I began trying to restore Lincoln Cemetery July 2021, when I traveled to PA to find the graves of my formerly-enslaved ancestors who fled from Fauquier County, Virginia to Harrisburg during the Civil War and after. When we arrived it was only a few weeks after memorial day, but Lincoln Cemetery most closely resembled an overgrown pile of felled trees and discarded brush. The only grave markers we could see were sinking and broken. We could not locate our formerly enslaved ancestors, but we found many mounds of fresh dirt and human remains throughout the cemetery. We left Lincoln Cemetery that day with an overwhelming sense of defeat and despair. When I arrived home, in Buffalo, NY, I tried to make a police report about the remains that we found. Unfortunately, there are no Pennsylvania Laws that effectively protect cemeteries. I could not turn my back on the ancestors who live there.
SOAL’s Action 4 Heritage 2025 In the face of changing tides and an increasingly fraught political landscape, there are moments that demand clarity, unity, and decisive action. Today, we find ourselves in one of those moments. To this end, we are organizing SOAL’s Action 4 Heritage 2025, an event dedicated to mobilizing … Continue reading →
Death, Tech, & Afrofuturism: Juneteenth Harrisburg Join us for a compelling journey through time as Rachael Keri Williams, founder and Executive Director of SOAL: Saving Our Ancestors’ Legacy, delivers an inspiring talk titled “Death, Tech, & Afrofuturism” in this video from the YPOC 2024 Juneteenth Harrisburg Summit, held on June 18th at … Continue reading →
MapGed.com: AI Innovation Meets Hands-On Historic Preservation Explore the groundbreaking intersection of technology and tradition with Saving Our Ancestors’ Legacy (SOAL) as we harness community-powered public history research and engage in hands-on historic preservation at the Historic Lincoln Cemetery in Harrisburg. SOAL founder and Executive Director, Rachael Keri Williams presented SOAL’s work … Continue reading →
Expert Claw Maneuvers Rescue Historic Headstones in Black Cemetery In a striking display of nature’s force versus human heritage, daring, and ingenuity at Lincoln Cemetery, just beyond the city limits of Harrisburg, an urgent Black Cemetery headstone rescue operation unfolds. The scene is a delicate balance of tension and intent: four historic … Continue reading →
A Heartfelt Thank You to SOAL Volunteers Dear SOAL Volunteers, Descendants, Friends, Supporters, Neighbors, and the newly Expanded SOAL: SavingOurAncestorsLegacy Family, please let me express my joy, gratitude, and a heartfelt thank you for your support over the last week! In the wake of recent events that threatened the very heart of … Continue reading →
Civil War Veteran: Henry C. Keith in the 8th USCT Civil War veteran Henry C. Keith served in the 8th United States Colored Troops (Pvt. Co. B 8th USCT) which placed him at the heart of some of the Civil War’s most pivotal and harrowing moments. The 8th US Colored Infantry was … Continue reading →
Ex-Slave School: Rare Photo Reveals Harrisburg Black History Stumbling upon a rare photo of a classroom at an “Ex-Slave School” in Harrisburg in the early 1900s, was an exhilarating moment in my journey as a public historian. This isn’t merely a rare historical find; it’s a profound revelation of Harrisburg Black History, … Continue reading →
SOAL Partners: Black Cemetery Historic Preservation with ArcGIS The historic Lincoln Cemetery in Harrisburg, PA, is not just a cemetery; it’s a testament to African American heritage, harboring the stories and legacies of many prominent individuals. Historically, African American burial sites in the United States, including Harrisburg’s oldest historic Black cemetery, have … Continue reading →
Legacy Reborn: Harrisburg Lincoln Cemetery at 146 Years Today marks the 146th anniversary of Harrisburg Lincoln Cemetery, a site of profound historical and cultural significance for our community (regardless of how far we are from the grounds today). Consecrated on November 18, 1877, this sacred ground has been a resting place for … Continue reading →
Helen Brown’s Unique Wood & Fabric Headstone Helen Brown’s final resting place wasn’t marked in the usual way—there was no obituary, and her life’s accomplishments were not carved in marble or granite but inscribed by a loving hand onto a sheet of fabric affixed to a unique wood & fabric headstone. Her … Continue reading →
Enslaved in Pennsylvania: County Slave Registries Database 1780-1847 There is no single repository for Pennsylvania’s surviving county slave registries. “Some have survived as individual registrations, others as original manuscript registries, and others still as transcripts of original documents.” If you are researching people who were enslaved in Pennsylvania these are invaluable resources, … Continue reading →
Rise of a Railroad Hero: Black Dick’s Symphonies of Freedom Rise of a Railroad Hero: Black Dick’s Symphonies of Freedom (Black Dick Part #2) is a historically-based storytelling (a creative nonfiction & microhistory), of the life and deeds of Richard Smith. Richard was was most likely born near Gettysburg in the late-1830s … Continue reading →
Thank you Preservation Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Hallowed Grounds!
By participating in this project, we become [Legit/On The Books] radical history reclamation role models for future preservation endeavors across the country. Together, we have the power to inspire and create a lasting impact on the preservation of our cultural heritage.
Removing Paint from Marble Headstones Safely and Effectively When it comes to removing paint from marble headstones, it’s important to take great care to avoid causing damage to the stone’s surface. Here’s a step-by-step guide & a how-to video to help you safely and effectively removing paint from a historic marble headstone. … Continue reading →
UMaine dedicates Beryl Warner Williams Hall to groundbreaking graduate The UMaine honored one of its most groundbreaking graduates. The University dedicated Beryl Warner Williams Hall to a Black woman who was Bangor Native, Educator, and Civil Rights Leader. Her granddaughter Eve Williams Wilson is seen here performing poetry on the UMaine campus … Continue reading →
Up From Eugenics: UMaine Beryl Warner Williams Hall Dedication on April 28th Up From Eugenics: Beryl Warner Williams Hall replaces Clarence Cook Little Hall. Two years in the making, the dedication will be a multidimensional celebration of Black Joy. Join the celebration of this historic event in UMaine history on April 28th, … Continue reading →
Black Dick: Astonishing Legend of a Disabled Railroad Hero (Black Dick Part #1) Though, he was born in abject poverty, and spent all his days “without escutcheon or family tree, reared in no palace, tutored in no university, thus lived and died one of nature’s noblemen”—Who was Richard Smith? Who was this … Continue reading →
Black Civil War Veterans Organize First G.A.R. Post #520 The G.A.R. was the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization formed by and for veterans of the Civil War, and no one else. The Gustavus V. Catto Post, No. 520, was the first name of the only GAR post formed by and … Continue reading →
Former Slave Became Soldier, Restaurateur, Civil Rights Activist & Community Icon Noah Pinkney was a former slave who became a community icon. He left Frederick County, Maryland, most likely, during the Civil War and enlisted in the 127th United States Colored Troops, serving as a corporal in Company G. Noah Pinkney was … Continue reading →
I am a Descendant Reclaiming Black History in the Whitest State in America “We want to rename a building at UMaine for your grandmother!” Beryl Warner Williams Hall It’s been 2 years since I accepted that challenge… And I’m not sure that anyone at the University knew what they were getting into … Continue reading →
Never know what you’re gonna find in a graveyard till you dig it up!!! #radicalhistoryreclamation Never know what you’re gonna find in a graveyard till you dig it up!!! I don’t always find headstones…But, finding sunken headstones is one of my favorite parts of #radicalhistoryreclamation! If I’ve learned anything in this process, … Continue reading →
Lewis Elmer Robinson was a First in Black Boyscouting Lewis Elmer Robinson, of Harrisburg, Pa, was a first in Black Boyscouting he broke the International Jamboree Color Line in 1933! The history of the Boy Scouts in America is apparently, hotly contested, when it comes to Firsts…some claim that the first African … Continue reading →
Eating Human Bodies at Black Cemetery–Harrisburg Eyewitness Report This too is African American History: Ghouls (aka Bodysnatchers, Graverobbers) were one of the more horrific realities of 19th century death…this story is far more gruesome!! …Eyewitnesses report ghouls eating human bodies at a Harrisburg Black Cemetery. Plus…Dogs eat people? I guess dogs do … Continue reading →
Harrisburg Telegraph (1908) ‘A Trip Around the World-The Ladie’s Guild-Harris A.M.E. Church’, 30 March, p. 2.
Continue reading →John Johnson: Private Company D 42nd United States Colored Troops John W Johnson was born in August 1837 in Pennsylvania. He joined the 42nd United States Colored Troops, and served as a private in Co. C. during the Civil War.It was most likely after the war that he married Betty Bliss Carey, … Continue reading →
Harrisburg’s Civil War Veterans Buried at Lincoln Cemetery This list is by no means complete, but I figure if I keep waiting until it is complete, I would never be able to publish it… While compiling this, long-overdue, list of African American Civil War Veterans buried at Lincoln Cemetery, I realized that … Continue reading →
Was one of the Civil War Veterans buried in Lincoln Cemetery one of the Black Men executed in Harrisburg in 1874? Was John Preston involved in the Behm murder? I was searching for background information on John Preston, a Civil War Veteran, with an elusive background, when I found him on trial … Continue reading →
Isaac William France Ex-Slave, Storyteller, Elocutionist, Singer Isaac William France was an ex-slave, a lover of poetry and a master storyteller. His tales, and personal association with leading figures in both the Confederate and Union armies positioned Isaac as a highly sought-after speaker in Harrisburg. On at least one occasion he was … Continue reading →
George Alvis (1800-186?): Black Blacksmith of Harrisburg, PA George Alvis was born in 1800 in Richmond, Virginia. By 1830, he was the head of a Free African American family living in Harrisburg, PA. He was a Black Blacksmith. He is buried in Lincoln Cemetery, Harrisburg’s oldest historically Black Cemetery. Before the White … Continue reading →
Lettie Garner, over 100, formerly enslaved, was born on February 25, 1807, in Shepherdstown, West Virginia according to the papers. She, and her husband, Joseph Garner were both supposed to be around 50 at the 1870 census. The news reported she came to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, when she got free in 1863, and … Continue reading →
Trustees Hold A Meeting They Hope For New Free Black Cemetery Creation In September of 1892, the Star-Independent published the occurrence of what may have been the last meeting of the Harris Free Cemetery Trustees. The Harris Free Cemetery Trustees held this meeting in order to agree on a place to buy … Continue reading →
60 Minutes Investigates Paved-Over Black Cemeteries in Clearwater, Florida… But, They’re Everywhere On Nov 28, 2022, 60 Minutes aired the ongoing investigations and community conversations around the destruction of an entire city’s black cemeteries. As you may know, the practice of paved-over Black Cemeteries by all levels of government across the United … Continue reading →
Rachael & Bhakti visiting their ancestors’ home, and Underground Railroad site, on Yellow Hill in Adams County, before their visit to Lincoln Cemetery in Harrisburg. (Edward Mathews and Francis Gantt purchased 17 acres for their family, a church, and a cemetery in the early 1840s…Only the house, barn, & pond remain visible).
Continue reading →The Voice of Black Women Civil War Activists When Jane Welcome wrote to President Lincoln on November 21, 1864 both of her sons were serving in the United States Colored Troops. She had received no word or money from her youngest son, Israel, who was serving with the 55th Mass, and had … Continue reading →
Buried in Lincoln Cemetery–A Black WWI Vet Who Died in Barre, Vermont James Young was a Black Man who lived much of his life in Harrisburg…But when I initially searched for him I couldn’t even find a death certificate… He died in 1933, but I had little information to go on (without … Continue reading →
Israel Mullin was born between 1814-1820 in Pennsylvania. He married Jane’s daughter Mary Fisher Welcome, owned his own property and land, and built a family with Mary before he joined in the Civil War. He enlisted in Co A of the 43rd USCT on the 9th of March 1864 in Philadelphia. At … Continue reading →
In 1907 R. H. Haywood was walking behind the “Old Negro Cemetery” in Harrisburg when he found a trunk lying in small creek. The Star-Independent Sep 2, 1907.
Continue reading →Driven on the Bypass? Arsenal Blvd? N. 17th St.?
Are you driving on Black Bodies buried below the pavement, under the PennDOT building and parking lot?
Radical History Reclamation Demo: Black Family History Needs Light Everyday I learn a little more about all of the things we can’t see without light… This is especially true when it comes to history. Everything that has been shut away in forgotten drawers, missed in dismal attic corners, and especially those things … Continue reading →
Black Family History Gems: 1961 Photos of William Penn Scholarship Recipients Black Family History Gems: Earlier today, I was searching for news about a Harrisburg, PA native who went on to Bennett College, I found this awesome article in the High Point Enterprise (published in Greensboro, NC), it lists 21 William Penn … Continue reading →
