Sandy Ground descendants traveled to Columbia University to share stories of a Staten Island community that has endured since 1828, surviving devastating fires and development while preserving its heritage through faith and family. (Courtesy of Heather Butts)Heather Butts
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Sandy Ground’s history and resilience took center stage this week at Columbia University, where descendants and church members gathered to celebrate the historic Rossville community.
The event brought together descendants and church members of Sandy Ground — the oldest continuously inhabited free Black community in the country — along with Columbia students and faculty.
Untold Stories in Public Health was created to highlight individuals, groups and events whose contributions to public health and American history have often gone overlooked.
The event included special recognition of Rossville AME Zion Church, which is the hub of the Sandy Ground community. Church members’ stories have become a central focus of the university’s ongoing oral history and storytelling project, led by Heather Butts, an associate professor at Columbia University.
“Rossville AME Zion Church was honored at the Columbia University Mailman School of Health’s Untold Stories Reception because of its importance to Sandy Ground, Staten Island, our nation, and the world,” said Butts.
“The church stands as a beacon of history, family stories, and resilience of one of the nation’s oldest free Black communities,” she continued. “This reception represents a continuation of an initiative to amplify voices and histories that are too often overlooked, while celebrating the descendants and community members who continue to carry this legacy forward.”
Stories rooted in Sandy Ground
According to church historian and Sandy Ground descendant, Janise Laboard-Casimir, more than 15 descendants and church members traveled from Staten Island to attend the reception and share personal stories connected to Sandy Ground and the church.
“We were invited to tell our story and how we got here, how we got to this place where Columbia University is celebrating our stories,” Laboard-Casimir said.
Located on Staten Island’s South Shore, Sandy Ground was established in 1828 and is recognized as the oldest continuously inhabited free Black settlement in the country.
It was one of New York’s earliest communities where Black Americans could own land and build independent lives. Drawn to the oyster-rich waters of Raritan Bay, African American oystermen moved to this self-sustaining village of tradespeople, families and faith.
At the center of it all stood Rossville AME Zion Church, founded in 1849, a spiritual and cultural anchor that has long united the community and remains significant to descendants today.
Over the years, Sandy Ground endured major challenges, including the devastating 1963 brush fire that destroyed much of the area and increasing development throughout Rossville. Despite those changes, descendants have continued preserving the community’s history through church involvement, storytelling and family connections.
From one conversation to a larger project
Laboard-Casimir said her meeting with Butts began in 2024, after she attended her presentation on Sandy Ground history.
That first meeting sparked a series of interviews, virtual discussions and storytelling sessions involving descendants connected to Sandy Ground and Rossville AME Zion Church.
“Heather’s like, ‘This is bigger than what I think it is,’” Laboard-Casimir recalled.
The project has since expanded into a broader effort to archive descendants’ stories through Columbia University.
For Laboard-Casimir, seeing increased public interest in Sandy Ground’s history has been emotional.
“We are honored. We are dumbstruck that this is what is going on right now,” she said. “Granted, we know we have a rich history, but there’s a difference between knowing what you have and then seeing people recognize that.”
She added that Sandy Ground represents far more than a historic location.
“Sandy Ground is not just a place. It’s an essence,” said Laboard-Casimir. “It’s a mindset. It’s our resilience.”
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Amanda Faublas is a reporter for the Staten Island Advance/SILive.com, where she covers various topics with a primary focus on entertainment and community stories. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in…more
For Hollerman and Santulli Barone, the measure of the church’s success is more personal — found in decades of relationships, moments of unwavering support during hardship, and the quiet consistency through good times and bad.
“I love this church,” Hollerman said. “We are blessed to be a part of it.”
