Thomas Downing, the son of free slaves, rose from collecting oysters to running New York City's most elegant oyster restaurant. He became New York City's early 19th-century Oyster King and a prominent reformer. Honesty, hard work, and generosity earned him respect across the color line. Downing's story is tied to the rise, fall, and revival of the oysters themselves. Exploitation was replaced by appreciation and the restoration of oyster reefs to revive the harbor. Both stories are inspiring.