( CNN ) -- As the boat slowly approaches the quiet shores of Bunce Island , it 's hard to shake off the eerie feeling of being transported back into one of history 's darkest chapters . Located some 30 kilometers from Freetown , this tiny strip of land in the Sierra Leone river served as a major post for the transatlantic slave trade in the 18th century . For tens of thousands of Africans , this was the place where their life in the continent ended -- men , women and children were kidnapped and brought to the island 's fort to be traded and eventually put on slave ships bound for the Americas . `` The African-American story is very much here , '' says Joseph Opala , director of the Bunce Island Coalition , a group of historians and archaeologists working together to turn the island into a national landmark that can be appreciated for its historical value . Upon arriving in the American colonies , West African slaves were forced to work in rice paddies , cotton fields and indigo plantations along the South Carolina-Georgia seaboard where the moist climate and fertile land were very similar to their African homelands . Read this : African slave traditions live on in U.S. `` There are 40 big castles like this along the West African coast , but this is the only one that sent appreciable numbers of captives to what is now the U.S. , '' says Opala . 'The place where history sleeps ' Stepping onto the uninhabited island , you quickly realize that this is a place forgotten by time , its ancient structures gradually decayed by the two centuries of tropical rain seeping down . Unlike other slaving trading posts , nothing was ever built on the island after its abandonment in the mid-1800s . Its crumbling ruins , blanketed by overgrown weeds and ivy roots , remain relatively untouched to this day , serving as a reminder of the island 's dark past . `` One Sierra Leonean years ago used to refer to Bunce Island as the place where history sleeps , '' says Opala . `` And there 's no better description of it -- it 's a kind of slave trade ghost town . '' Read this : Tracing the slaves who shaped America . Opala says that to this day , many people in Sierra Leone are not aware of Bunce Island 's grim place in history . He says that the island receives just a small number of people each year , mainly foreign visitors or expatriates . `` For tourists , it means renting a boat for 500 , 600 , $ 700 , or there are tourist services oriented toward tourists that will take you for $ 60-70 , '' says Opala . `` But for local people , it 's absolutely not affordable . But at the same time , there 's not a lot of local interest yet in going there because people still do n't know much about it . '' To change that , and remind both tourists and locals about its importance , the Bunce Island Coalition has launched a $ 5 million project to conserve what 's left of the island . The group also wants to build a museum in Freetown as part of efforts to shed light on the island 's dark past . `` There 's an awakening now out here by the political elite and many ordinary citizens that this place is not just important for history , '' says Opala . `` But it also can serve as a source of revenue for the country , and can strengthen the links between African-Americans and Sierra Leoneans which may in the end be the most important outcome of this , because that can last forever . '' Check out the Bunce Island gallery above . Images by Matthew Oldfield -- Matthew Oldfield Photography .
Bunce Island was a British slave trading post in the 18th century . From its shores , tens of thousands of Africans were put on slave ships to Americas . Abandoned in the 19th century , it 's one of the most authentic slave trading facilities still in existence . Score: 7