| Hosted by | Walk New Haven Cultural Heritage Tours |
|---|---|
| Details | On March 8, 1825, the last known auction of enslaved people ever to happen in New Haven (and possibly the entire state of Connecticut) took place on the New Haven Green, as Lois and Lucy Tritton were sold to Anthony Sanford for $10. We will commemorate the 200th anniversary of this baleful occasion by placing a marker and flowers at the grave of Lois Tritton who was laid to rest in Blake Street Cemetery in 1894 at the age of 95. Family historian, genealogist and cemetery researcher Sherill Baldwin will share her extensive research on the Tritton family as well as on Blake Street Cemetery itself, a small “paupers’ cemetery” set aside for indigent burials adjacent to the larger Westville and Mishkan Israel Cemeteries. Over 2100 people were buried at Blake Street between the early 1880s to 1931, when another cemetery for indigent burials was established farther out in West Rock. For the last year Sherill has been uncovering and sharing the stories of New Haveners buried at Blake Street online at her website “Buried Stories,” including the fascinating stories of John Bray, Edward Ditymus, in addition to the Tritton family. Aaron Goode of Walk New Haven Cultural Heritage Tours will discuss the history of poor farms, almshouses, and paupers’ cemeteries in New Haven, as well as ongoing community efforts to preserve and restore these sites (particularly those set aside for burial of the indigent) as places of dignity, respect and tranquility. Directions: The tour will start on Jewell Street at 10am, from which we will walk over to Blake Street and enter the Westville Cemetery’s Blake Street entrance. Parking: Either side of Jewell Street, between Whalley Avenue and Blake Street. Please do not park inside the Mishkan Israel or Westville Cemeteries. Accessibility: The terrain is a bit rough at this cemetery with no aisle-ways. We ask you to recognize this tour is at a cemetery, a place for reflection and if children attend, should be respectful of this sacred space. |
| Admission | FREE |
| Location | Blake Street Cemetery, New Haven |
| Where |
|