Documenting an African American Cemetery

Recording Coordinates
(Total Station)

Monday November 13 the locations of the grave depressions that had been found in October were recorded.  Jim Gibb used his Total Station to record the coordinates of the head and foot of the individual depressions found previously as well as those of a few new ones found today.  He was assisted by Ned and Esther.  Jim will use this data to create a map of the cemetery.

Thanks to Jim for doing this.

Thanks to Ned for the info and photos.

 Monday October 9 CCASM members Denise, Elsie, Linda, Carol, and Ed joined Esther Reed to mark graves on a property along Old Stage Coach Road.  There was one marked grave on this property that is privately owned.  The rest of the graves were just depressions in the ground.  We flagged seventy-seven possible graves. This appears to be a cemetery associated with the Mount Zion Colored Episcopal Church that was formed in the 1870s
For more about the site see Finding Charles County Blog- Mount Zion

Flagging the head
of a grave depression

Volunteering for
a day in the woods

Three Recent Archaeology Projects in Anne Arundel County

Andrew Webster

At the September CCASM meeting Andrew Webster talked about three recent Anne Arundel projects with each project representing a different aspect of archaeology.  

The first project involved washing, cataloging, and documenting artifacts that Robert Ogle had collected over his lifetime as a surveyor in Maryland and Virginia.  Ogle's notes and maps added to the usefulness of the collection.  The collection included over 161,982 unique objects (both Native American and historic) from 154 different archaeological sites including 25 in Charles County.  The Charles County artifacts are now at the MAC Lab.  82 volunteers contributed 2,673 hours of work on the collection.  Three of those volunteers were CCASM members.  And as with all good archaeology, there is a report.

The second project involved updating Anne Arrundel County's Inventory of Historic Properties.  In 2017 only 7% of the sites were documented as having an African American component even when the site was listed as a plantation.  This project involved researching to try to correct some of the disparity for sites inhabited by both enslaved and free African Americans in the nineteenth century.

The third project involved creating a website to be used by teachers (initially for middle school STEM teachers) to teach students about archaeology.  Although it is called "Native American Archaeology in Anne Arundel County, Maryland",  almost all of it it could easily apply to Charles County.  Drew is currently starting to add 3-D images of the artifacts.  Here is the link to the site http://www.losttownsproject.org/toolbox/

Andrew Webster is an archaeologist with Anne Arundel Cultural Resources Section and the Lost Towns Project where he is in charge of public programs and volunteer/internship opportunities.  Drew is working on his PhD at the University of Maryland, College Park.

The CCASM September meeting was to have been in-person, but then Drew came down with COVID.  Drew was able to give the presentation via ZOOM but the last minute confusion probably affected attendance.  Too bad.  It was a really good talk.

Attendance: 6

Return to Carroll Family Cemetery

At the request of Rev. Ruby Brown-Thomas we returned to the Carroll Family Cemetery off Poseytown Road in Nanjemoy.  Rev. Brown-Thomas is a minister at Mt Hope Missionary Baptist Church and has ancestors buried in the Cemetery.  A historic marker that included the cemetery had recently been placed nearby by the Charles County Commissioners, and there are plans to restore the farmhouse and mark the cemetery.

In October 2017 [Cemetry Volunteer Work] CCASM members and Esther Read identified, flagged, and documented over seventy unmarked graves in a wooded area that oral history indicated was a cemetery associated with the Carroll family and with the early Mt Hope Baptist Church.  Jim created the map showing the locations of the graves.

On April 26 CCASM members Elsie, Denise, Linda, Mary, Ned, Peggy, and Carol as well as volunteers Kathy and Antonio joined archaeologist Esther Read to make sure all the unmarked graves were still flagged and numbered.  Jim's map was a great help since some of the flags were missing and many of the flags no longer were numbered.  As you can see there was a thick layer of leaves on the site that had to be brushed away before we could see the impressions indicative of graves.

Looking for unmarked graves (flagged and unflagged)

About halfway through Rev. Ruby Brown-Thomas along with members of Mt Hope Church, members of the Carroll family, and a few CCASM members started adding the crosses made from PVC to the graves.  The white crosses really stood out. 

Adding crosses

Hear is a closer look at the volunteers verifying the flags and grave locations posing with Rev Brown-Thomas and William.  (Sorry I didn't get a photo of all those helping install the crosses.)

There are plans to enclose the cemetery with a fence and to add a sign. 

An Interesting Prince George's County Cemetery Project

Aaron Levinthal

At the April 8 CCASM Zoom meeting Aaron Levinthal told how the State Highway Department relocated graves from an abandoned late 19th through mid-20th century African American cemetery known as Simon Hill.  These graves were not supposed to have been there.  Years ago the St. Paul Baptist Church had paid to have the graves relocated.  In the intervening years trees had grown on the property, but there was evidence that some graves still remained.

Aaron related how they recovered over forty full burials and over twenty partial burials from the site.  From the beginning the project included public outreach and cooperation with a congregation and descendant community.  One of the burials that was encased in a metal vault contained a woman.  Historical and genealogical research and subsequent DNA testing identified this woman.  The remains of all the burials were reburied in Maryland National Memorial Cemetery.

There are four MPT videos on "The Dig: A Maryland Mystery Lady" that tells about this project.  Here are the links to Part One  Part 2  Part 3  Part 4.

Aaron Levinthal is a Consultant Archaeologist with the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration.

A snapshot of those listening to the talk -

Attendance: 10

Two Rails - Underground Railroad in Delaware

Craig Lukezic

At the January 14 CCASM Zoom meeting Craig Lukezic told of four sites along with three different stories related to African Americans that were in Delaware during the eighteenth and early nineteen century.  One site involved a house built by a free black person.  One site was at Wildcat Farm that was owned by Quakers who were involved with the Underground Railroad.  The farm also provided a few houses in which free blacks resided.  Another story was about the son of a free black man who had become a Quaker.  The middle aged son was kidnapped and taken to Maryland where he was sold into slavery and sent to the South.  We know about this because of the trial where it was determined he was actually free.  And the final story was about the Cannon/Johnson Kidnapping Gang in Sussex County that as its name implies kidnapped free black people and sold them into slavery down South.  The two rails in the title refers to the one rail that goes north to freedom and the other rail that goes south to slavery.

And, of course, Craig talked about some of the archaeology done at the these sites by the Archaeological Society of Delaware and by students from Delaware State University .

Craig Lukezic is the Cultural Resource Program Manager in NAVFAC at the Pautuxent River Base. Previously he was the historical archaeologist for the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs. Craig also has served as the president of the Archaeological Society of Delaware and taught at Delaware State University.

A snapshot of a few of those listening to the talk -

Attendance: 14

 

Helping With "So As Not to Forget" Project - A Continuation

On three beautiful days to be outdoors CCASM members and Esther Read returned to the Alexandria United Methodist Church Cemetery to complete the documentation of the marked and unmarked graves.  Next Jim Gibb is responsible for turning this information into a map for the cemetery.

On November 9 we divided into three groups.  Denise and Julie continued marking the head and foot of graves as well as any headstones with numbered flags.  Linda and Carol measured the length and width of the grave depressions as well as recorded any objects or plants associated with the grave.  Elsie and Esther double checked previously entered information. 

And then on November 20 we were able to finish the documentation of the flagged graves.  Again we divided into groups.  Linda and Denise in one group with Elsie and Carol in a second group measured the length and width of the grave depressions as well as recorded any objects or plants associated with the grave.  Joe blew leaves off the perimeters of the cemetery in case there might have been additional graves that we had not previously detected.  And when we couldn't find the flag associated with a certain number. Joe was tasked with finding it.  And he did.

On November 29 Elsie, Carol, and Esther helped Jim as he completed recording the location of flags using his Total Station.  (Forgot to take any pictures but here is a picture of Jim and the Total Station from the first day we worked on the site.)

For more about the project check out Helping With "So As Not to Forget" Project (Oct 24)

Mapping an African American Cemetery

Wyseola Smith and Sarah Grady

Chew's Chapel in Edgewater, Maryland, is your typical Mid-Atlantic African American cemetery.  Found on a hillside that overlooks what used to be a stream, it is full of marked and unmarked graves.

On November 14 we learned about using cemetery mapping as a preservation strategy for working with and for communities.

First Sarah Grady related how her project documenting an African American school led to her interaction with the local community and a subsequent request to investigate the cemetery at Chew's Chapel.  Volunteers at the Smithsonian Environmental Archaeology Laboratory mapped the cemetery and produced a product for the descendants of those interred at the cemetery.  Sarah indicated that the next step is to work with the community to determine how they want to use and to maintain this information.

Next Wyseola Smith talked about her ties to the school, the church, and this African American community and what it meant to her to grow up in such a community.

Both Sarah and Wyseola volunteer in the Archaeology Lab at the  Smithsonian Environmental Research Center.  Sarah is a former president of CCASM.

Attendance: 14

Serenity Farm Burial Ground and Potluck Supper

Lots of Food

CCASM's third Potluck Supper was held Sunday May 19 at the Harvest House on Serenity Farm.  It's always fun to have an excuse to get together and to eat.  And there was a variety of food - all quite delicious.  Despite the hot weather Sunday there was a nice breeze on the porch of Harvest House.

Meeting on the Porch

After we finished eating, the annual CCASM business meeting was held.  At the end of the meeting one member, Evelyn Wenzel, and one former member, Barbara Kane, were recognized for their contributions to CCASM.

Serenity Farm Burial Ground

The meeting was followed by a walk up the hill to see the Serenity Farm Burial Ground where twenty-three African Americans were buried between 1780 and 1810.  At the January CCASM meeting Franklin Robinson had told us about the Burial Ground and the archaeology done at the site.  Franklin was happy to announce that the film “Remembered by the Wind: The Slave Graves of Serenity Farm" has recently been released.

CCASM would like to thank Franklin Robinson, the owner of Serenity Farm, for allowing CCASM to have their meeting at Harvest House as well as for the opportunity to visit the Burial Grounds.
 

Attendance: 10

Serenity Farm Burial Ground

Franklin Robinson, Jr

At the January 10 CCASM meeting Franklin Robinson, Jr told how a skull found in 1982 on Serenity Farm in Benedict led to the discovery of a previously unknown slave burial ground.  In 2012 the State Highway Administration started investigating the site and identified 23 African American burials dating from 1780 to 1810.  Franklin related how archeologists, physical anthropologists, historical research, and interaction with  the African American community have helped us to understand more about the individuals (9 adults, 6 children and 8 infants) buried here. 

 

Franklin also shared a new publication "In this Place, A Discovery Guide for the Benedict Region" that contains information on the burial ground, and he distributed copies at the meeting.  The guide was written to introduce students and others to the history of Benedict.

Franklin Robinson is an archivist working at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.  The burial ground can be visited by a written request to Franklin or as part of a scheduled tour.

Attendance: 19

Mt. Hope Church & Cemetery Volunteer Workday

October is Cemetery Month.  On Saturday October 28 a special "Mt. Hope Church and Cemetery Volunteer Workday" was held at Mt. Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Nanjemoy.   The event was sponsored by the Mt. Hope Church community, Preservation Maryland, Coalition to Protect Maryland Burial Sites, Charles County Planning, and the Association for Preservation Technology.

There were four areas of activity during the day:

• Mt. Hope Cemetery Conservation and Headstone Documentation 
• Recording History - both oral and family documents
• Architectural Documentation  of Carroll Family Farmhouse
• Archaeology at Carroll Family Cemetery

Five CCASM members volunteered - Denise, Joe, Evelyn, Julie, Carol, and Jim.  And guess which activity we choose.  Archaeology at the Carroll Family Cemetery, of course.  It was not just us at the cemetery.  There were many, many members of Mt Hope Church and of the Carroll family that also helped at this site.

Esther Read, the Charles County archaeologist, was in charge.  If you have never looked for graves in an unmarked cemetery, here is what we did.  First, we looked for impressions in the ground.  Over time after someone is buried and starts to return to the soil, the ground on top begins to sink in.  We also looked for posts in the ground and rocks that may have marked graves.  And we found quite a few.  Scott Lawrence's experience working with old cemeteries definitely helped.  After the possible graves were marked with flags, we documented each one - length, width, amount of depression, presence of a marker, and presence of other plants, such as periwinkle, that were historically planted in cemeteries.  Also Jim Gibb brought a Total Station, an electronic transit, and recorded the positions of the head and the foot of all the possible graves as well of any posts or stones.

All the data gathered will be turned over to Mt. Hope Church.  Hopefully, in the future we will be able to learn more about what was found.

Charles and Eleanor Butler

Julie King

Dr. Julia King joined us for CCASM's October 9th meeting and enticed us with the story of Eleanor, an Irish immigrant, and Charles Butler, an enslaved African.  The pair met while working at Notley Hall on the Wicomico River and married in 1681 in Maryland.  People, including Lord Baltimore, traveled miles upon miles to see the spectacle.  Shortly before their marriage, a law was imposed stating a wife shall take her husband's status upon marriage (Eleanor would enslave herself) and this law was abolished shortly after the marriage of Charles and Eleanor Butler but did not exempt them from the law.   Dr. King used the archaeological record to reconstruct this narrative.  Interestingly, one descendant of the Butlers attended the talk.

Dr. King is a professor of anthropology at St. Mary's College of Maryland.  She is also the former Director of the MAC Lab at Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum and the former Southern Maryland Regional Archaeologist.

Attendance: 19

Posting submitted by Sarah and photos provided by Carol.

Archeaology and African Americans at Mount Calvert

Mike Lucas

December 12 Michael Lucas talked about the past and current archaeology being done on an eighteenth and nineteenth century tobacco plantation.  The plantation site is located in the Mount Calvert Historical and Archaeological Park in Prince George’s County.  Archaeology done in the 1990's on two sites recovered artifacts from the plantation and from a tenant site.  Mike showed artifacts that could have belonged to slaves.

Recently a magnetometer survey was done in what is believed to be the slave area of the plantation.  Archaeology in this area has begun, and Mike showed some of the artifacts recovered.  Work will continue in this area over the next year(s).   To volunteer or for more information you can e-mail Mike at Michael.Lucas@pgparks.com.

Mike is an archaeologist at Prince George's County, Natural and Historic Research Division of  Maryland National Capital Parks and Planning Commission.

Setting Up

Barbara Kane handed out the CCASM polo shirts to those that had purchased them.  Below Peggy and George are holding one up.  It is still possible for others to purchase a shirt.  We would like to thank Barbara for initiating this project and doing all the work with the embroiderer to make it happen.

   

Attendance: 10

Archaeology at Camp Stanton

As part of their Public Outreach, the Maryland State Highway Department is funding an archaeological investigation in DNR's Indian Creek Natural Resource Management Area near Benedict, MD.  Camp Stanton, that was set up in August 1863 to train African-American men for the Union Army, is located on the property.

The Ottery Group started the work this spring.  Work had to stop by April 1 so the field could be planted, but it should resume in the fall.

Below are a couple of pictures taken near the end of the spring session.  The first picture shows the outlines of several tents, some of which had a brick "fireplace".  The other two are of a burned area south of the tent area.

Tent outlines, at least one with bricks at one end

Excavating burned area

Detail of burned area