Hallowed Grounds

For most of American history, African Americans were denied burial in the public cemeteries of the towns and cities they helped to build. Black churches, fraternal orders, and burial societies rose to fill that absence, consecrating ground in which families could lay their dead with the dignity the surrounding society refused.

These cemeteries are now among the most endangered sites in the American landscape. Many sit on land coveted by developers; others have been quietly abandoned as descendant communities migrated; still others survive only through the labor of a single family or volunteer who has assumed the stewardship for decades. The 2024 federal African-American Burial Grounds Preservation Act establishes the first dedicated grant program to support their care.

Hallowed Grounds compiles and presents what is publicly known about these sites: their location, their founding, their stewardship, and the wider history of which they form a part. The archive draws on Wikidata, the National Register of Historic Places, and the careful documentary work of historians, descendant associations, and preservation organizations across the country.

We welcome corrections, additional records, and the stories that families carry. Learn more about the project →