Black Cemetery

This pioneer burial ground contains more than a dozen graves of African Americans. The land was part of the Veals addition to the town of Fort Griffin. Milton Sutton bought the property at public auction in April 1882. Two visible markers are for Elijah Earls (d. 1880), who the Fort Griffin Echo reported as a “tonsorial artist,” or barber, and Marriah McKay Williams (1781-1891), who came to Fort Davis (Stephens co.) Before the Civil War as a free black. The Echo also reported the June 1880 burial of James Lowe in this cemetery. Most of the other burials are unknown. When Fort Griffin disbanded, many African Americans stayed nearby and homesteaded. Here, their lives as ranchers, farmers, cowboys and domestics are remembered.

Black Cemetery is a historical marker in Albany, Shackelford County, dedicated in 2013. It is one of 35 historical markers documented in Shackelford County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 54 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.9356, -99.2423 near Albany. The nearest cataloged historic site is Unknown Graves near Camp Wilson (cemetery), about 0.4 miles away. Others within a short drive include Frontier Town of Fort Griffin, Western Cattle Trail Crossings at Fort Griffin, The, and Fort Griffin Civil Jail.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507017611. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.