SPRINGFIELD TWP., Ohio — The Beech Grove Cemetery on Fleming Road will get a little TLC on August 12, thanks to the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and the help of volunteers who join in the efforts.
The museum announced Thursday it hopes to gather volunteers to help restore Beech Grove Cemetery in Springfield Township. Founded in 1889, the cemetery was a rural cemetery for African Americans. Over 3,000 people have been laid to rest in Beech Grove, including more than 500 veterans.
"Over its more than 130 years, however, the cemetery has suffered abandonment and disrepair until Springfield Township took possession in 2017," reads a press release from the museum.
Those looking to get their hands dirty restoring the cemetery can join the efforts on August 12 from 9 a.m. to noon.
Freedom Center staff are also working to research the individuals who have been buried within the cemetery. Many of the graves within Beech Grove have been lost to time; in 2018, after Springfield Township took control of the cemetery, a months-long re-mapping project by the township uncovered where Gordon Holcomb's lost parents may have been buried.
At the time, Holcomb knew his parents were buried within Beech Grove, but he didn't know where and after the cemetery fell into neglect, discovering their burial site was hampered by potholes, sunken graves and lost paperwork.
The museum's staff hopes that documenting and researching those buried at Beech Grove can shed light on why there are so many military veterans laid to rest there.
The Freedom Center said it also hopes to secure a historical marker for the cemetery, to highlight it's important role in the history of the region.
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