Cemeteries are protected spaces. But in order for those spaces to be protected, they have to be identified. Sadly, for many reasons, many slave cemeteries are not identified, and thus, they are particularly vulnerable to destruction.
Author: Andi Cumbo-Floyd
Andi and Philip live on their 15 acres of quiet at the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Andi is a writer and editor, and Philip is an engineering technician and a vehicle safety center. They share their space with 4 dogs, 4 cats, 6 goats, and 22 chickens.
Linked Through Stories and History
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It’s a quiet place, on a quiet road, in a quiet county. A few dozen miles west of Richmond, Virginia. Louisa County, Virginia. Gordonsville. Bracketts Farm.
When Places Wrap Us Together
As our car turns down the lane, I flash back to Mom in the driver’s seat, the blue Nissan van idling beneath us as we wait for the yellow behemoth of a school bus to mount the hill in the sunrise hour. It’s too far to walk to catch the bus, so Mom drops us off and picks us up each day.
Then, we drive past the entrance to the first plantation house, I think of my cousin Lauren and Dad trimming the boxwoods there. I see the carriage pulling up front, a woman in long skirts stepping out, dismay at her isolation etched into the corners of her mouth. She is white. Behind her, six people step out of the back of a wagon, pulling down trunks and flour, much more than dismay in their eyes. They are black.
