Site of Aunt Elsie Brooks' House

Aunt Elsie Brooks, born enslaved in Maryland, came to Dryden in 1812. After New York abolished slavery in 1827, she lived with her husband at 24 Wheat Street and worked as an herbalist and washerwoman. She was important to the African American community with contacts in the white community as well. When she died in 1875, more than 800 people attended her funeral at St. James AME Zion Church. It was so well attended that additional supports were needed to repair the floor following her funeral.

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