Volunteers clean up historic Thomasville Cemetery in south DeKalb County
Thomasville Cemetery cleanup
Volunteers gathered this week to cleanup Thomasville Cemetery on Fleetwood Drive, which has been neglected for many years. Many slaves are buried at the cemetery in DeKalb County.
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. - A group of volunteers has helped restore a piece of history in south DeKalb County, giving the 150-year-old Thomasville Cemetery a much-needed cleanup after more than a decade of neglect.
The backstory:
Located on Fleetwood Drive, the cemetery dates back to the 1870s, with its last recorded burial in 1952. Many of the more than 400 graves are marked only by yucca plants and magnolias, as families—believed to be descendants of formerly enslaved people—could not afford headstones.
Originally called Chestnut Knob Cemetery, the site was renamed Thomasville in the 1930s in honor of Rev. Henry Thomas, one of the founders of Mt. Carmel AME Church on McDonough Boulevard. Over the years, many headstones have gone missing or been stolen, further contributing to the cemetery’s deterioration.
The cleanup effort is part of a growing push to preserve and honor the history of forgotten burial sites in Georgia.