By Lizzie Stone, contributor
City council members voted to close the alley adjacent to Newtown Cemetery which connects Hill and Sterling streets because of the evidence of unmarked graves in the space.
The cemetery, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, is a significant site in the history of Black communities in Harrisonburg. Founded in 1869, many of its graves are now unmarked after changes to the site over so much time.
In April, researchers found the potential graves with ground-penetrating radar, a non-invasive survey method.They also brought in cadaver dogs, which corroborated the radar findings, although the exact grave sites have not been mapped. The trustees’ long-term plan is to bring the land into the cemetery and use it for burials.
Mayor Deanna Reed, who used to be a Newtown Cemetery trustee, said she saw closure as the only option because the presence of graves made it “sacred ground.”
The city’s decision to close the alley, which first appeared in the city’s maps in 1909, also is a first step toward allowing Newtown Cemetery to secure that land.
While the alley doesn’t contain any public utilities — like power lines along it or water and sewer lines beneath it — the alley is used by the public, with pedestrian and vehicle tracks documented by city officials. Additionally, adjacent property owners use the alley to access their backyards and move equipment, including one city resident who spoke at the meeting.
Council members said they hope to find a way to preserve the function of the alley for the public while protecting the graves by closing the alley.
Without the city’s claim on the alley, the cemetery plans to work to secure the title for the alley. Eventually, because the land is zoned for residences, the cemetery would have to submit an application to the city before conducting burials on the land.
The city council needs to vote twice before the closing is final. The applicants said they hope to have the grave sites plotted on a map by the next vote.
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