SITE DIRECTORY
To learn more about any of the BCN sites listed below, click “Read more” to view individual site briefs. To search for a specific BCN site, use the search bar below:
Bull Run African American Cemetery
Bull Run African American Cemetery
FOUNDED: Late 1700s
ADDITIONAL NAMES: Harris Family Cemetery
AFFILIATION(S):
NOVA Parks
Fairfax County NAACP
Fairfax NAACP Religious Affairs Committee
HISTORY: The Bull Run African American Cemetery is located in Centreville, Virginia, within Fairfax County. Dating back to the 18th century, the cemetery lies inside Bull Run Regional Park. Ground-penetrating radar conducted by NOVA Parks has confirmed 101 unmarker burials of both enslaved and freed African Americans. The land on which the cemetery sits was once part of Leo Plantation, inherited by Robert Carter III, who went on to become one of the wealthiest men in Virginia at the time. Influenced by Baptist teachings and the beliefs of those he enslaved, Carter eventually turned away from the Anglican Church and its support of slavery. The Bull Run Baptist Meeting House was established by Carter III in 1775, which historical records indicate was located near the cemetery and open to enslaved and free worshippers. The congregation was likely majority Black. Carter's oldest son was buried within or near the cemetery after his death in 1779.
In 1791, Robert Carter III signed a Deed of Gift to begin the gradual manumission of those he enslaved. Eventually, more than 500 men, women, and children were freed, and Carter provided opportunities for them to acquire land, education, and resources to establish independent lives. Many formerly enslaved people and their descendants remained in the Bull Run area, forming a free Black community that included the Harris family, whose ancestors lived on the land and are buried at the cemetery. Over time, much of the history of the cemetery and the community connected to it was largely forgotten outside of the families who preserved and passed down their stories through generations. Since 2022, NOVA Parks and the Fairfax County NAACP have held an annual Juneteenth event to recognize this history and commemorate the largest individual emancipation of enslaved people prior to the Emancipation Proclamation. Today, ongoing research and preservation efforts are helping document the cemetery’s history, improve access to the site, and ensure that the stories of the people buried there and their descendants are preserved, remembered, and shared with future generations.
BCN Contact Information:
Megan Schuster (Park Manager for Bull Run Regional Park)
Johnson Cemetery
Johnson Cemetery
FOUNDED: 1878
ADDITIONAL NAMES: Turkey Foot Hollow, Shot Hollow
AFFILIATION(S):
Friends of Booker T. Washington State Park
Chattanooga-Hamilton County NAACP Branch
HISTORY: Russell and Terri Gilbert and their family have been advocates for preserving and researching Johnson Cemetery, also known as Turkey Foot Hollow or Shot Hollow. Oral histories, family records, historical accounts, and documented burials indicate that the site existed before the Civil War. Turkey Foot Hollow was a Black Indigenous unincorporated town, founded before Hamilton County, Chattanooga, or Tennessee. The families were displaced due to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) flooding the area, and construction of a TNT plant. The town was home to Indigenous Cherokee and Black families living along current-day Highway 58 in Chattanooga. The community developed schools, churches, businesses, and civic institutions that served generations of residents.
Most residents of Chattanooga and Hamilton County are unaware that a thriving Indigenous Black community existed there before the city's establishment. The only surviving physical landmark connecting families to that era is Turkey Foot Hollow, where World War I and World War II veterans, including women, were laid to rest. Civil War Veteran Gideon Owens was also interred at Johnson Cemetery. Turkey Foot Hollow is the lasting legacy of a historic town where Indigenous Cherokee, Black, and Brown people worshipped, lived, built institutions, and preserved their culture. The Gilberts' goal is not just preserving the cemetery, but also the history of Turkey Foot Hollow whilst honoring the memory of those who built it. Descendant families were unaware of the transfer of the cemetery to the state, and issues surrounding long-term stewardship of the cemetery are currently being negotiated. Families with ancestors buried in Johnson Cemetery are communicating with the state concerning preservation and upkeep of the gravesite and its history.
BCN Contact Information:
Russell Gilbert Sr.
O’Neal AME Church Cemetery
O’Neal AME Church Cemetery
FOUNDED: 1810-1820
ADDITIONAL NAMES: Old Neal Cemetery
AFFILIATION(S):
Ruben Gay Place
HISTORY: The O’Neal A.M.E. Church Cemetery in Hampton, Georgia, is a historically significant burial ground representing generations of Black American, Native American, and mixed-ancestry families whose histories span multiple eras, from pre-European colonization through slavery, the Civil War, Emancipation, Reconstruction, segregation, and the modern era. Historical and genealogical records identify members of these families as “Black”, “Negro”, “Colored”, and “Mulatto”, reflecting terminology used during different historical periods. The cemetery represents individuals and families who experienced enslavement before Emancipation, as well as Freedmen and Freedwomen who established families, churches, educational institutions, and communities after slavery. Research has identified educators and professors, Freemasons, veterans, church leaders, community leaders, and working families among those buried or historically connected to O’Neal. Their stories represent generations of survival, education, military service, faith, leadership, and achievement before and after the Civil War. The cemetery’s association with the historic O’Neal A.M.E. Church reflects the important role of the Black church in worship, education, mutual aid, family life, and community development following Emancipation. Descendants remain connected to individuals buried here, with family relationships extending into historic cemeteries and communities throughout the region. Today, Honor Thy Roots Cemetery Preservation Inc. is researching, documenting, and advocating for the protection of O’Neal as development occurs around the burial ground. Preserving O’Neal means protecting the graves, identities, and stories of enslaved ancestors, Freedmen and Freedwomen, Black American and Native American families, people historically classified as Mulatto, educators, Freemasons, veterans, and community leaders and ensuring that this history of ancestry, survival, freedom, faith, service, and achievement is preserved for future generations.
BCN Contact Information:
Honor Thy Roots Cemetery Preservation, Inc.
Munree Cemetery
Munree Cemetery
FOUNDED: early 1900s
ADDITIONAL NAMES: Munree (Fleischmann) Cemetery of Welaunee Plantation
AFFILIATION(S):
Munree Cemetery Foundation
John Gilmore Riley Museum
20th of MAY Group
HISTORY: Munree Cemetery is a historical cemetery of 5 acres located on Edenfield Road miles north of U.S. 90 in Leon County, Tallahassee, Florida. It contains over 250 rediscovered burials of African Americans and calls attention to the import of focusing on lost and erased Black cemeteries and the histories they contain. The cemetery was created during the early 1900s for African Americans who lived and worked as sharecroppers and tenant farmers on the land and plantations named Welaunee. In 1912, a New York businessman, Udo Fleischmann, acquired the Welaunee Plantation property and converted it into a bird-hunting preserve. As part of the purchase, Fleischmann also acquired the land used for Munree cemetery. The last recorded burial is dated 1946, and in 1948, Fleischmann no longer allowed the land to be used as a cemetery. Over the years following the closure of Munree cemetery it became overgrown and eventually lost through the years of neglect and unclear boundaries marking its location on the landscape.
Munree cemetery was a lost and found cemetery, rediscovered during road construction in 2009. In 2009, concerned members of the local African American community formed the Munree Cemetery Foundation to purchase the property. They partnered with Leon County officials to survey and restore the cemetery. In 2012, community volunteers worked to help clear the land of overgrown bush to allow archaeological investigations to be conducted, revealing at least 250 burials. Less than 50 burials still have visible headstones. The Munree Cemetery Foundation works year-round to maintain the cemetery grounds. One goal is to open the Welaunee Memorial Museum. The museum will showcase community involvement and display research findings and the history and happening at Munree cemetery. The overall goal of the Munree Cemetery Foundation is to welcome and embrace volunteers interested to be a part of the ongoing mission of maintaining and caring for the cemetery grounds and helping to keep the history of the those buried there alive for future generations.
BCN Contact Information:
Kabuya Pamela Bowens Saffo (KPBSaffo)
Palmetto Cemetery
Palmetto Cemetery
FOUNDED: 1920
ADDITIONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S):
Palmetto Cemetery Association
HISTORY: Palmetto Cemetery is a historically African American vernacular cemetery located along Fairfield Road in Columbia, SC. Although its earliest known burial dates to 1893, the cemetery developed into an important Black burial ground during the early twentieth century (1920), when burial lots were being sold under the direction of African American mortician Willis Craig Johnson. By the Jim Crow era, Palmetto had become a significant burial place for Columbia’s Black community, serving generations of families during a period when racial segregation shaped access to cemeteries and other public and private institutions. The cemetery contains thousands of marked and unmarked graves and reflects distinctive African American funerary traditions and burial practices, family networks, and community stewardship. Palmetto Cemetery is significant to local and Black history because its burial landscape preserves an unusually concentrated record of Columbia’s African American community across more than a century. Those interred include educators, physicians, businesspeople, veterans, religious leaders, civil rights activists, and generations of residents whose lives collectively shaped Black Columbia, including prominent figures such as Dr. Matilda A. Evans, Modjeska Monteith Simkins, James M. Hinton, Celia Dial Saxon, and Nathaniel J. Frederick. Beyond these notable individuals, Palmetto’s greatest significance lies in the broader community represented and the continuing efforts of descendants and community members to maintain, reclaim, document, and protect the cemetery. As such, Palmetto is both a burial ground and an enduring cultural landscape through which the history, social networks, traditions, and community life of Black Columbia can be understood.
BCN Contact Information:
Cory J. France
North Burial Ground
North Burial Ground
FOUNDED: 1700
ADDITIONAL NAMES: The City of Providence North Burial Ground
AFFILIATION(S):
Rhode Island Black Heritage Society
New England Cemetery Association
Rhode Island Cemetery Association
International Cemetery, Cremation, and Funeral Association
HISTORY: North Burial Ground (NBG) is an active historic cemetery located in Providence, Rhode Island, spanning 114 acres and more than 100,000 graves. In June 1700, the city of Providence set aside 45 acres to be used as a public cemetery. Though NBG is not explicitly a historic Black or African American cemetery, it is the final resting place to a significant portion of the Black Providence community. The earliest iterations of the Free Grounds were segregated into “White” and “Colored” Free Grounds through the 1920s. While the Colored Free Grounds were the resting place of individuals from various racial backgrounds, many were African American. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Rhode Island was engaged heavily in the economy built around slavery. After Emancipation, the neighborhood was home to several African American churches, schoolhouses, and community centers, properties and businesses. Today, there are increasing efforts to connect with descendant communities of those buried in the Free Grounds.
NBG is the resting place for people connected to various parts of American history. Within the historic sections are many graves of people of African descent, including Charles Haskell, a Black Revolutionary War soldier. Cape Verde communities began immigrating to Providence in the 1860s and represent a portion of burials. Other notable interments include Patience Borden, “a free woman of color,” who donated $230 to the First Baptist Church “as a fund for relief of the poor of color,” Eve Cushing, a “native of Africa” who purchased her freedom and was “an example of industry and economy worthy to be imitated,” and Union veterans from the 11th US Colored Heavy Artillery and the 14th RI Colored Heavy Artillery.
BCN Contact Information:
Annalisa Heppner
Weems Slave Cemetery
Weems Slave Cemetery
FOUNDED: 1820-1830
ADDITIONAL NAMES: Weems Slave Plantation
AFFILIATION(S): N/A
HISTORY: The Weems Slave Cemetery is a historic burial ground associated with the former Weems Plantation in Henry County, Georgia, dating to the early 1800s. The cemetery is believed to contain between 500 and 1,000 graves, including those of enslaved African Americans and Native Americans who lived and labored on the plantation. Many of the graves remain unmarked, making the site one of the largest known historic burial grounds of its kind in the area. The cemetery stands as a powerful reminder of the generations of men, women, and children whose lives helped shape Henry County’s history. The site’s significance to the local community and Black history is profound. It serves as a sacred resting place for hundreds of ancestors whose stories were largely omitted from historical records. Today, descendants, historians, archaeologists, and community members are working to preserve and protect the cemetery, ensuring that the lives, contributions, and legacies of an estimated 500 to 1,000 African American and Native American ancestors are recognized, honored, and remembered for future generations. The cemetery represents an irreplaceable link to the history of slavery, survival, family, and community in Henry County and the State of Georgia.
BCN Contact Information:
Honor Thy Roots Cemetery Preservation, Inc.
Owensville Cemetery West
Owensville Cemetery West
FOUNDED: Mid-1800s
ADDITIONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S): Owensville Cemetery West Association
HISTORY: West Owensville Cemetery, in Robertson County, TX, is a historic African American burial ground dating back to the mid-1800s. The west section developed as the designated resting place for Black community members during a period of segregation, reflecting the social conditions of the time. In 1952, the Owensville Cemetery West Association was established by S.T. Brown, Dan Richards, and Mack Hodge to preserve and maintain this section, ensuring that the graves and stories of African American residents would not be forgotten. The cemetery continues to be cared for through ongoing community efforts that honor its importance. This section of the cemetery is the final resting place of many individuals who contributed significantly to local and national history. Notable burials include Theodore “TD” Davis, a WWII veteran and pioneering African American employee of Western Union; Reverend Robert Neal and Viola Neal, educators and civil rights advocates; and Willie B. Johnson, a veteran, principal, and longtime cemetery preservation leader. They represent generations of resilience, service, and leadership within the African American community of Robertson County. Today, West Owensville Cemetery stands as a powerful symbol of heritage, perseverance, and remembrance.
BCN Contact Information:
Mary Stevens
Terryville Community Cemetery
Terryville Community Cemetery
FOUNDED: 1845
ADDITIONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S): N/A
HISTORY: At the end of the Civil War, the plantation owners in Gonzales County wanted their former slaves to vacate the plantation lands. The ex-slaves didn’t want to leave because they had nowhere to go, so, the plantation owners got together and gave the now freed slaves a five acre long stretch of land and evicted them from the plantations to this five acre stretch which included the ‘burying ground’, now the Terryville Community Cemetery, for slaves dying on the plantations over the years. Those five acres became the center of what was known as the "Terryville Community". The Terryville Community was a thriving self-contained Black community. The surrounding Black owned farms used the central hub of the community to socialize, express their religious freedom and trade communities among themselves.
BCN Contact Information:
James Kirkwood
Coming Street Cemetery
Coming Street Cemetery
FOUNDED: 1794
ADDITIONAL NAMES: Strangers & Negroes Public Burying Ground, 106 Coming Street Cemetery
AFFILIATION(S): Preservation Society of Charleston, Protect and Respect the Bodies Coalition
HISTORY: Between 1794 and 1807, the City of Charleston operated a public burial ground on Calhoun Street between Coming and St. Philip Streets, where many of the city’s most vulnerable residents were laid to rest. Those interred included poor adults, children, and enslaved individuals who could not afford or access other cemeteries, including captured Africans who did not survive the Transatlantic Slave Trade. The burial ground was in use for just thirteen years before reaching capacity, a reflection of the immense mortality associated with the final decades of the transatlantic trade into Charleston. It represents the lives—and deaths—of individuals who were systematically excluded from traditional memorialization and whose stories have often gone unrecorded. For descendants and the broader community, the site serves as a powerful physical link to ancestry and resilience, underscoring ongoing efforts to acknowledge burial grounds–especially Black burial grounds as essential components of the historic landscape.
BCN Contact Information:
Madison Lee
Hurricane of 1928 African American Mass Burial Site (Pauper's Cemetery)
Hurricane of 1928 African American Mass Burial Site (Pauper's Cemetery)
FOUNDED: 1913
ADDITIONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S): Storm of ’28 Memorial Park Coalition Inc.
HISTORY: Located in the northeast corner of Pauper’s Cemetery, the 1928 Hurricane African American Mass Burial Site is the final resting place for about 674 Black victims of the 1928 hurricane. Although unofficial burials began at Pauper’s Cemetery around 1913, this mass grave honors the migrant workers who lost their lives in one of America’s worst natural disasters. Documented in Zora Neale Hurston’s, Their Eyes Were Watching God, these victims were denied proper burials and dumped in an unmarked trench, while 60 white victims of the same storm were buried in coffins at Woodlawn Cemetery. The site was later neglected for decades as a garbage dump and industrial area. It is now a place of memory, healing, and honoring Black migrant workers, with efforts by organizations like the Storm of '28 Memorial Park Coalition. They work to preserve the burial site, promote healing, and educate the public on the victims' contributions. After lobbying the city to purchase the mass grave site, the site was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2002 and received a state historical marker in 2003.
BCN Contact Information:
Dorothy and Robert Hazard
Milwaukee County Grounds Cemetery 2
Milwaukee County Grounds Cemetery 2
FOUNDED: 1882
ADDITIONAL NAMES: County Farm Cemetery
AFFILIATION(S): N/A
HISTORY: Milwaukee County Grounds Cemetery 2, historically referred to as the County Farm Cemetery, served as a public burial ground from 1882 to 1925 for individuals who died in Milwaukee County and had no means for private burial. More than 7,200 men, women, and children were interred, including approximately 150 African Americans—many among Milwaukee’s earliest Black families. Although African Americans comprised less than one-half of one percent of Milwaukee’s population, they accounted for more than 2.5 percent of burials at this site, with approximately one in six Black residents buried here compared to one in forty European Americans. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, burial markers were removed as the County redeveloped the land. In 1932, construction took place directly over the cemetery, destroying more than half of the graves and redistributing human remains across the landscape. Human remains continue to be uncovered.
To date, the Descendant Community of Milwaukee County Grounds Cemeteries, Inc. has identified approximately 60 death certificates for the estimated 150 African Americans buried at Cemetery 2, and continues to discover more. This work supports ongoing efforts to reconnect living descendants and include them in decisions regarding their ancestors.
BCN Contact Information:
Judy Houston - Descendant Community of Milwaukee County Grounds Cemeteries, Inc
Evergreen Cemetery
Evergreen Cemetery
FOUNDED: 1913
ADDITIONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S): Evergreen Community Committee, Community Planning Collaborative
HISTORY: On October 23, 1913, a group of African Americans bought nine acres of land to create a cemetery—the first Black-owned cemetery in Florida. The cemetery received its non-profit charter in 1916 and is the final resting place for many local leaders, including the city’s first Black doctor and early teachers. Evergreen Cemetery served the Black community during segregation, offering a place of dignity and respect. In 1981, the city recognized its historical importance, and in 1987, West Palm Beach made it a historic site and took over its care. Today, Evergreen Cemetery stands as a reminder of the community’s history and strength.
BCN Contact Information:
Consider the Culture - Alisha R. Winn
Anson Street African Burial Ground
Anson Street African Burial Ground
FOUNDED: 1849
ADDITIONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S): Anson Street African Burial Ground project
HISTORY: The African Burial Ground on Anson Street in Charleston, SC, was rediscovered in 2013 during construction activities. Archaeological investigation revealed the graves of thirty-six children, women, and men of African descent who were buried there between the 1760s and 1790s; the ancestors were laid to rest with care by their loved ones, some dressed in clothing, some wrapped in shrouds, and some interred with personal belongings. Isotopic analysis indicates that at least six individuals were born in West and West Central Africa, survived the Middle Passage, and spent their final years in Charleston. The site is significant to both the local community and Black history as a rare and sacred testament to African presence, resilience, and cultural continuity in one of the principal ports of the transatlantic slave trade. In 2017, Charleston Mayor invited the grassroots Gullah Society, led by Dr. Ade Ofunniyin, to guide the memorialization and reburial process. During a Yoruba Naming Ceremony on April 27, 2019, the ancestors were given honorary African and Gullah Geechee names, restoring identity and dignity. They were reinterred in 2019, in the sacred ground where they were originally laid to rest. In 2025, a permanent memorial was dedicated to honor their lives and the countless African ancestors buried in Charleston’s soil.
BCN Contact Information:
Joanna Gilmore
St. Peter’s Cemetery
ST. PETER’S CEMETERY
FOUNDED: 1851
ADDITONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S):
Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition
HISTORY:
The two main demographic groups buried at the cemetery are African Americans and Irish, with numerous other immigrant groups, which makes it unique. The two main churches that are buried at the cemetery are designated as a Historic Landmark. St. Peter Claver Catholic Church, located in Baltimore's Sandtown community, is a historic landmark that was founded in 1888 by the Josephite Fathers to serve Black Catholics and is the first parish in the world dedicated to St. Peter Claver, the "Apostle of the Slaves". The other main church that is buried at the cemetery and is also a Historic Landmark Designation is St. Peter the Apostle Church. St Peter the Apostle was a Roman Catholic church located within the Archdiocese of Baltimore, Maryland. Constructed at the northwest corner of Hollins and South Poppleton Streets (848 Hollins) and (11-13 South Poppleton), it was often referred to as "The Mother Church of West Baltimore" and served as a pillar of the Irish Community. The church is no longer catholic owned and is now an African American congregation: Carter Memorial Church of God in Christ.
BCN Contact Information:
Jennifer Johnson
Speedwell Cemetery
SPEEDWELL CEMETERY
FOUNDED: Unknown; 1942 Reinternment
ADDITONAL NAMES: Park Cemetery/Cemetery B
AFFILIATION(S):
Friends of the Bluegrass Memorial Cemeteries
HISTORY:
Speedwell Cemetery, located on Speedwell Road, is an approximately 7.5-acre site explicitly designated as the segregated final resting place for the African American community whose homes and ancestral burial grounds were seized by the Army in order to make the Blue Grass Army Depot in 1942. This site powerfully embodies the deep-seated racial hierarchies of the era, extending even to the treatment of the deceased, as they were segregated with white individuals buried in the Bluegrass Memorial Cemetery. Speedwell Cemetery received a substantial number of relocated remains, approximately 900. Though the identities of many are tragically lost—a direct consequence compounded by decades of neglect that disproportionately affected this site. At its entrance, a chain-link fence with a gate provides access. Beyond the grave markers themselves, no other structures are present within the cemetery. Among those identified is Private Edward Francis (1830-1897), a U.S. Colored Troops (USCT) veteran of the 114th USCI, born into slavery, who gained freedom through his courageous service in the Civil War. His personal letters home vividly reveal his deep longing for his enslaved wife and three children, his gratitude for health and strength during his service, and his determination to learn to read and write. Francis's story, alongside those of other USCT veterans interred here, such as Edmond D. Collins (1845-1903), Lewis Gilbert (1839-1909), Charles H. Todd (1836-1902), and Smith Todd (1838-1891), powerfully underscores their fight not only for freedom but also for civil rights and a place of equality for their families post-emancipation. The vast majority of Speedwell Cemetery is characterized by severe overgrowth, which has obscured countless graves, further exacerbating the historical erasure of marginalized communities. This overgrowth has also threatened and damaged any remaining grave markers. Many graves are humbly marked with only a fieldstone. While a small percentage of graves are still visible in an open grassy area, many more remain completely hidden beneath dense overgrowth and underbrush, rendering them inaccessible and tragically lost to memory.
BCN Contact Information:
Brenda Burton
breburton@gmail.com
Enon Ridge Odd-Fellows Pioneer Cemetery
ENON RIDGE ODD-FELLOWS PIONEER CEMETERY
FOUNDED: 1891
ADDITONAL NAMES: Enon Ridge Cemetery
AFFILIATION(S):
Freshwater Land Trust
HISTORY:
Enon Ridge Pioneer Odd-Fellow Cemetery holds significant historical value in telling the story of Birmingham, Alabama's Black history. Established as early as 1891, it served as a final resting place for African Americans during segregation and limited burial options. Notable interments, such as John Tuggle, husband of the prominent educator Carrie A. Tuggle, and Civil War veteran CPL Anthony Robertson, underscore its importance in the community's collective memory. Despite a 1901 resolution to close the "black cemetery" and subsequent court upholding, burials continued until the late 1950s, suggesting the community's continued need for and connection to this space. The cemetery's history reflects the challenges faced by African Americans in securing and maintaining burial grounds during the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Birmingham. The eventual decline of its upkeep, linked to urban development, highlights the vulnerability of such sites. Efforts to document the burials, advocate for its preservation through historical registries, and potential inclusion in the Birmingham Public Library's archives are crucial to recognizing and safeguarding this important piece of local and Black history. The addition of the cemetery to the Alabama Historic Cemetery Register in 2023 and the Alabama Cemetery Preservation Alliance in 2024 further acknowledges its historical significance.
BCN Contact Information:
The Masonton
wilhelminathomas@hotmail.com
https://freshwaterlandtrust.org/
Woodlawn Cemetery
WOODLAWN CEMETERY
FOUNDED: Woodlawn Cemetery
ADDITONAL NAMES: Woodlawn Burial Park, Green Mount Cemetery
AFFILIATION(S):
Friends of Woodlawn (community group)
HISTORY:
Woodlawn Cemetery, originally established in the late 19th century as Greenmount Cemetery and later renamed, is a historically significant African American burial ground in Cumberland, Maryland. Founded during the era of racial segregation, it served as the primary resting place for Black residents who were denied burial in white cemeteries. The site contains the graves of prominent African American community leaders, veterans, and families who contributed to the region’s cultural and social development. Its existence reflects the resilience of Cumberland’s Black community in the face of systemic discrimination, making it a vital landmark for understanding local African American heritage.
Today, Woodlawn Cemetery stands as an important historical and cultural resource, offering insight into the lives of Black Marylanders during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Preservation efforts highlight its role in commemorating overlooked narratives of struggle, perseverance, and community strength. Recognizing and protecting this sacred space ensures that future generations can honor the legacy of those who shaped Cumberland’s Black history despite the challenges of segregation.
BCN Contact Information:
Tiffany Frazier
trfrazier1974@yahoo.com
https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1d6gRTYPiS/?mibextid=wwXIfr
Winterpock African American Cemetery
WINTERPOCK AFRICAN AMERICAN CEMETERY
FOUNDED: 1853
ADDITONAL NAMES: Patterson-Haskins Cemetery
AFFILIATION(S):
Chesterfield Historical Society
HISTORY:
In a thickly-wooded area in Winterpock (Chesterfield County), Virginia lies a burial ground where enslaved and formerly enslaved African Americans were interred from at least as early as 1853 to as late as the 1930s. The land, purchased in 1853 by James Henry Cox (1810-1877), owner of Clover Hill Coal Mines (which relied on enslaved labor), was used as a burying place initially for African Americans enslaved as domestic workers in the Cox household. Documents in the Cox family (dating to the 1850s) make mention of this burial ground. While none of the graves is marked, existing natural stones suggest that stones were once placed at the heads and feet of the graves. Two people have been identified with a high degree of certain as having been buried here in the 1930s, both formerly enslaved in the area: Edward “Ned” Patterson (c. 1835-1937) and his wife of seventy-five years Martha Jane “Jennie” Haskins Patterson (c.1842-1938). Jennie Patterson’s 1937 narrative was collected by the WPA/ Library of Congress Collection. Records suggest that other Patterson family members are buried here, one or more of their sixteen children (seven of whom lived to adulthood) and/or grandchildren. During a 2023 site visit, archaeologist Joanna Green of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) authenticated the burial ground and estimated that it may contain as many as 30 graves. Green listed the cemetery in the VA State database of cemeteries. The land where the cemetery is located presently belongs to Vulcan Materials Corps, based in Birmingham, AL.
BCN Contact Information:
Elizabeth Logan Harris
eloganharris@gmail.com
Island Pond Two
ISLAND POND TWO CEMETERY
FOUNDED: UNKNOWN
ADDITONAL NAMES: N/A
AFFILIATION(S):
Island Pond Cemetery Project
HISTORY:
Property Alt Key: 2582529. The land where this cemetery is located was part of an original land grant from 1884 belonging to Burrell Reese. Burrell and his family were enslaved in the Apopka area before the Civil War. Burrell's land was adjacent to his son-in-law, Jackson Knight's land. Both Burrell and Jackson have cemeteries located in the southwest corners of their original land grants. According to some death certificates, the cemetery on Jackson's land was named Island Pond Cemetery. In 2009 when Margaret Reese-Williams began searching for her family history and located both cemeteries, she registered them on the Florida Master Site File. She heard that Island Pond One was no longer used when it became full. That is when more burials occurred at the other site. Margaret gave the official name of Island Pond 2 to the cemetery on Burrell Reese's land. Property records show that the Island Pond 2 site, which is 5 acres, was owned in the 1940s by the Sorrento Burial Society. Today it is held by a private landowner who has applied for a family lot split so that homes may be built on the two plots. This site has had grave markers removed over the years and heavy equipment was brought on to do clearing as recently as 2023. The current property owner is not cooperating with efforts to preserve and protect the cemetery.
BCN Contact Information:
Katherine de Jongh & Margaret Reese-Williams
ELMWMP@COMCAST.NET