Part of Legacies of San Juan Hill, an ongoing project that aims to uplift the history, communities, and cultural legacy of the Manhattan neighborhoods that existed in and around the area where Lincoln Center was built.

Co-presented by Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and Lincoln Center

At the turn of the 20^th century, San Juan Hill was home to the largest Black population in New York City. This historic Manhattan neighborhood was established predominantly by Black people from all across the United States and the Caribbean through a wave of migration that grew dramatically from the end of the Civil War to the early 1900s. A densely populated area, San Juan Hill reflected a diverse cross-section of ethnicities, economic classes, and occupations among its residents. A dynamic community emerged, including such trailblazers as Arturo Schomburg (archivist whose collection led to the founding of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture), James Reese Europe (bandleader and founder of the Clef Club Orchestra), James Anderson (founder of the Amsterdam News), and the Black nurses of the Stillman Settlement. These iconic figures made strides in scholarship, music, journalism, and social work through cultural contributions that uplifted the Black community, a precedent for the Harlem Renaissance.

In this talk, leading scholars and cultural leaders will discuss the origins of San Juan Hill and how the founding of that neighborhood reflects the struggles and triumphs of the African diaspora in New York City over one hundred years ago, while shining a light on today.

Enjoy live music and complimentary wine before and after the panel discussion.

Moderator:

• Dr. Vanessa K. Valdés (Associate Provost for Community Engagement, The City College of New York)

Panelists:

• Marcy Sacks (Professor of History, Albion College)
• Rhonda Evans (Assistant Chief Librarian, Schomburg Center)
• Ron Scott (Writer, Amsterdam News)

About the panel participants

Dr. Vanessa K. Valdés is the Associate Provost for Community Engagement at The City College of New York, and the author of Diasporic Blackness: The Life and Times of Arturo Alfonso Schomburg (2017). Her latest book, Juan de Pareja, Afro-Hispanic Painter in the Age of Velázquez (2023), co-authored with David Pullins, accompanies the exhibition of the same name at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on view from April 3 - July 16, 2023.

Marcy S. Sacks is the chair and Julian S. Rammelkamp Professor of History at Albion College (MI). She has published two books, including Before Harlem: The Black Experience in New York City before World War I, in addition to a number of articles and blog posts on Black history. Her current research focuses on white United States soldiers’ interactions with Black people during the Civil War.

Rhonda Evans is the Assistant Chief Librarian of the Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Ron Scott writes a weekly column, “Jazz Notes,” for the Amsterdam News. As a freelance writer, he has written for the New York Times, Vogue Magazine, the Daily News, Time Out New York, Johnson Publications, and ABC Radio. He is the senior editor of “Forever Harlem,” a pictorial history of Harlem from 1896–2006. Scott has lectured at the City University of New York and Howard University.

About the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture

Founded in 1925, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture is one of the world’s leading cultural institutions devoted to the preservation, research, interpretation, and exhibition of materials focused on African American, African Diasporan, and African experiences. As a research division of The New York Public Library, the Schomburg Center features diverse programming and collections totaling over 11 million items that illuminate the richness of global black history, arts, and culture. Learn more at schomburgcenter.org.

If you have any questions about this event, please contact Guest Experience at 212-875-5456 or [email protected].