Some of the Burial Grounds History

Log House (1848)

The log house that was built on land deeded to the Baptist denomination had occupied the site 30 years earlier and had been used for religious services and a day school.

(Signed) G.M. W. Cary – Pastor Church

(Signed) C.J. Bostwick – Church Clerk

The New Church-The Willow Grove Baptist Church

Was built for the Negroes in the Willow Grove Settlement by Edmund Hillyer Duval starting in 1871 and was finished “debt free” in 1878. A work of faith, a labour of love and a fruitful source of anxious care. Edmund Hillyer Duval is buried in the churchyard September 17, 1878.

Building the Mini Replica

The land in which the Black Burial Ground exists was donated to PRUDE Inc. in 1983 by Joan and Robert Garvin, following which a mini replica of the church that got burnt in 1936 was built. The mini replica of the church along with the sculpture of the 3 crosses donated by Weislow Wojcik, stand as poignant reminders of the struggle and triumphs of those who came before us.