Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday called on volunteers to help transcribe historical records documenting thousands of formerly enslaved New Yorkers, a project aimed at making these records accessible to historians and the public.
Led by the New York City Department of Records & Information Services, the initiative will transcribe digitized records dating from 1660 to 1827, when slavery was abolished in New York, according to a press release.
The transcribed data will allow researchers and everyday New Yorkers to locate records of enslaved individuals and, in some cases, trace familial roots.
“We cannot build a better, brighter future without first acknowledging and accepting our past," the mayor said. "This ambitious project allows everyday New Yorkers to understand the history of enslaved people who shaped our city into what it is today."
The first phase of the transcription project will make available records documenting enslaved people in New York City, and subsequent phases we’ll be adding more records, according to DORIS Commissioner Pauline Toole.
The city has already digitized nine volumes of historical records from Brooklyn, Queens, and Westchester counties, covering the period from 1660 to 1838. These documents include birth certificates identifying enslaved children and records granting individuals their freedom. Each volume ranges from 200 to 500 pages and contains original documents as well as handwritten transcriptions.
Volunteers will use From the Page, a transcription platform, to enter information from the records into a searchable database. Once completed, the transcriptions will create an accessible guide for those researching New York’s history of slavery.
To volunteer and learn more about the project, click here.
