Seneca Village Survey

Before Central Park, the landscape along what is now the Park’s perimeter from West 82nd to 89th Street was home to a predominantly African-American community known today as Seneca Village. Established in 1825, the village began when free Black residents from downtown started purchasing land within what would later become Central Park.

By 1855, Seneca Village consisted of approximately 225 residents, roughly two-thirds Black and one-third Irish. It had three churches, a school, and high rates of property ownership, which in some cases made male landowners eligible to vote. When the City acquired the land for Central Park in 1857, its residents were displaced and forgotten. Historians rediscovered its existence in the 1990s, and in recent years, the Conservancy has worked to trace and share its history.

On the 200th anniversary of Seneca Village’s inception, the Central Park Conservancy has launched a multiyear project to inform the permanent commemoration of Seneca Village within the Park, with generous support from the Mellon Foundation and their Monuments Project.

Your feedback will help guide our public programming and inform the development of a framework for the permanent commemoration of Seneca Village in Central Park. These questions should only take a few minutes to answer.

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* 1. How familiar are you with Seneca Village?

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* 2. Do you intentionally visit the Seneca Village landscape in Central Park? If yes, how often do you visit?

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* 3. What more would you like to learn about Seneca Village?
(Select all that apply.)

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* 4. Does knowing about Seneca Village affect how you experience that part of Central Park? If yes, why?

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* 5. Which elements of Seneca Village are the most important to celebrate, and what feelings should the permanent commemoration invoke?

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* 6. Are there examples of other commemoration projects that you’d like to share?

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* 7. What types of Seneca Village programs and events would you like to see?

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* 8. Have you ever attended a Seneca Village event or tour (hosted by the Central Park Conservancy)?

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* 9. Is there anything else that you’d like to share?

Demographics

The following questions are intended solely for the purpose of understanding the diverse perspectives contributing to this project. Your responses will remain confidential.

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* 10. How old are you?

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* 11. Please consider providing your zip code to help us understand where visitors are coming from:

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* 12. Please indicate which races/ethnicities describe you. (Select all that apply.)

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* 13. If you’d like to stay informed about ongoing Seneca Village commemoration work, programs, and events, please provide your contact information:

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