TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)– Earlier this week, Stewart Lawn Cemetery received a $14,500 grant to complete several restoration projects around the grounds.
Cemetery board president Louis Ross said these efforts are important for what he called a landmark.
“It’s important to preserve this just for the main thing of preserving African-American history. This is a landmark,” he said.
The cemetery is close to where the Lost Creek settlement, one of the first African-American settlements in Indiana, was, and is home to hundreds of descendants from the area.
Local historian Dr. Crystal Reynolds said taking care of cemeteries is a tradition within many African cultures.
“First, it’s because of the ancestors. Part of the African culture is that we got to honor our ancestors, and as you know, we are descendants of Africans,” she said. “One of the best ways to honor the ancestors is to make sure the place where they are resting, eternally resting, is taken care of.”
Reynolds said cemeteries can also play a role in documenting history.
“Making sure our ancestors, we preserve their resting place, making sure we learn about our ancestors, and making sure that we tell these stories about the African American culture are some reasons why we preserve cemeteries,” Reynolds said.
She added that tombstones can be a good window into people’s history.
“On the tombstones, it’s an amazing way to learn history because each tombstone tells a story. It tells about the person, when they passed, any hobbies they had, any clubs they were a part of.”
Ross said other repairs and projects are still needed around the cemetery. He said they are accepting donations since they became a nonprofit, and donations can be made on their website.
As he’s grown older, Ross has understood the importance of cemeteries, and the significance they have.
“As you grow older, and you come to the realization of what the cemeteries about, and then who’s in the cemetery because one day, I’ll be here, so I wanted to make sure it’s well kept, and it keeps going,” Ross said.
Reynolds said it’s important to learn from something with a deep connection to a historic settlement.
“African American history is everybody’s history. It’s United States history, it’s the world’s history,” she said.
