McEachin, Kaine support nomination of Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground as national historic place

The Shockoe Hill African Burial Ground was the City of Richmond’s second designated burial ground for enslaved and free Black people.

When it was established in 1816 by the city of Richmond, the older African Burial Ground in Shockoe Bottom was closed, according to Lenora McQueen, a descendant of people interred in the Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground, and co-author of a nomination for the Shockoe Hill Burying Ground Historic District.

The Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground was established as the replacement for the first one. The second was in operation from 1816 to 1879. During that time, conservative estimates show that over 22,000 people of African decent were interred there.

The Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground it is likely the largest burial ground for free people and the enslaved in the United States.

There is no official record or database for African-American burial ground locations, making it difficult for family members and descendants to visit the burial sites of the ancestors.

Congressman A. Donald McEachin (VA-04) and Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) sent a letter to Julie Langan, director of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, supporting the nomination of Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground as a national historic place.

“This letter is to express our support for the nomination of Shockoe Hill African Burying Ground to be included in the National Register of Historic Places. Given the history and known location of this African Burial Ground we recognize the value in preserving such a space and strongly recommend it’s inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places,” Rep. McEachin and Sen. Kaine wrote in their letter.

“That is among the many reasons we cosponsored legislation in the 116th Congress which would have directed the National Park Service to conduct a study of ways to identify, interpret, preserve, and record unmarked, previously abandoned, underserved, or other burial grounds relating to the historic African American experience,” the letter continues. “Therefore, without question, we support the African Burying Ground’s nomination before the Virginia Department of Historic Resources.”

In the 116th Congress, Rep. McEachin helped lead the introduction of the African American Burial Grounds Network Act to begin the process of establishing a formalized network of African-American cemeteries and burial grounds.

Rep. McEachin intends to introduce new legislation next week to build on these efforts, take more immediate action, and establish a competitive grant program to preserve these burial sites.

Read the full letter here.