Old City Cemetery, Lynchburg, VA - Signs of History on Waymarking.com

"This old burying ground, established in 1806, is where most of Lynchburg’s African-Americans were laid to rest in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. As many as 75% of the estimated 20,000 people buried here are African-American,
This has always been a public cemetery, open to all citizens and “strangers,” regardless of race or class. In fact, until White Rock Cemetery opened in the later 1880s, this was the only burial ground in the City open to black residents. Even as late as 1925, nine out of ten African Americans who died in Lynchburg were interred in the City Cemetery.
Before the end of the Civil War and Emancipation, virtually all of Lynchburg’s enslaved and free blacks were buried here, in sections designated specifically for “colored” persons. Although slaveowners usually arranged and paid for their slaves’ burials, they allowed slaves special freedoms to attend funerals, conduct their own funeral Ceremonies, and mark their own gravesites. The slave funerals held here were reported to be some of the largest gatherings of people of color in antebellum Lynchburg.
After 1865 the Cemetery’s burials and grave markers reflected the increase diversity of Lynchburg’s African-American community. Tobacco factory laborers, porters, midwives, and laundresses were buried alongside college professors, politicians, ministers, and many other black institution builders in the era of “separate but equal.”
Because of poor municipal management and record keeping, and the resulting practice of overburying, Lynchburg City Council closed most of the Cemetery in 1925 and again in 1965, both times amid much controversy." Text taken from sign.

Group that erected the marker: African-American Heritage Trail of Central Virginia Address of where the marker is located. Approximate if necessary: 401 Taylor Street Lynchburg, VA USA 24501-1245 URL of a web site with more information about the history mentioned on the sign: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Take a picture of the marker, preferably including yourself or your GPSr in the photo. A very detailed description of your visit may be substituted for a photo. In any case please provide a description of your visit. A description of only "Visited" or "Saw it while on vacation" by anyone other than the person creating the waymark may be deleted by the waymark owner or the category officers.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.