UB archaeologist, students conducting dig on site of historic Buffalo church

At some point, likely during the warmer months of 1849, laborers began digging a trench on an empty lot on what was then Michigan “Street” in the city of Buffalo. This builder’s trench was a temporary workspace to accommodate masons laying the limestone foundation for a new church.

That groundbreaking, unaccompanied by ceremony, was the first step in building the Michigan Street Baptist Church, the future home of the Second Baptist Society of Buffalo, a congregation formed 13 years earlier.

The Michigan Street Baptist Church, which today stands at 511 Michigan Ave. in Buffalo, is one of the city’s most celebrated and historic structures. It is the longest continuously operating African American place of worship in Buffalo. In addition to its spiritual, cultural and social significance, the church also served as an Underground Railroad station for freedom-seekers hoping to cross the U.S.-Canada border, and played a critical part in the country’s nascent civil rights efforts.

In May of this year, in partnership with church trustees, Douglas Perrelli, UB teaching professor of anthropology and director of the university’s Archaeological Survey, and a group of students started looking for that trench. The search was the beginning of an unfolding public archaeological investigation of land surrounding the church, home to four map-documented structures — some extant, like the church, but others, once owned or occupied by two of Buffalo’s most prominent citizens, now demolished.

The current investigation, being conducted by a UB field crew and students from Perrelli’s undergraduate field school class under the direction of Perrelli and other professional archaeologists, will continue through September. The work will extend findings from previous investigations of the site from 2021.

“The builder’s trench is the main thing we started looking for once we got to the site,” says Perrelli, who previously led a similar project at the Cataract House in Niagara Falls, another Underground Railroad node.

Because a builder’s trench is temporary, it can undergo an unintentional transformation when backfilled. What was once an element to facilitate construction is now potentially a chance time capsule holding pieces of history in the soil used to fill the once excavated space after a foundation was finished and the trench no longer needed.

“To find the builder’s trench means that artifacts found there can be reasonably associated with the people who built the church,” says Perrelli. “The authenticity of those finds and the representation of that material culture links us to the people who built the church, including its primary benefactor.”

Peyton Harris, a successful dry cleaner and tailor who was one of the most influential 19th century figures in Buffalo’s Black community, was that benefactor. Harris, a formerly enslaved individual, purchased the land on Michigan Street for Second Baptist Society and bought the building materials for the church. 

In addition to the church lot, Harris also bought adjacent parcels at 515 and 517 Michigan Ave. and built a two-dwelling brick row house. Harris lived at 517, the northern dwelling, until his death in 1882. 

A few years later, Harris’ grandson, William Talbert, and civil rights pioneer Mary Talbert moved into their new home at 521 Michigan Ave., the fourth map-documented structure built on land associated with the church, which today is used for green space and parking, and all of which are part of Perrelli’s investigation.

In 1905, the Talberts hosted a meeting organized by W.E.B. DuBois. At DuBois’ invitation, 29 other African American men met in the parlor of the Talbert home at 521 Michigan Ave. Their discussion led to the creation of the Niagara Movement, the precursor to the modern-day National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

“To hold objects in your hands that were deposited during the original time of church construction or during the occupational lives of Harris and Talbert is what makes this project so exciting,” says Perrelli. “If I can identify a personal item, or something I can genuinely attribute to one of those people from that time period — that’s a discovery that gives me goosebumps.”

The team is finding new items with every visit to the site, and each discovery adds narrative depth to a previously concealed history.

“I am continuously surprised by the sheer number of artifacts we find each day,” says Ashley McRedmond, a rising senior anthropology major at UB. “The perseverant existence of Mary Talbert, William Talbert and Peyton Harris through these objects is one of the most inspiring parts of the project.

“Each one helps create a larger picture of the important influences that the African American community has had on the Buffalo region.”

Perrelli says everything found during the dig belongs to the church, which is planning to build an annex with museum space.

“We’re working not only toward displays, but educational outreach that can introduce this material to school groups,” he says.

But finding an object in previously undisturbed soil is not necessarily history unearthed. Context is critical when trying to reasonably associate objects with people and their past. Understanding the people, when they lived, how they lived and where is part of the identification process, according to Perrelli.

“We may try to go so far to learn more detailed histories of people based on diaries and newspaper accounts, and map that information onto a specific object or item,” he says.

Perrelli mentions a chandelier fragment that was discovered on the Harris lot as an example.

“If we can find a historic photo of the house interior or some description of the parlor with the chandelier in it, we would have documentary evidence to reasonably associate an archaeological object with a particular person, a particular date and particular house,” he says.

Sometimes, a find opens new research questions, such as the 1825 Irish coin found on site.

“Now that was unexpected,” says Perrelli. “But as we talk to people, we’re learning that the Irish and Black communities of 19th century Buffalo were the same socioeconomic status. They interacted all the time.

“Finding a coin from Ireland on this location in Buffalo tells us there is another piece of history to explore.”

And UB students are part of that exploration.

“We have five undergraduates working on-site performing public archaeology on a real research dig,” says Perrelli. “It’s the most valuable experience they can get early in their career.”

His class even attracts students from other SUNY campuses, like Victoria Kohler, an anthropology and history dual-major senior at SUNY Buffalo State University.  Kohler says it’s an honor to be invited to participate in the project with her classmates.

“Buffalo has such a rich history, and when we scratch past the surface, amazing things can be found,” she says. “Working on such a significant site, especially as a student, sets the stage for my future and gives me a leg up as a newcomer to the archaeological field.

“It’s incredibly fulfilling.”

Perrelli seconds that.

“This is a dig that definitely ranks near the top of anything I’ve done in my career,” he says.