Weeksville Heritage Center
Nonprofit historic site in Central Brooklyn preserving Weeksville, one of the largest free Black communities in pre-Civil War America, through free tours of the Hunterfly Road Houses, exhibitions, education programs, and recurring community cultural events funded by grants, donations, and venue rentals.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1968
- HeadquartersBrooklyn, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Weeksville Heritage Center does
Weeksville Heritage Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit historic site and cultural center located at 158 Buffalo Avenue in Central Brooklyn, New York. Founded in 1968 through an archaeological survey ("Project Weeksville") that rediscovered the Historic Hunterfly Road Houses, the organization preserves and interprets the history of Weeksville, one of the largest free Black communities in pre-Civil War America. The site itself — Hunterfly Road Houses — is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and holds NYC Landmark status.
The organization's product portfolio centers on free public programming delivered on-site: guided tours of the Hunterfly Road Houses; rotating contemporary art exhibitions; a public programs calendar spanning film screenings, performances, readings, and workshops; Artist-in-Residence and Curator-in-Residence programs; K-12 and adult education initiatives; and the 5th of July Resource Center for Self-Determination & Freedom, which houses 120+ oral histories and archival collections. Recurring community events include the annual Juneteenth Food Festival (5th year in 2026, co-produced with Black-Owned Brooklyn), the Black Man's Health Festival (5th year in 2026), and the Weeksville Green Farmer's & Community Market. A venue rental service provides a direct commercial revenue stream.
The business model is a nonprofit operating revenue stack: government grants (notably $1 million in New York State funding announced February 2026 by Governor Hochul), foundation grants (including the $100,000 Brooklyn Community Foundation Spark Prize in 2022), individual donations and membership (including a sustaining donor program), and event rental income. All public programs, exhibitions, and tours are free to the community. The center operates with a small team (11-50 employees per firmographics), led by President & CEO Dr. Raymond Codrington, and reaches audiences through community-led marketing, social media, email newsletters, earned media, and an extensive partnership network rather than paid acquisition.
Weeksville Heritage Center firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Weeksville Heritage Center
- Legal name
- Weeksville Heritage Center
- Website
- https://weeksvillesociety.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1968
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Nonprofit historic site in Central Brooklyn preserving Weeksville, one of the largest free Black communities in pre-Civil War America, through free tours of the Hunterfly Road Houses, exhibitions, education programs, and recurring community cultural events funded by grants, donations, and venue rentals.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Weeksville Heritage Center industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cultural Heritage Center
- NAICS
- Historical Sites (712120), Historical Sites (71212), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums (71211)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation (BPAGAHAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Archaeological Sites & Heritage Interpretation Centers (THAJADAG), Cultural Centers & Community Cultural Organizations (BPAGAHAD), Community Center Education Programs (EDAAAFAB), Historic & Heritage Homes (THAMAAAJ)
Keywords
Where Weeksville Heritage Center is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Brooklyn
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Weeksville Heritage Center business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- State and Government Funding: Operational costs, educational programs, and infrastructure restoration supported by New York State funding ($1 million announced in February 2026) and various government grants
- Foundation Grants and Prizes: Spark Prize from Brooklyn Community Foundation ($100,000 in 2022) and support from private foundations for programming and operations
- Membership and Donations: Weeksville Heritage Center Membership program offering community membership and sustaining donor opportunities
- Event Hosting and Space Rental: Hosting private events at the venue including the option to rent space for community events
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Free public programming |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Weeksville Heritage Center product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Weeksville Heritage Center operates as a historic site and cultural center in Central Brooklyn that preserves, documents, and inspires engagement with the history of Weeksville, one of the largest free Black communities in pre-Civil War America. It delivers its mission through guided tours of the Historic Hunterfly Road Houses, rotating art exhibitions, education programs, public events, artist and curator residencies, archival research, and community festivals. All public programming is offered free of charge to community members, students, educators, and visitors.
Product overview
Weeksville Heritage Center is a historic site and cultural center that operates as a single unified offering centered on preserving and engaging the public with the history of Weeksville, one of the largest free Black communities in pre-Civil War America. The organization delivers its mission through interconnected programs: Historic Hunterfly Road Houses tours, rotating art exhibitions, public programs and events, Artist-in-Residence and Curator-in-Residence programs, education initiatives, the 5th of July Resource Center for Self-Determination & Freedom for archival research, and community events including the annual Juneteenth Food Festival, Black Man's Health Festival, and Weeksville Green Farmer's & Community Market. The portfolio also includes event rental services for hosting community events on the historic grounds.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Historic Hunterfly Road Houses Tours Guided tours through the Historic Hunterfly Road Houses, New York City landmarks listed in the National Register of Historic Places, offering visitors an immersive experience into one of the largest free Black communities in pre-Civil War America. Open free of charge to the general public.
- Art Exhibitions
Quantifiable outcome
- 120+ oral histories collected and archived
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Weeksville Heritage Center
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Weeksville Heritage Center technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Weeksville Heritage Center partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Heart, Body & Soul, Inc.corePresenting partner for the 5th Annual Black Man's Health Festival at Weeksville Heritage Center. The festival provides wellness programming, health screenings, and community resources dedicated to advancing Black men's physical and mental wellness.
- Office of Councilmember Chi OssécoreCouncilmember co-presents the Black Man's Health Festival at Weeksville Heritage Center, providing political support and community visibility for the event.
- Black-Owned BrooklyncoreLong-standing partnership for Juneteenth Food Festival and other Black cultural programming. Black-Owned Brooklyn curates and co-produces food festivals celebrating Black cuisine and culture.
- Creative Urban AlchemycorePartner in the Osisi Obodo Community Shade Tree project, building a modular shade structure at Weeksville to address climate risk and create gathering space in Northern Crown Heights.
- Beam CentercorePartner in the Osisi Obodo Community Shade Tree project, contributing carpentry mentorship and youth workforce development through building the shade structure.
- GroundswellcorePresents the Peace in Destruction exhibition featuring murals created at Rikers Island between 2008-2019, documenting carceral system experiences through art.
- Brooklyn Historical SocietyminorCollaboration on the In Pursuit of Freedom exhibition exploring the origins of one of the first free Black communities.
- Irondale TheaterminorCollaboration on the In Pursuit of Freedom multimedia exhibition.
- HBOcoreCo-presenting The Gilded Age screening with Weeksville Heritage Center, launching Weeksville Watch Nights film series. Executive Producer Dr. Erica Armstrong Dunbar participates in post-screening conversations.
- BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music)coreBAM's iconic DanceAfrica Festival returns to Weeksville for A Tribute to the Ancestors, featuring traditional tribute under artistic director Abdel R. Salaam.
- Wendy's SubwayminorCollaboration on Something Like Freedom Reading Group, a virtual reading group building understanding of abolition and liberation.
- Chase BankminorPartnership for Financial Literacy Workshop presented with Chase Bank's Community Manager for Crown Heights and Brownsville, focused on personal finance education.
- GrowNYCminorProvides fresh produce for Weeksville Green Farmer's & Community Market, offering affordable organic produce to community.
- TourmalineminorFilmmaker presenting Black & Free: Pleasure Histories event featuring her film Mary of Ill Fame about Black queer and trans histories.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Weeksville Heritage Center competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Lower East Side Tenement Museum: NYC historic house museum offering guided tours of preserved immigrant-era homes with a social-justice interpretive lens. Closely comparable operating model: small staff, preserved historic structures, tour-based revenue, education programs.
- Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture: NYPL research center in Harlem focused on Black history, culture, and the African diaspora. Highly comparable to Weeksville's archival mission, oral history collection, and education programming, though at significantly larger scale.
- Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site: Philadelphia-based historic site museum that interprets a former prison with a social-justice lens, including art installations and public programming. Comparable model of using a preserved historic structure for justice-centered exhibitions and events.
- African Burial Ground National Monument: National Park Service site in Lower Manhattan preserving and interpreting a pre-Civil War Black history site in New York. Direct analog as a federally/ municipally supported Black heritage interpretation site with research and education programming.
Broad incumbents
- The Studio Museum in Harlem: Major Black-focused contemporary art museum in Harlem with strong residency and community programming. Overlaps with Weeksville's exhibition and artist-in-residence model at a much larger institutional scale.
- Brooklyn Museum: Large encyclopedic museum in Brooklyn with significant African art holdings and African American programming. Adjacent in mission (Black cultural heritage) and geography, though far larger and broader in scope.
- National Museum of African American History and Culture: Smithsonian museum in Washington, DC focused on African American life, history, and culture. Mission-aligned on Black heritage interpretation and education but at national scale with vastly greater resources.
Regional players
- Wyckoff House Museum: Brooklyn-based historic house museum (1662 Pieter Claesen Wyckoff House) offering school programs, tours, and community events. Comparable in scale, Brooklyn geography, and historic-house-plus-education model.
- Dyckman Farmhouse Museum: Manhattan-based historic farmhouse museum offering school programs, public events, and community-focused programming. Comparable in scale, NYC location, and small-staff historic-house-museum operating model.
- Historic Richmond Town: Staten Island living-history village and museum site with preserved historic houses, school programs, and community events. Comparable in operating model (historic-house-based programs, school tours, event rentals) but on different subject matter and at larger scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Weeksville Heritage Center social profiles
Digital presenceWeeksville Heritage Center financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Weeksville Heritage Center leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Weeksville Heritage Center funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Weeksville Heritage Center M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Weeksville Heritage Center
What does Weeksville Heritage Center do?
Weeksville Heritage Center operates as a historic site and cultural center in Central Brooklyn that preserves, documents, and inspires engagement with the history of Weeksville, one of the largest free Black communities in pre-Civil War America. It delivers its mission through guided tours of the Historic Hunterfly Road Houses, rotating art exhibitions, education programs, public events, artist and curator residencies, archival research, and community festivals. All public programming is offered free of charge to community members, students, educators, and visitors.
Is Weeksville Heritage Center a public or private company?
Weeksville Heritage Center is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Weeksville Heritage Center founded?
Weeksville Heritage Center was founded in 1968. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Weeksville Heritage Center based?
Weeksville Heritage Center is headquartered in Brooklyn, United States, in the North America region.
How does Weeksville Heritage Center make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. State and Government Funding is the primary driver. The others are foundation Grants and Prizes, membership and Donations and event Hosting and Space Rental.
Who are Weeksville Heritage Center's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Lower East Side Tenement Museum, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site and African Burial Ground National Monument. Broad incumbents are The Studio Museum in Harlem, Brooklyn Museum and National Museum of African American History and Culture. Regional players are Wyckoff House Museum, Dyckman Farmhouse Museum and Historic Richmond Town.
Does Weeksville Heritage Center have an API?
No public API is recorded for Weeksville Heritage Center.
What industry is Weeksville Heritage Center in?
Weeksville Heritage Center's product category is Cultural Heritage Center. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAHAE, Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation, with a secondary code of THAJADAG, Archaeological Sites & Heritage Interpretation Centers. Its NAICS code is 712120 and its SIC code is 7900.