Harrisonburg, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Newtown Cemetery

Photographed by Michael C. Wilcox, May 28, 2017

1. Newtown Cemetery Marker

Inscription. African Americans established the community of Newtown in this area after the Civil War. In 1869 five trustees purchased land here for a cemetery open to "all persons of color." By 1920 the cemetery had expanded three times to accommodate Harrisonburg's growing African American population. Among the nearly 1,000 burials, some unmarked, are Civil War-era United States Colored Troops and veterans of World War I, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. Also interred here are Harrisonburg's first African American city council member and several noted educators, including Lucy F. Simms. The cemetery is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Erected 2015 by Virginia Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number A-124.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Cemeteries & Burial Sites • War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1865.

Location. 38° 27.212′ N, 78° 51.479′ W. Marker is in Harrisonburg, Virginia. It is at the intersection of

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Kelley Street and Hill Street, on the right when traveling east on Kelley Street. Located adjacent to the Newtown Cemetery itself. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Harrisonburg VA 22802, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Lucy F. Simms (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Edgar Amos Love (about 600 feet away); Woodbine Cemetery (approx. 0.4 miles away); Confederate Monument (approx. half a mile away); Anthony Hockman House (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named The Woodbine Cemetery (approx. half a mile away); Lucy Frances Simms (approx. half

Photographed by Michael C. Wilcox, May 28, 2017

2. Newtown Cemetery Marker

a mile away); Resilience Amid Resistance (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Harrisonburg.

Photographed by Michael C. Wilcox, May 28, 2017

3. Newtown Cemetery Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 29, 2017, by Michael C. Wilcox of Winston-Salem, North Carolina. This page has been viewed 864 times since then and 33 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 29, 2017, by Michael C. Wilcox of Winston-Salem, North Carolina.