11 Lambert Street
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Last updated on November 21, 2024
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Fairview Cemetery is where many members of the Staunton Black community were laid to rest, dating back to the late 1800s. The Mt. Zion Baptist Church and Augusta Street Methodist Church came together in 1869 to create a burial space for their members. The Shea House, located in the six-acre cemetery, was the family home of the caretaker from the 19th century. The cemetery was initially located outside of the Staunton City limits in the heart of Sandy Hollow, one of several African-American communities in Augusta County at the time. The cemetery is one of the few remnants of the Sandy Hollow community. The Staunton Augusta County African American Research Society dedicated a historical marker to the Fairview Cemetery in 2023. The marker reveals more than 2,000 grave sites, the earliest of which date back to the 1860s. Two prominent individuals buried here are Willis McGlascose Carter, who published a biography in 2015 titled From Slave to Statesman, and James Morris, who was the city’s first African American mayor. Before the establishment of Montgomery Hill Park, Fairview Cemetery was used as a park by African American families. Fairview Cemetery is a remembrance of a vibrant black community.
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