Woodland Cemetery (Richmond, Virginia)
| Woodland Cemetery | |
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| Details | |
| Coordinates | 37°33′2″N 77°24′45″W / 37.55056°N 77.41250°W |
| Type | Private |
| Owned by | Woodland Cemetery Restoration Foundation |
| No. of interments | over 6,000 |
| Website | woodlandrestorationfoundation |
| Find a Grave | Woodland Cemetery |
Woodland Cemetery is a historically African American cemetery in Northeast Richmond, Virginia located directly east of the Highland Park neighborhood. Opening in 1916, it was built as a resting place for the Black elite of Richmond. Woodland was laid out in the shape of an arrowhead pointing north to symbolize the way enslaved blacks once looked north to freedom.[1]
History
The second largest African American cemetery in the area, Woodland is surpassed only by
Until about 1970, private cemeteries like Woodland and
For many years, the cemetery saw serious neglect including overgrowth and dumping,[6] In 1993, the city of Richmond stepped in to assist with a clean-up in anticipation of media coverage anticipated for the interment of Arthur Ashe.[7]
In 2020, Woodland was purchased by local businessman Marvin Harris, founder of the Woodland Cemetery Restoration Foundation, which raised the funds to purchase the cemetery.[8] Mr. Harris is also involved with efforts to restore nearby Historic Evergreen Cemetery. As of 2022, the foundation is working to raise more funding to complete the restoration process.
List of notable interments
- Wimbledon singles title (1975), and the first African-American to captain the Davis Cupteam (1981).
- Leslie Garland Bolling (1898–1955), early 20th century African-American wood carver
- Grand Fountain of the United Order of True Reformers.[9]
- Zenobia Gilpin (c. 1898–1948), physician and clubwoman in Richmond
- John Jasper (1812–1901), founder and the first Reverend of the Sixth Mt. Zion Baptist Church. During the time before the Civil War, when slave marriages were not recognized as being legal, Mr. Jasper was authorized by the United States Freedman's Bureau to legalize slave marriages.
- Charles Thaddeus Russell (1875–1952), architect
See also
- Evergreen Cemetery – African American cemetery in Richmond
References
- ^ Here I Lay My Burdens Down, A History of the Black Cemeteries of Richmond. (2003) Dietz Press, Richmond, VA. p. 36. [ISBN missing]
- ^ Built by Blacks: African American architecture and neighborhoods in Richmond. Selden Richardson, Maurice Duke. Alliance to Conserve Old Richmond Neighborhoods, The History Press, 2007, p. 164 [ISBN missing]
- ^ Nonesuch Place: A History of the Richmond Landscape T. Tyler Potterfield, The History Press, 2009 p. 92 [ISBN missing]
- ^ The Washington Post, April 30, 1993
- ^ African American entrepreneurship in Richmond, 1890–1940: the story of R.C. Scott. Taylor & Francis, 1996 [ISBN missing]
- ^ The Washington Post, April 30, 1993
- ^ Here I Lay My Burdens Down, A History of the Black Cemeteries of Richmond.(2003) Dietz Press, Richmond, VA. p. 36. [ISBN missing]
- ^ "Home | Woodland Restoration Foundation". Woodland Restoration. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
- ^ Watkinson, James D. "William Washington Browne (1849–1897)". Encyclopedia Virginia.
External links
- Woodland Restoration Foundation
- Nonesuch Place: A History of the Richmond Landscape. T. Tyler Potterfield. The History Press, 2009
- Here I lay my burdens down: a history of the Black cemeteries of Richmond, Virginia. Veronica Alease Davis, Dietz Press, 2003
- Richmond Cemeteries, Exploring Richmond Virginia’s Historic Burial Grounds
- Death and Rebirth in a Southern City, Richmond's Historic Cemeteries, by Ryan K. Smith, 2020
- Coelho, Micaela, Richmond Magazine, "Restoring History, The Woodland Restoration Foundation works to ‘bring dignity back’ to a sacred site", January 30, 2022
- Richmond's African Burial Grounds and Historic African American Cemeteries