Community identifies, restores unmarked graves in Historic Black Cemetery in Maryland

On June 11, 2022, Ellsworth Cemetery in Westminster, Maryland, held a headstone dedication for nine U.S. Colored Troops.  According to its website, the cemetery was established on December 21, 1876, when six black Union Army Veterans filed Maryland Articles of Incorporation to provide a burial place “for the Colored residents of Westminster, Maryland.”

The incorporators—Ruben Walker, David Ireland, William Massey, William Adams, Lewis Dorsey and Samuel Bowens—participated in the bloody Civil War campaigns of 1863, 1864 and 1865, yet chose to immortalize a white man, Col. Elmer Ellsworth, a friend of Abraham Lincoln and the first Union Officer to die in the Civil War, as the cemetery’s namesake.

A new grave stone for a Veteran identified at Ellsworth Cemetery in Westminster, Maryland.

Over the years, vandals have damaged or destroyed many of the head stones, and so the local community set about to identifying and restoring them. A hand-drawn map in the archives of the Union Memorial Baptist Church identified many gravesites for restoration.

“We have a profound responsibility to honor those who have risked their lives so our nation might endure,” said Niki Frierson, constituent services for U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen.

At present, the graves at Ellsworth Cemetery are identified, marked and restored. There is also a new sign over the entrance.  A report made to the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development emphasized the importance of this restoration project, saying “A community that respects its history, and those who lived it, has the right to call itself civilized.”

National Cemetery Administration’s Public Affairs Specialist, Richelle Taylor, was the subject matter expert who helped with the dedication. Below, she shared her thoughts thoughts about the project.

When did you start this project?  

I started this project in late 2020. Our team noticed several news articles from across the country about individuals and organizations seeking to acquire headstones and markers for Veterans interred in private cemeteries with unmarked graves. Most of the articles were about Black Veterans who lay in cemeteries that needed repair or restoration. As NCA’s mission is honoring the fallen, it just followed that NCA should acknowledge these efforts. I credit our Executive Director, Danny Devine, who had the vision and was the impetus for creating videos that reflect these works.

Why this is important to you?

As an African American woman and a Veteran, I was particularly moved that so many of the stories I saw were about Black Veterans whose graves had gone unmarked but are now getting the overdue recognition they deserve.

I have a unique opportunity to help preserve Veterans’ legacies by educating the public on how to acquire headstones and markers through video and the written word. These Veterans are a remarkable part of the historic victories won by Americans from the Revolutionary War through the Korean War—victories that help shape America into what it is today.

They should not be forgotten.

How many cemeteries have been identified? 

NCA is not currently in the process of identifying cemeteries per se, but we will provide headstones and markers for any Veteran’s grave that is unmarked. To date, we’ve collected more than 20 stories of individuals and organizations working to acquire headstones and/or restore private cemeteries that are largely African American. We’ve established ongoing relationships and have created a database of entities who are working diligently in this movement nationwide.

What’s your process to discover them?

They come to us. NCA doesn’t have a process for detecting where unmarked Veterans’ graves may be. We rely on local volunteers to find these graves and do the research that establishes who these people are, but our historians can often help establish whether the person buried in the grave is a Veteran or not.

Approximate number of Veterans identified?

One cemetery acquired 400 headstones, another 300 headstones, another more than 70 headstones. And there are several articles about folks who are in the initial stage of identifying more Veterans. As we move forward with assisting these efforts, we will continue to record the results in the database we are building.

To learn more about restoring unmarked graves in private cemeteries, please email Richelle.taylor@va.gov.