1. The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE SUSTAINER
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BECOME A DONOR
Weeksville Heritage Center
/Unearthing History in Your Backyard
Fun Fact #1
The boundaries of Weeksville
stretched from Fulton St. to the
North, East New York Avenue
in the South, Ralph Avenue in
the East and to Troy Avenue
in the West. In the 1850s
Weeksville was the home
to approximately 525
residents.

2. The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE VOLUNTEER
SUPPORT
BECOME A DONOR
Weeksville Heritage Center
/Unearthing History in Your Backyard
Fun Fact #2
Weeksville was a
safe-haven and refuge to
Africans fleeing the south from
the Fugitive Slave
Act of 1850 and the
Manhattan Draft Riots of
1863.

3. The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE SUSTAINER
SUPPORT
BECOME A DONOR
Weeksville Heritage Center
/Unearthing History in Your Backyard
Fun Fact #3
Weeksville grew on Eastern
Long Island in the middle of
former Dutch farmlands. Rural, hilly,
and full of fertile farms, scrub, and
woodlands, Weeksville lay in the ninth
ward, farthest from the city’s urban
center. By 1840, 24 of the 27 families
who lived in Weeksville were African
American (82%). An official place
designation appeared on the
1849 “Twelve Miles Around
New York” map.

4. The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE VOLUNTEER
SUPPORT
BECOME A DONOR
Weeksville Heritage Center
/Unearthing History in Your Backyard
Fun Fact #4
Weeksville Heritage Center is
the steward for three remaining
historic houses, which date to the 19th
century and are located on historic
Hunterfly Road. Weeksville emphasizes
the history of sanctuary, refuge,
independence, self-sufficiency, self-
determination, activism, and their
contemporary relevance.

5. The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE SUSTAINER
SUPPORT
BECOME A DONOR
Weeksville Heritage Center
/Unearthing History in Your Backyard
Fun Fact #5
During the 19th century the
village of Weeksville was a
vibrant and independent free
African American community. The
settlement is named for James
Weeks, one of the seven
investors who acquired the
property in 1838 to create an
intentional land-owning
community.

6. The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE VOLUNTEER
SUPPORT
BECOME A DONOR
Weeksville Heritage Center
/Unearthing History in Your Backyard
Fun Fact #6
In 1968, the 4 homes are
rediscovered by James Hurley,
Joseph Haynes, William “Dewey”
Harley, Dolores McCullough, &
Patricia Johnson. The community,
organized by Joan Maynard and
the students of P.S. 243 conduct
an archeological dig on the site
of the Weeksville Gardens
public housing.

7. The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE AMBASSADOR
SUPPORT
BECOME A DONOR
Weeksville Heritage Center
/Unearthing History in Your Backyard
Fun Fact #7
Thanks to the efforts of our
first Executive Director, Joan
Maynard, and the community of
Brooklyn, in 1971 the Historic Hunterfly
Road Houses were declared national
landmarks, and the intentional free black
community is preserved as a place of
historic significance. Today, Weeksville
Heritage Center preserves and
documents that history and creates
and inspires exploration through
a contemporary lens of
arts, culture, and
education.
The mission of Weeksville Heritage Center
is to document, preserve and interpret
the history of free African American
communities in Weeksville, Brooklyn and
beyond to create and inspire innovative,
contemporary uses of African American
history through education, the arts, and
civic engagement.
Learn more at weeksvillesociety.org
VISIT
158 Buffalo Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213
Tuesday - Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM
GET INVOLVED
BECOME A WEEKSVILLE SUSTAINER
SUPPORT
BECOME A DONOR