NCF studying artifacts from Angola settlers

From Fox 13 Tampa Bay, March 20, 2021

Inside the public archeology lab at New College of Florida, research into Angola continues to take place.

“We pulled out of the ground over 35,000 pieces of things,” said Sherry Svekis.

A coin dating back to 1808, pieces of pottery, and other belongings tell the story of the search for freedom by Angola’s settlers.

“These are simple things but they help us understand the ways of life for these people,” said Dr. Uzi Baram.

From the 1770s to 1821, the marooned community of former enslaved Africans formed Angola. It was a settlement of nearly 700 near Manatee Mineral Springs. The site now sits off Bradenton’s Riverwalk.

In the early 2000s, Vickie Oldham started looking into the history of the settlement after hearing stories passed down.

“The story is shaping up and is going to be bigger,” she said.

Read the entire article here.