New York City considers landmark status for historic, enslaved persons burial ground in the Bronx
NEW YORK - New York City is considering making a portion of Joseph Rodman Drake Park in the Bronx a landmark.
Local educators say it's a victory for them, as they've worked for more than a decade to correct the wrongs of the past.
"This park is like an escape, it's an oasis," said Justin Czarka, a teacher at P.S. 48.
In the center of the industrial Hunts Point neighborhood, sits a quiet, low-lying park. It's a place of auspicious greenery, where a weeping willow tree hugs what lies beneath it.
"It feels like arms are branching over and protecting the space, as the branches sweep down," Czarka described.
It's a spot in the park that's been buried in the dark since possibly the early 18th century, and located across the pathway from the upkept cemetery of founding Bronx families the Hunt's, Leggett's and Willett's.
"On my left, this little mound, is all that's left. Buried below it is the Hunts Point Slave Burial Ground," said Philip Panaritis, a retired social studies teacher.
There are no more markings, no names, and barely any information on it.
"This is the only photograph of the enslaved burial ground that exists so far," said Panaritis.
The single photo from 1910 ignited local educators Panaritis and Czarka and students at P.S. 48 to dig into it where the burial grounds were located.
"Kids started noticing stuff in this park -- there's an old sign -- that would show up in other photos. They'd say, 'Wait a sec, this photo right here, it has a plaque in it. And this plaque is over here, is this the road?'" Czarka said.
Eventually, a ground penetrating radar conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture corroborated their research.
"It was sobering to realize, yeah, it was real," Czarka said .
It's the reality that the enslaved people of the families buried and honored across the park nearly disappeared in history without a trace of remembrance.
"They waited 100 years and would be written out of history with no one even knowing they lived," said Panaritis.
Now, the city's Landmark Preservation Commission is considering making the burial ground a landmark. It would be a win for Panaritis and Czarka, who have spent years memorializing those forgotten.
"This has been here forever, and it's been intentionally forgotten for so long, and it's starting to be remembered and included," said Czarka.
A public hearing date for the Landmarks Commission is set for Tuesday, November 12th.
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