by Visit Nyack Nyack Library will host a book discussion this evening at 7pm on The Ex-Slaves' Fortune: The Story of Cynthia Hesdra, by Dr. Lori Martin. Cynthia D. Hesdra was born a slave in Tappan in 1808 to John and Jane Moore. She became an entrepreneur and abolitionist. During her lifetime, she operated a successful laundry business and owned a number of properties in New York and in New Jersey.