AG James Wants To Protect Historic Queens Burial Ground: What To Know

QUEENS, NY — New York Attorney General Letitia James has moved to protect a historic burial ground for formerly enslaved New Yorkers in Elmhurst as the property heads toward a court-ordered foreclosure sale.

The Office of the Attorney General filed a motion to intervene in the foreclosure case involving 47-11 90th St., seeking an order requiring prospective buyers to be notified about human remains at the site and their legal obligations to protect them.

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"Every New Yorker deserves to rest in peace, and that includes the people buried on this land generations ago," James said.

"My office will not allow a foreclosure sale to become yet another disrespectful event in this burial ground's unjustly troubled history. We are going to court to make sure whoever buys this property knows exactly who is buried there and is aware of their legal obligation to protect them."

The burial ground dates to 1818 and was formally established in 1828 by the United African Society of Newtown, a group of freed slaves.

The site later became associated with St. Mark African Methodist Episcopal Church. More than 300 New Yorkers are believed to have been buried there, many of them formerly enslaved.

The property has previously been disturbed by development. Human remains, including an iron casket dating to the 1800s, were discovered during construction in 2011.

In 2025, the property was paved and used to store vehicles and debris, an activity the city's Department of Buildings deemed illegal.

The property is now subject to a foreclosure action brought by 90 Street Realty, LLC after the owner, 90 Queens, Inc., defaulted on its mortgage.

James is asking the court to require that the referee overseeing any auction provide prospective buyers with a copy of the Attorney General's motion and the state's Unmarked Burial Site Protection Act, which was enacted in 2023.