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Geer Cemetery

Coordinates: 36°00′37″N 78°53′02″W / 36.0103°N 78.8839°W / 36.0103; -78.8839
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Geer Cemetery
Map
Details
Established1876 (1876)
Closed1939 (1939)
Location
Colonial Street, northeast Durham, North Carolina, US
TypeAfrican American cemetery
Size4 acres (1.6 ha)
No. of gravesOver 1,500

Geer Cemetery (1876–1939), is an African-American cemetery located on Colonial Street between McGill Place and Camden Avenue in northeast Durham, North Carolina. It has also been known as City Cemetery, Old City Cemetery, East Durham Cemetery, and Mason Cemetery.[1] The cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2024.[2]

History

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It currently occupies about 4 acres (1.6 ha), and contains the graves of over 1,500 African Americans, many born into slavery. It was the first cemetery for African Americans in Durham, and from 1876, when it opened, to 1924 it was the only one.[3] In 1939 it was closed as overcrowded by the health department, although there was a burial in 1944.[4][5] The city of Durham lists ownership of the cemetery as "Unknown".[5]

In 2004 the cemetery was "heavily overgrown and...nearly invisible";[3] it was impossible to walk through it. The city, in collaboration with Friends of Geer, a volunteer group, and Keep Durham Beautiful Inc., has cleared the site of trees, litter, and debris, suppressed vine and weed growth, restored tilted and fallen headstones, and smoothed a gravel road through the cemetery.[3][4] A stone sign was erected on Camden Street. In 2015, the 150th anniversary of North Carolina's ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment, the Friends of Geer Cemetery held an event at the cemetery.[4]

Since at least 2020, the Friends of Geer Cemetery have partnered with faculty at Duke University, particularly Professor Adam Rosenblatt, to research the history of the cemetery and the people buried there.[6]

Notable burials

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References

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  1. ^ "GEER CEMETERY [CITY CEMETERY]". Cemetery Census. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
  2. ^ "WEEKLY LIST OF ACTIONS TAKEN ON PROPERTIES: 8/2/2024 THROUGH 8/9/2024". National Park Service. Retrieved 2024-08-05.
  3. ^ a b c Eustice, Jessica T. (June 28, 2015). "Geer Cemetery emerges as a historic cemetery" (PDF). Herald-Sun (Durham, North Carolina).
  4. ^ a b c "Laudable Effort for Cemetery" (PDF). Herald-Sun (Durham, North Carolina). June 29, 2015.
  5. ^ a b Carter, Andrew (June 22, 2019). "A hope for reclamation and preservation at an old African-American cemetery in Durham". News & Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina).
  6. ^ Frederick, Jack (November 10, 2021). "Reclaiming and Restoring a Black Burial Ground in Durham". Duke Today. Retrieved August 17, 2022.
  7. ^ Sturkey, William (February 5, 2019). "The Geer Cemetery: A Lesson in Black History". News & Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina).
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36°00′37″N 78°53′02″W / 36.0103°N 78.8839°W / 36.0103; -78.8839