Weeksville Heritage Center will hold the last Weeksville Green Community Market of the 2026 season on Saturday, October 24, from noon to 5 p.m., on its grounds at 158 Buffalo Avenue (also signed as Joan Maynard Way) between Bergen Street and St. Marks Avenue in Crown Heights. Admission is free, and the afternoon pairs a produce-and-vendor market with a slate of free drop-in wellness, art and chess sessions on the lawn.

The market has run monthly through the warmer months this year, and Weeksville lists October 24 as its only remaining date. After this Saturday, the next chance to shop the grounds will come with the 2027 season.

What is for sale

Doors open at noon with the marketplace. Fresh produce will come from GrowNYC, the nonprofit that runs the city's Greenmarket network, and it will be sold alongside goods from local businesses and community vendors. Weeksville's event page names Essence Smoothies, 18 August Avenue, Botanical Moment, The Black Mermaid Society and Maya Lewis among the vendors taking part.

Weeksville says select vendors accept EBT and SNAP, and that some offer Health Bucks, which return $2 for every $2 spent on fruits and vegetables. For a household shopping with SNAP, that effectively doubles the produce budget at participating stands.

The market series is built around Black foodways, urban gardening and the food traditions of the African diaspora, from growing and ingredients through cooking and the family table. Weeksville frames it as a way to spend an afternoon on the historic grounds while meeting neighbors from around Crown Heights.

Free drop-in programs from 2 p.m.

Starting at 2 p.m., four free programs run on the grounds. None require advance sign-up, and Weeksville says all are open to every age and experience level.

  • Sanuces Tai Chi and Qi Gong. Grandmaster Lumumba Hernandez leads an introduction to Sanuces Tai Chi and Qi Gong, a practice that grows out of Sanuces-Ryu Jiu-Jitsu. The session uses slow movement, breathing and balance work.
  • Rest and Restore Yoga. Six Travis of Sensate Wellness teaches a gentle yoga class for all bodies and skill levels. Mats are handed out first come, first served, so bring one if you have it.
  • The Next Chapter: Stories We Carry. 18 August Ave hosts a family workshop on the stories, memories and traditions that books can open up. Kids and adults paint, share stories and make their own bookmarks.
  • Chess on the Lawn. National Chess Master James Black of KnightShiftChess will be on hand through the afternoon for casual games or a lesson in the basics.

About the site

Weeksville was an independent community of free Black New Yorkers, named for James Weeks, who bought land here in 1838 together with other African American investors to build a landowning village. Its story was rediscovered in 1968, when a grassroots preservation effort led by James Hurley, Dewey Harley, Dolores McCullough, Patricia Johnson and later the artist and activist Joan Maynard saved the remaining Hunterfly Road Houses. Those houses still stand along what was once an old Native American trail and later a colonial road, and Weeksville describes the area as part of present-day Crown Heights and Bedford-Stuyvesant.

Market visitors are welcome to walk the grounds and sit on the lawn. Going inside the historic houses requires a guided tour, which must be booked online at least 48 hours ahead. Public tours run about an hour and cost $10 for adults and $8 for children and seniors. Saturday tours are scheduled at noon and 2 p.m., with groups capped at 14 people, so anyone hoping to pair the market with a house tour should book early in the week.

Getting there

The A and C trains stop at Utica Avenue; walk four short blocks south on Utica to Bergen Street, turn left, and Weeksville is on Buffalo Avenue. From the 3 and 4 at Crown Heights-Utica Avenue, walk seven blocks north on Utica to Bergen Street and turn right. The C also stops at Ralph Avenue, a short walk via Bergen Street. By bus, the B15 and B65 stop at Bergen Street and Buffalo Avenue, and the B46 and B47 stop nearby at Bergen Street.

Street parking on Buffalo Avenue and the surrounding blocks is limited, and Weeksville has no public lot. Bike racks sit in front of the main building on Buffalo Avenue. Strollers are fine on the grounds. Weeksville does not allow dogs on site; service animals are welcome.

Plan your visit

The market runs Saturday, October 24, from noon to 5 p.m., with the free programs beginning at 2 p.m. Weeksville asks visitors to RSVP through the link on its Weeksville Green page, and anyone with accessibility questions can reach the programs team at programs@weeksvillesociety.org. On regular days, the center is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and admission to the grounds is free.

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