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A Call for Crowd-Source History Volunteers

Thu, 03/19/2020 - 10:15
An 18th century shoemaker's account book contained the names of several enslaved persons in colonial East Hampton.
East Hampton Library Long Island Collection

The Plain Sight Project, which is creating a database of East End slavery, is seeking sharp-eyed volunteers. Help is needed reading archival documents and scanned town records for the names and identities of the region’s enslaved people. Even a half-hour a week’s assistance would be valuable. More about the project and sign-up details are at plainsightproject.org.

The project is a joint effort among staff at The East Hampton Star, the East Hampton Library, and Sylvester Manor on Shelter Island. Its researchers have identified about 500 enslaved people, spanning about 175 years, who lived on the East End.

Villages

Buddhist Monks on the Path to World Peace

Twenty or so monks from a monastery in Texas are making their way to Washington, D.C., on a mission of compassion, while locally a class on the Buddhist path to world peace will be held in Water Mill.

Jan 29, 2026

‘ICE Out’ Vigils on Friday

Coordinated vigils for what organizers call victims of federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement will happen across the East End on Friday at 6 p.m. and in Riverhead on Saturday at 10 a.m., with local events scheduled in East Hampton Village and Sag Harbor.

Jan 29, 2026

Item of the Week: The Reverend and the Accabonac Tribe

This photostat of a deposition taken on Oct. 18, 1667, from East Hampton’s first minister, Thomas James, is one of the earliest records we have of “Ackobuak,” or “Accabonac,” as a place name.

Jan 29, 2026

 

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