In 1711, New York's first slave market opened in downtown Manhattan. Introduced by the Dutch, Slavery had become an active part of New York's life. Brooklyn and Long Island numbered among the Northern regions with the largest captive populations. An estimated 40% of New York households contained an enslaved person. From farming to carpentry to blacksmithing, blacks worked a number of trades and were a vital source of labor. Situated next to the piers on the East River where the ships were moored, captives would be unloaded from the hellish conditions on the ships and sold. Previously, enslaved people had been sold informally, but a city 1711 ordinance established that they should be sold through this market. Though many of the people sold at the New York Slave Market were black, the market also sold Native Americans into slavery. In 1726, the market was renamed the Meal market due to the fact that grain, corn, and meal were also sold exclusively at the market. By the mid-18th Century, one in five New Yorkers was enslaved. Meanwhile, New York began to grow into the financial and trade center of the colonies. Blocks away from where men, women, and children were sold, their labor, bodies, and futures were financed and insured. The meal market itself would be closed in 1762, but that didn't mark the end of the slave trade throughout the city. Men, women, and children would continue to be sold. The abolition of slavery in New York in 1827 didn't even mark the end as non-resident Slave owners could maintain enslaved people until 1841. The city would continue to be interlinked with the South. Mayor Fernando would even suggest succeeding in 1861 in order to maintain the profitable cotton trade with the Confederacy.

The Enduring Issues Practice set is designed to help students analyze documents for Enduring Issues to help prepare them for the NYS Regents Exam. Use the attached handout to answer the questions following each document. At the end, determine what the one Enduring Issue is and create a topic sentence that is supported by evidence from at least 3 images. Enduring Issues Practice Set 1 Handout

The Constitution of the United States of America establishes the laws and governmental structure of the United States. It was first drafted by James Madison and explains which rights are reserved to the national and state governments. The Constitution was ratified in 1787, four years after the official ending of the Revolutionary War. In the years between the Treaty of Paris, which ended the war, and the Constitutional Convention, the United States was governed by a document titled Articles of Confederation. This document gave more power to the various states instead of a single national government. This made important decisions regarding trade, taxation, and defense, very hard to make. Many people recognized the serious situation the new nation found itself in and met in Philadelphia to create a new guiding document. After intense debate, they produced the US Constitution, which still forms the basis of our government. In fact, the US Constitution is the oldest constitution still in use today. While not perfect, this document laid out the fundamental rights that all Americans enjoy today. These different locations throughout New York help to highlight some of the powers and rules laid out in our founding document. NYS Social Studies Scope and Sequence Standards 7.4 & 11.2 For Teachers: US Constitution Lesson Plan

The first European settlers arrived in modern-day New York in 1614. Twelve years later, the Dutch West India Company brought over eleven enslaved people from Africa. From the settlement of New Netherland, African Americans have played a critical role in the development of New York. In the early portion of New Netherland's history, the Dutch divided Black people into two groups: those who were enslaved, and those who were not. This division persisted until the Civil War in 1861. To southerners, a portion of this period from the 18th century to the start of the Civil War was called the "Antebellum" which means the pre-Civil War era. In the south, these years were marked by economic growth due to the reliance on slavery in the region. This period also marked the beginning of a divide between two schools of thought, those who were against slavery, the abolitionists, and those in support of slavery. This story teaches us about what that period was like for Black people in the North and specifically, in New York City. NYS Social Studies Scope and Sequence Standards: 4.7, 7.7, & 11.3. For Teachers: African American in Antebellum New York Lesson Plan