Ridge Street Historic District in Charlottesville, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)
Daughters of Zion Cemetery
The Preservers, May 12, 2021
1. Daughters of Zion Cemetery Marker
Inscription.
Daughters of Zion Cemetery. . The Daughters of Zion Cemetery was established in 1873 by a benevolent organization of African American women known as the Daughters of Zion, who purchased an approximate two-acre plot for African American burials located across from the segregated Oakwood Cemetery. Ground penetrating radar surveys revealed that the cemetery, now owned by the City of Charlottesville, contains hundreds of unmarked graves. It serves as one of the few remaining links to the post-bellum segregated society of Virginia and evidence of the vital community role of Reconstruction-era African American mutual aid societies. The Daughters of Zion Cemetery was individually listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places in 2010.
The Daughters of Zion Cemetery was established in 1873 by a benevolent organization of African American women known as the Daughters of Zion, who purchased an approximate two-acre plot for African American burials located across from the segregated Oakwood Cemetery. Ground penetrating radar surveys revealed that the cemetery, now owned by the City of Charlottesville, contains hundreds of unmarked graves. It serves as one of the few remaining links to the post-bellum segregated society of Virginia and evidence of the vital community role of Reconstruction-era African American mutual aid societies. The Daughters of Zion Cemetery was individually listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places in 2010.
Erected 2020 by Charlottesville Historic Resources Committee.
Location. 38° 1.595′ N, 78° 29.073′ W. Marker is in Charlottesville, Virginia. It is in the Ridge Street Historic District. It is on Oak Street just west of 1st Street South, on the right when traveling west. The marker stands across from Oakwood Cemetery. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Charlottesville VA 22902, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Central Virginia. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, 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 markers no longer nearby. Sacajawea (was approx. Ό mile away but has been permanently removed); Greater Downtown (was approx. 0.3 miles away but has been permanently removed).
The Preservers, September 2, 2021
2. Daughters of Zion Cemetery Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on January 16, 2026. It was originally submitted on January 6, 2022, by The Preservers of Charlottesville, Virginia. This page has been viewed 347 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on January 6, 2022, by The Preservers of Charlottesville, Virginia. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
