Fisk Jubilee Singers: Swing Low Sweet Chariot

from pbs site about the jubilee singers

Combining the heritage of African culture and the experiences encountered while in bondage, early African American music would become a unifying and driving force among America's slaves. Spirituals, as many of these songs came to be called, expressed faith in God, helped make work more bearable, and also revealed plans to revolt. The songs' lyrics offer a glimpse of the true horror slaves endured as well as a hope and faith that one day they would be free. The voice for generations of African Americans, these songs laid the groundwork for the development of other forms of music in America.
The Fisk University Jubilee Singers was the first group to publicly perform the songs of slaves and they shared them with the world. When the Fisk Jubilee Singers first performed in the late 1800s, they sang ballads and patriotic anthems; it was their director, George White, who suggested that they sing the songs of their ancestors. The group was hesitant at first to expose this sacred music but agreed to add a few spirituals to their program. The music was well-received, often moving audiences to tears. With their performances, the Jubilee Singers were able to keep alive these songs of the past and reveal the emotions and strong faith of the African American slave.

Swing low, sweet chariot, Coming for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot, Coming for to carry me home.
I looked over Jordan and what did I see,
Coming for to carry me home?
A band of angels coming after me,
Coming for to carry me home.
If you get there before I do,
Coming for to carry me home,
Tell all my friends I’m coming too,
Coming for to carry me home.
The brightest day that ever I saw,
Coming for to carry me home.
When Jesus washed my sins away,
Coming for to carry me home.
I’m sometimes up and sometimes down,
Coming for to carry me home,
But still my soul feels heavenly bound,
Coming for to carry me home.

Lost Village Of Central Park

A real smorgasbord of a post here. The pictures are a combination of the current Seneca Site
located between 82nd and 89th Streets and Seventh and Eighth Avenues (closest cross street now being Central Park West) and images from an historical fiction story about the village called, "The Lost Village Of Central Park." The current images show scientists and their students doing a Geoarchaeological study

One of the main questions we have asked about Seneca Village is whether or not archaeological traces of it survived the creation of the romantic landscape of Central Park and still exist in the park today. As archaeologists we know that we could find out a lot about the lifeways of the people who lived in Seneca Village by studying the artifacts they left behind. But the workers who made the park in the 1850s and 1860s moved a lot of dirt. In some cases they made the ground higher by bringing in landfill; in others they made the ground lower by grading soil away; and in others still they left the soil relatively intact. If they graded soil away, they destroyed any archaeological site that might have been there. But if they brought in landfill and deposited it on top of the natural soil, or if they left the natural soil undisturbed, then the Seneca Village archaeological site could still exist. So we needed to find out about the soils in the village area to find out if the site was still there.

The music is Steal Away from the Fisk Jubilee Singers

CHORUS:
Steal away, steal away, steal away to Jesus!
Steal away, steal away home, I hain’t got long to stay here.
My Lord calls me, he calls me by the thunder;
The trumpet sounds it in my soul,
I hain’t got long to stay here.
CHORUS
Green trees are bending, poor sinners stand trembling;
The trumpet sounds it in my soul,
I hain’t got long to stay here.
CHORUS
My Lord calls me, he calls me by the lightning;
The trumpet sounds it in my soul,
I hain’t got long to stay here.
CHORUS
Tombstones are bursting, poor sinners stand trembling;
The trumpet sounds it in my soul.
I hain’t got long to stay here

About the book from an amazon reviewer

Grade 3-5-A gripping story with historical background seamlessly integrated throughout. The title refers to Seneca Village, the African-American and immigrant settlement that once existed in what is now New York City's Central Park. Unique in its place in American history, this racially mixed community was characterized by harmony from its beginnings in the 19th century. Sooncy Taylor is an African-American girl who lives with her parents on land they own in Seneca Village. Her family befriends recent Irish immigrants, the McBeans, who have a daughter, Kayla, about her age. Sooncy attends Colored School #3 while Kayla is a servant in a neighboring wealthy community and can only attend church school on Sundays. Returning home one evening after running errands together, the girls encounter two slave catchers who are pursuing escaped slaves that they believe are hidden in the village. Kayla comes to realize that the residents shelter fugitives and that she wants to help, while Sooncy becomes aware that she is vulnerable to slave catchers even though she has always been free. In the end, the villagers band together to run the slave catchers out of town and successfully pass the fugitives on to the next station. Killcoyne creates a dynamic world in which readers can experience the characters' growth as their interests expand beyond their immediate environment. Unfortunately, the illustrations detract from the overall attractiveness of the novel; they are awkwardly conceived and confusing.