Weeksville holds a very important place in the history of New York City and the history of African Americans in the United States. Started in the 1830s by James Weeks, a freedman who purchased the land from another freedman, Weeksville became known as a socially progressive community and one that was also noteworthy for the high percentage of land ownership among its residents. The three homes on Hunterfly Road (currently in the neighborhood known as Bedford Stuyvesant) were rediscovered in the 1960s and have become a museum. Channel 13 just posted a documentary on the subject that you can view above or on this link.
The City Concealed: Weeksville [Thirteen via Gothamist]