In Unfriendly to Liberty: Loyalists Networks and the Coming of the American Revolution in New York City, Christopher Minty argues that commerce was at the center of the political divide in pre-Revolutionary New York City. The city, he suggests, was both the center of commerce for the American colonies and highly dependent on supplying British military forces. Those who needed those contracts tended to become Loyalists; those who saw a moral imperative to live without them, Patriots.
The City – occupied by the British from 1776 to 1783 – became a safe haven for Loyalists during those years. Yet, their property was at risk of confiscation under laws passed by the state first in 1777, 1779, and 1802. A New York Public Library finding aid can help in locating sales of that confiscated property.
At the end of the War, the British evacuated the city: the last day of their removal has historically been celebrated as “Evacuation Day“. Those leaving included a number of people of color, of whom British leaders felt they had to keep record, as many were former slaves. Details of that process and the resulting list can be found here.
Some families fled to and remained in Canada, whereas others settled in England. The United Empire Loyalists Association of Canada provides resources for tracing the former. Those who settled in England may have attempted to file for damages as part of the American Loyalist Claims Commission. (Records of this commission are also available on Ancestry.)