Stephen and Harriet Myers Residence
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North (front) elevation, 2015
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Location | Albany, NY |
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Coordinates | 42°39′39″N 73°45′15″W / 42.66083°N 73.75417°WCoordinates: 42°39′39″N 73°45′15″W / 42.66083°N 73.75417°W |
Area | less than one acre |
Built | 1847 |
Architectural style | Greek Revival |
NRHP Reference # | 04000999 |
Added to NRHP | November 30, 2004 |
The Stephen and Harriet Myers House is located on Livingston Avenue in Albany, New York, United States. It is a Greek Revival townhouse built in the mid-19th century. In 2004 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Stephen and Harriet Myers Residence. It is also listed on the New York State Underground Railroad Heritage Trail and is a site on the National Park Service's National Network to Freedom.
Stephen Myers, himself freed from slavery in his youth, served for a time as chairman of the Vigilance Committee of Albany, which met here in a house built and owned by an African American boat captain who was possibly his brother-in-law. He and his wife Harriet actively assisted others escaping from slavery for nearly 30 years; he also edited some abolitionist newspapers and spoke with Frederick Douglass at anti-slavery events. He was also active in efforts to improve the Albany African American community, helping to found one of the first schools specifically for it in the city.
The house was later saved from demolition during urban renewal in the 1970s. It has been neglected but is being restored by the Underground Railroad History Project of the Capital Region, a community-based historical society, with public and private funds.
The house is located on the south side of Livingston, midway between North Swan and Lark streets, in Albany's Arbor Hill neighborhood north of its downtown areas. It is one of the few brick buildings on that side of the street, in the middle of a group of older timber frame commercial and residential buildings. There are some vacant lots between the newer frame houses on either end of the block built during urban renewal. All are on narrow lots with tall shade trees in the rear. The terrain slopes eastward toward the Hudson River; to the west it levels out.