The underground Railroad didn’t skip New York City.
Safe havens for runaway slaves existed in Brooklyn—such as Brooklyn Heights’ Plymouth Church. And the John Bowne House, in Flushing, was also rumored to have been a hideout.
But in Manhattan, the only known Underground Railroad site that still exists is the row house at 339 West 29th Street (Ivy-covered in 1932).
Built in the 1840s on what was then called Lamartine Place, number 339 was owned by James S. Gibbons and his staunch abolitionist wife, Abigail Hopper Gibbons.
According to the Landmarks Preservation Committee Report that declared the house and its neighbors the Lamartine Historic District:
“In his memoirs, the American lawyer and diplomat Joseph Hodges Choate who was a friend of the Gibbons family recollects dining with the Gibbons and a fugitive slave at No. 339 in 1855, citing the residence as a stop on the Underground Railroad.”
No. 339 (in the center, under scaffolding and a new facade) was also attacked and burned in the 1863 Draft Riots, when roving mobs of New Yorkers upset about new draft laws killed African-Americans.
A house with history like that can’t escape scrutiny—which is probably why the city ordered the current owner to tear down the illegal fifth floor that was recently added.
Tags: 339 West 29th Street, Abigail Hopper Gibbons, Draft Riots 1863, Draft Riots NYC, Hopper Gibbons House, John Bowne House, Lamartine Historic District, Lamartine Place, Plymouth Church Brooklyn, Underground Railroad New York City
Ephemeral New York 
January 24, 2011 at 6:27 am |
Not standing, but also notable is 36 Lispenard St
January 24, 2011 at 3:07 pm |
Thanks, I’ve never seen that marker. 67 Lispenard and 153 Baxter Street were also thought to be safe house locations.
January 24, 2011 at 4:24 pm |
It’s said that the Brotherhood Synagogue, 28 Gramercy Park South
New York, NY 10003
(212) 674-5750 had a tunnel to help freedom seekers escape. Thanks for the info.
Devorah Tarrow
January 24, 2011 at 5:14 pm |
Wow, I’d love to know if the tunnel still exists. I just looked up the Brotherhood Synagogue and it turns out it is housed in the former Friends Meeting House. Quakers played a big role advocating for abolition.
http://brotherhoodsynagogue.org/our-history
January 24, 2011 at 6:25 pm |
[…] Underground Railroad stop at 339 West 29th Street, currently undergoing exterior renovation [Ephemeral NY] Tweet Filed under: Nabe […]
January 24, 2011 at 6:45 pm |
When I first moved to New York in 1980 I lived in Flushing directly across from the Bowne House. My new landlord mentioned it to me and was surprised to hear that I had never heard of it. I guess we can chalk that up to my public school education in the midwest.
January 24, 2011 at 6:51 pm |
The Bowne House has a fascinating history. And it must have been nice living so close to a 17th century Dutch farmhouse.
January 25, 2011 at 2:25 pm |
it was the flushing meeting which presented the Flushing Remonstrance, the earliest claim to religious liberty in the colonies. it’s housed in albany and is taken out about every 25 years for viewing, iirc. so there’s a history there.
http://www.queensbp.org/remonstrance/index.html
August 18, 2011 at 4:06 am |
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