FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 7, 2008
CONTACT: Molly Dannenmaier
Director of Marketing and Public Relations,
409-765-7834

Public Invited to Join Eagle Scout Candidate in Construction of New Fence at Historic African American Cemetery this Saturday

Galveston Boy Scout Sean Moran will begin the construction of a split-rail fence at the historic Rosewood Cemetery this Saturday, January 12 at 10a.m. Moran, 17, planned and raised funds for his Eagle Scout project, which will mark and protect the city’s first African-American cemetery, at 63rd Street off Seawall Boulevard. He will be joined by members of his Troop, 124 – St. Peter the Apostle, and interested members of the public who are invited to come at 10 a.m to help out.

Moran hosted a pancake breakfast at Chili’s Restaurant in September to support the fence, and has raised the remaining funds for the project through donations from the community.

“This is a great opportunity to match Sean’s efforts to become an Eagle Scout with the needs of a site which has great historical value. We appreciate his interest and efforts in helping to preserve this important and often overlooked part of Galveston’s history,” said Dwayne Jones, executive director of Galveston Historical Foundation (GHF), which now owns the cemetery.

Rosewood Cemetery will be featured on GHF’s Sacred Places Tour on Saturday, February 9, 2008, along with some of Galveston’s most historic churches. Reserved tickets can be purchased at Ashton Villa, 2328 Broadway, or by calling (409) 762-3933.

John and Judy Saracco donated Rosewood Cemetery to GHF last year so that Galveston’s first African-American cemetery could be protected and interpreted. Since that time, many volunteer hours have been put into the cemetery, including Greg West Tree Service’s clearing and mowing of the property and GHF volunteers removing trash and tree limbs.

Earlier cemeteries in Galveston had sections reserved for African-American burials. When burial spaces became scarce, the only other option for blacks was to be buried in the Potter’s Field. In 1911, a group met at Wesley Tabernacle United Methodist Church and decided buy land near the beach from Joe Levy, of Levy Brothers Funeral Home, to establish a cemetery.

The cemetery was very active for its first ten years, and includes victims of the Spanish Influenza Epidemic of 1918-19 which killed an estimated 50-100 million worldwide. Rosewood is a unique window into the African-American culture of Galveston during the 19th and 20th Centuries. Of the headstones visible at the cemetery today, Miranda Moffit has the earliest birth date of 1833, three years before Texas became a republic and six years before Galveston was incorporated. Although her birthplace is unknown at the moment, GHF’s African-American Heritage Committee is currently researching more about the lives of those buried in Rosewood. A list of known burials in Rosewood is available at www.galvestonhistory.org , and family members who may have relatives there are encouraged to contact GHF.

Time has not been gentle to the cemetery. While in use, Rosewood was on the outskirts of town. The end of the Seawall was at 39th Street and the Galveston Country Club and golf course were directly to the west of the site, where condominiums and retail centers now sit. Aerial photographs from the Rosenberg Library show that a loop road once ran through the cemetery.

As Galveston expanded westward, the area’s drainage was changed due to the Seawall extension and apartment and hotel developments, leaving Rosewood as the lowest elevation around. Dirt from runoff has covered many of the headstones in the cemetery over the years. Of the headstones still visible, it is evident that they were made by the same hands that created headstones at Municipal Cemetery, at 59th and Avenue T. Municipal Cemetery was located on higher ground and started shortly after Rosewood. Galveston Historical Foundation is exploring funding sources to use ground-penetrating radar to locate buried headstones and further document Rosewood Cemetery.

Anyone wishing to help with the fence or cleanup of the cemetery is welcome at Rosewood Cemetery at 10 this upcoming Saturday morning. For more information, please contact Brian Davis at GHF – 409-765-7834.

Who: Sean Moran and Boy Scout Troop 124 – St. Peter the Apostle
What: Fence Project and Cleanup at Rosewood Cemetery
When: Saturday, January 12 – 10:00 a.m.
Where: 63rd Street – off Seawall Boulevard