into reality.
Earlier, she shared with QNS that she
was ecstatic, praising Katz for coming
through for them.
“It has been a long, hard road to get to
this,” Garrison said. “But we are here now,
and we have to mention the money people.
If it had not been for Melinda Katz
bringing in Mayor de Blasio, we would
not have arrived here today. And I have
to be grateful to them because they came
in with us, and they worked with Parks.”
Conservancy member Beverly Riley
called the name of Tshaka three times.
Tshaka, whose health has been declining
in recent years, couldn’t attend the
ceremony.
“Your name will echo in the winds
that blow over this sacred place forever,”
Riley said of the 88-year-old activist.
“A true warrior through it all. You never
wavered. You stood tall. We say thank
you.”
Riley recalled that a few years back,
standing in the same spot, when she asked
those gathered to close their eyes and
open their hearts so they could feel the
anguish and painful voices coming out
from under their feet.
“If I asked you to do the same thing
today, what you will feel in your heart
are the rhythms of a jubilee that is taking
place,” Riley said. “You will hear the
jubilant voices singing and crying out in
celebration for the justice that has come
today, knowing that they can fi nally rest
in peace.”
Photo by Gabriele Holtermann
Community members read the names of those buried at the memorial site at Olde Towne of Flushing
Burial Ground.
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