Texas African American Cemetery Resource Page, Atlas, and Survey

Texas African American Cemetery Guide & Survey

Due to recent news stories about African American cemeteries and Juneteenth, there has been increased interest in Black burial grounds and preserving related histories. 

The Texas Freedom Colonies Project has been recording these histories, community-based stories, and grassroots efforts since 2014. Our Atlas holds digital visual histories of hundreds of Black settlements throughout Texas. Over the next two months, we will be finalizing our strategic plan for an enhanced website and mobile registry for documenting burial grounds.

Join us as we raise awareness as to what can be done to address the needs of freedom colonies and their remaining cemeteries, while also building a registry.

Please visit the site and share your stories and upload materials there. Also, invite us to work with your community to record Black historic sites, including cemeteries. 

Add to our Atlas--a database of stories, statistics, maps, and images. Share information about both cemeteries near freedom colonies and freedom colonies: http://bit.ly/txfcpatlastwo 

Request more information, demonstrations, and ask questions by email: freedomcoloniesproject@gmail.com 

Review all of our resources and volunteer opportunities:

https://linktr.ee/texas_freedom_colonies/ 

Access the Resources on Cemetery Preservation below:

Links accessible below:

1. Texas Historical Commission, Cemetery Preservation Program
www.thc.texas.gov/cemetery 
The Texas Historical Commission’s Cemetery Preservation Program provides numerous resources on cemetery preservation, including fundraising ideas and strategies, cleaning historic gravestones, and the best ways to provide fencing and lighting for a historic cemetery. The Commission staff is available for questions and collaboration on nonlegal topics related to cemetery preservation.

Staff Contact: Jennifer McWilliams, Cemetery Preservation Program Coordinator, 512-475-4506; jenny.mcwilliams@ thc.texas.gov
 
2. Texas Historical Commission, HOW TO PROTECT HISTORIC CEMETERIES
https://www.thc.texas.gov/public/upload/publications/preserving-historic-cemeteries.pdf
This sixteen-page document by the Texas Historical Commission outlines best practices for maintaining cemeteries,
including legal information as well as matters such as surveying the land and securing the cemetery.

3. Chicora Foundation
http://www.chicora.org/cemetery-preservation.html
Features information on how to preserve cemeteries such as tips on cleaning gravestones, lawn maintenance, and
addressing safety concerns.

4. Saving Graves
http://www.savinggraves.net
Provides useful tips on the preservation of cemeteries including cleaning guidelines and gravestone repair.

5. Texas Freedom Colonies Project
https://linktr.ee/texas_freedom_colonies/ 
The Texas Freedom Colonies Project maps freedom colonies in Texas, engages with African-American communities, and identifies planning and historical preservation practices. The Project recently received a grant for an initiative that includes mapping historic African-American cemeteries.