Tucked away on the south shore of Staten Island sits Sandy Ground, the oldest continuously inhabited free Black settlement in the U.S. Johnson’s land went from untapped to a thriving community running on oysters and Black joy.
The oyster trade was booming, and as Maryland continued creating racist loophole laws to stop the Chesapeake Bay area’s oystermen from operating their businesses, many caught wind of Sandy Ground.
Soon, the area became a haven for our people. Its AME church was a stop on the Underground Railroad, and most families were making a great living from the oyster trade.
Today in Sandy Ground, few of our people remain. Developers and gentrification have infringed upon the community for years. And the Black history in Sandy Ground is at risk of being washed away.
We can’t let the history of historic Black communities like Sandy Ground slip away. Our history deserves to be preserved, and we must all play a role.