On Saturday, May 18, 2024, from 11 AM-4 PM, Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site will be hosting a Pinkster celebration. This festival is for all ages and is free! Whether you’re interested in music, African heritage, history, or dance, there’s something for you!

Once considered a colonial Dutch holiday, Pinkster quickly became an African celebration of family, hope, and cultural identity. The day’s festivities will feature musical performances, participatory dance, live music, fabric stamping, and food in addition to other activities, such as Open House tours of Schuyler Mansion with a special exhibit. The event will feature the Pinkster Players, Troy Samba, Jennifer Lee, Image Quilt led by Omonike Akinyemi, a drum and dance workshop led by Jordan Taylor Hill, and Operation Unite New York.

Pinkster was shaped and developed over the 18th century by cultural traditions originally brought to the Hudson River Valley by people from West and Central Africa and their descendants, who were enslaved by colonists. What was originally a Dutch religious observance evolved into a spring festival at which enslaved men and women reunited with loved ones and friends to form new traditions in storytelling, music, dance, food, and the selection of the Pinkster King.

Schuyler Mansion is located at 32 Catherine Street in Albany’s historic South End. For information about this or other site events, please call (518) 434-0834, visit https://parks.ny.gov/historic-sites/schuylermansion, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.