‘Why does a cemetery look this way?’: Historic Black cemetery covered in Hurricane Beryl debris

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A historic African American cemetery in north Houston was left in disrepair more than a year after Hurricane Beryl. Downed trees are still there, and some are on top of tombstones.

The cemetery was established in 1930. Debra Blacklock-Sloan, member of the Harris County African American Cultural Heritage Commission, said it is filled with educators, businessmen, and politicians.

“I think about what the people who are buried here, (and) what they did for this city. We’re standing on their shoulders,” Blacklock-Sloan said.

The debris is so severe that it even makes it hard to read the names of those laid to rest there.

“Why does a cemetery look this way? That’s a great question,” Blacklock-Sloan said.

She said about twice a year a local fraternity comes out to maintain the property. The last time they were there was in March, according to Blacklock-Sloan. She said there’s only so much they can do with the storm damage and how overgrown it is.

“They love it when they come out,” she said. “But we haven’t had any groups come out in a long time.”

ABC13 has reported on similar cases like this in the past.

RELATED: Hurricane Beryl’s damage to Olivewood Cemetery sees cleanup help from volunteers but not FEMA

The Harris County Historical Commission said it doesn’t have the resources to maintain these historical cemeteries, so they mainly rely on volunteers. But they say that help isn’t always consistent.

RELATED: Historic black cemetery in Houston in need of cleanup

“One day is not enough. This is an effort that has to be maintained year-round,” Charles Cook said.

Cook has dedicated his life to helping restore historic cemeteries. He says he’s done extensive work restoring the Olivewood Cemetery.

“That’s why I come out to these cemeteries and give my time, my effort, my blood, sweat, tears, because it’s rewarding,” Cook said. “It’s just very rewarding.”

Ultimately, Blacklock-Sloan and Cook said they’re planning to start a nonprofit to help get funds to pick up the debris.

“It’s our baby,” Blacklock-Sloan said. “This is what we’re supposed to be doing.”

The Texas Historical Commission told us their most recent survey in 2019 showed a third of cemeteries in the state were abandoned and about another third were on the brink of abandonment.

“The Texas Historical Commission was receiving a lot of phone calls about cemetery care, maintenance, abandonment, development and just concern for our historic cemeteries,” said Jenny McWilliams, THC Cemetery Preservation Program Coordinator.

McWilliams said in many of these cases, older generations would previously care for the historic cemeteries. But she said once they pass away, there is nobody left to care for them.

“One of our major challenges is working with younger people to become interested in cemeteries,” McWilliams said.

McWilliams is encouraging people to create formal cemetery organizations to focus on getting the resources to maintain long-term care.

“You need a trained arborist who knows how to protect the headstones when they’re removing limbs,” McWilliams said. “The headstones do require special care and maintenance. Training people to do it the right way is also important and training volunteers.”

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