The Children of Spring Street:
The Bioarchaeology of Childhood in a 19th Century Abolitionist Congregation
Thursday January 30, 2020 at 6 PM at the Palm Beach County Library : 3650 Summit Blvd. West Palm Beach 33406
In this talk Dr. Ellis will introduce the Spring Street Presbyterian Church, a 19th century abolitionist church in lower Manhattan. In the winter of 2006/2007, construction at the corner of Spring and Varick Streets accidentally unearthed four burial vaults associated with the church. Some 200 individuals emerged, and offer an unprecedented look at life in early urban New York City. Specifically, Dr. Ellis will discuss the subadult (children’s) remains from the collection, and how studying the bodies of the youngest non-surviving members of the congregation can teach us about what it was like to be a child growing up in this time.
