Mount Auburn Cemetery (Baltimore, Maryland)
Encyclopedia
Mount Auburn Cemetery is a historic African American
cemetery
and national historic district
in Baltimore, Maryland
, United States
. Overlooking the Middle Branch of the Patapsco River
to the east, Baltimore's Downtown to the north and railroad tracks to the south, Mt. Auburn Cemetery is surrounded by the Cherry Hill, Westport
, Mt. Winans
and Lakeland
communities.
Designated on the local and national historic registers, the cemetery was once known as "The City of the Dead for Colored People" since it was the only place a person of color could be buried. Once part of a farm, the land was given to the Methodist Church and assigned to the Sharp Street Memorial United Methodist Church to oversee its grounds. Over the years the cemetery has been in total neglect with only a few of its front acreage remaining identifiable as a cemetery.
Mt. Auburn Cemetery holds the remains of some of Baltimore's and the nation's "movers and shakers" of the local civil rights movement. In addition to runaway slaves, the cemetery contains the remains ; the first African American ship chandler; clergymen; the first female funeral home director, Civil War and Civil Rights activists, lawyers, doctors, teachers, military veterans, founders of national fraternities’ and sororities’ and the ancestors of thousands of African-American families.
Mount Auburn Cemetery was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 2001.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
and national historic district
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
in Baltimore, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Overlooking the Middle Branch of the Patapsco River
Patapsco River
The Patapsco River is a river in central Maryland which flows into Chesapeake Bay. The river's tidal portion forms the harbor for the city of Baltimore...
to the east, Baltimore's Downtown to the north and railroad tracks to the south, Mt. Auburn Cemetery is surrounded by the Cherry Hill, Westport
Westport, Baltimore
Westport is a neighborhood in south Baltimore, Maryland. It borders the Middle Branch River on the east, Cherry Hill and Lansdowne to the south, Hollins Ferry Road to the west, and Interstate 95 to the north...
, Mt. Winans
Mount Winans, Baltimore
Mt. Winans is a mixed use residential, commercial and industrial neighborhood in southwest Baltimore, Maryland. Its north, south and east boundaries are marked by the CSX Railroad...
and Lakeland
Lakeland, Baltimore
Lakeland is a neighborhood in south Baltimore, Maryland. Its borders are Annapolis Road on the east, the Baltimore city/county line to the south, a CSX/MARC Railroad line to the west, and the same railroad line to the north.-History:...
communities.
History
One of the most historic and largest African American cemeteries in Baltimore, Mt. Auburn Cemetery was formed in 1872, by the Reverend James Peck in protest to segregation against the White Methodist Church. Its grounds encompass 34 acres (137,593.2 m²) and holds more than 55,000 interred.Designated on the local and national historic registers, the cemetery was once known as "The City of the Dead for Colored People" since it was the only place a person of color could be buried. Once part of a farm, the land was given to the Methodist Church and assigned to the Sharp Street Memorial United Methodist Church to oversee its grounds. Over the years the cemetery has been in total neglect with only a few of its front acreage remaining identifiable as a cemetery.
Mt. Auburn Cemetery holds the remains of some of Baltimore's and the nation's "movers and shakers" of the local civil rights movement. In addition to runaway slaves, the cemetery contains the remains ; the first African American ship chandler; clergymen; the first female funeral home director, Civil War and Civil Rights activists, lawyers, doctors, teachers, military veterans, founders of national fraternities’ and sororities’ and the ancestors of thousands of African-American families.
Mount Auburn Cemetery was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 2001.
Notable interments
- Joe GansJoe GansJoe Gans was born in Baltimore, Maryland. Gans was rated as the greatest lightweight boxer of all time by boxing historian and Ring Magazine founder, Nat Fleischer and was known as the "Old Master". He fought from 1891 to 1909.Gans started boxing professionally about 1891 in Baltimore...
; first African American lightweight boxing champion of the world (1901-1908). - William Ashbie HawkinsWilliam Ashbie HawkinsWilliam Ashbie Hawkins was one of Baltimore's first African American lawyers. He was born in Lynchburg, Virginia on August 2, 1862. He graduated in 1885 from Centenary Biblical Institute , Maryland University , and Howard University . He was admitted to the Maryland bar in 1897. About 1905 Hawkins...
; early African American bishop in the African Methodist Church. - Lillie Mae Carroll JacksonLillie Mae Carroll JacksonLillie May Carroll Jackson , pioneer civil rights activist, organizer of the Baltimore Branch of the NAACP.Invariably known as "Dr...
; brought the National Association for the Advancement of Colored PeopleNational Association for the Advancement of Colored PeopleThe National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, usually abbreviated as NAACP, is an African-American civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909. Its mission is "to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to...
to Baltimore and was its leader for 35 years.
External links
- Mount Auburn Cemetery, Baltimore City, including photo dated 1997, at Maryland Historical Trust
- The Historical Marker Database, Mount Auburn Cemetery Marker
- "Mobtown Beat: The Plot Sickens, Mount Auburn Cemetery Is Still In Shambles," By Jason Torres, Baltimore City Paper, Posted May 30, 2007.