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Group Saving Hidden History |
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Montgomery Advertiser |
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Date: 11/5/2004 |
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By Sebastian Kitchen |
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Frank Brown of the Alabama Cemetery Preservation Alliance looks over graves Wednesday at Harper's Cemetery, located between homes in the Mountainview neighborhood of Montgomery. |
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Historic cemeteries are hidden throughout Montgomery County, in back yards and in neighborhoods -- many people do not know they even exist. Montgomery and other counties throughout the state are home to hundreds of cemeteries, some with a few family members and others with dozens of graves. |
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The Alabama Cemetery Preservation Alliance was established in November 2003 in hopes of saving the cemeteries, many of which are abandoned and not cared for. "If we don't do something now, they'll be gone and that history will be lost," said Lorena Joyce Nicoll, founding president of the alliance. Nicoll said the alliance has made strides throughout the state in its short history, but there is a lot of work to be done to save the cemeteries. "It's part of our history," Nicoll said. "Our history is being lost every day. Cemeteries hold history you find no where else. It shows the population who lived and died in this part of the country." |
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| Some of the cemeteries are tucked away between houses or behind apartment complexes. Many people are unaware there are historic cemeteries in their neighborhoods. Some of the cemeteries are mowed and cared for and others are overgrown with grass and have tree branches and trash lying throughout them. | |
| Frank Brown, a retired state employee, said the cemeteries need to be saved from decay and from development. Brown is the alliance's representative for Montgomery County and monitors the cemeteries in this and surrounding communities. "We are a watchdog for cemeteries being subject to destruction because of land usage and land development encroaching on old cemeteries," Brown said. | 
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Some graves at the New Home Baptist Cemetery are partially hidden by plant growth. |
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| Nicoll and Brown said there is work to be done to change and enforce laws to save the historical cemeteries. "We hope to go forward and get the laws changed in Alabama in large to protect these cemeteries that are abandoned and lost," Nicoll said. Nicoll said it is an eyesore and disgrace that there are historic cemeteries within blocks of downtown that are not taken care of. "The dead should be honored," she said. | |
| The grave and marker of Robert Ware, who fought in the Revolutionary War and is the namesake of Wares Ferry, is adjoined to a backyard and sits a few feet from a playset. Ware, who died in 1827, is buried there with his wife and others members of his family and the Green family. The cemetery, unlike many, is taken care of. "It's a good example of the city growing up and around a lot of these cemeteries," Brown said. Brown said there are at least 200 of these cemeteries in Montgomery. | 
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The Ware-Green Cemetery is home to the elaborate tombstone of Revolutionary War patriot Robert Ware, who was buried in 1827 near Wares Ferry Road. |
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| The alliance has been instrumental in recovering 13 lost Civil War military markers and helped stop the destruction of a Revolutionary War burial ground. The members also organize clean up of cemeteries and read and map cemeteries. | |
| "The organization, which is hosting a workshop in Montgomery on Saturday, provides advice to people who are interested in the preservation of old cemeteries," Brown said. Brown said they also work with people and organizations to get the cemeteries registered with the Alabama Historical Commission. | |
| "Once we get it registered, the state law has a little more teeth when it comes to the destruction of a registered historical cemetery," he said. The organization was established in November 2003. |  |
The Alabama Cemetery Preservation Alliance is trying to preserve graves like these at the New Home Baptist Cemetery in Montgomery. |
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| Some families contact the organization because they are worried their family cemetery will deteriorate when they die. Brown said he has been interested in genealogy and researching his family history for eight or nine years. He found cemeteries are a great source of information. | |
| Brown found a deteriorated cemetery in Georgia with his ancestors in it. "It was horrible," he said. "There were trees through graves. It breaks my heart to what happens to the graves of our ancestors." | |
| Some of the cemeteries are in peril, Brown said. He said many of the black cemeteries were not built to the same quality and are quickly deteriorating at a time when more people are becoming interested in their family history. | |
| CEMETERY PRESERVATION WORKSHOP The event is Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the state Capitol auditorium, 600 Dexter Ave. It will include panels and workshops on: Legal issues Cemetery mapping and GPS Cemetery conservation including cleaning and repair issues Preserving cemeteries through archival research Community actions panel Legal issues panel The workshop is co-hosted by the Alabama Historical Commission, Alabama Cemetery Preservation Alliance and the Montgomery Genealogical Society Find more information at www.alabama-cemetery-preservation.com |
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| ACPA Notice: Joyce Nicoll is the Founding President (2001-2003) of the ACPA. To contact Joyce: alabama79@att.net. | |
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| ACPA Notice: The ACPA Representative for Montgomery County is Frank Brown. If you would like to contact Frank about this article or any cemetery issues in Montgomery County, please visit the ACPA Montgomery County Representative Page for contact information. | |
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Copyright©Alabama
Cemetery Preservation Alliance (ACPA), 2003-2009 |
