Going Home to Glory

Going Home to Glory. . , According to the Gordon family, who donated the land for Loriella Park, this area contained a cemetery for enslaved African-Americans. Census records from 1850 reveal that during the ownership of the property by Burton Leavell, he had owned 12 slaves. Records from 1860 indicate that Cosmo Gordon had owned 10 slaves., There are no photographs or written records listing names of the slaves who contributed to the daily lives of the Gordon family. Slaves were taught and trained in many different trades. They contributed greatly toward the working of the farmstead by preparing meals, and providing care for the children, tending livestock and working in the fields. It was customary for slave owners to provide not only for their slaves' daily care, but also to set aside a portion of land for their burials., The burial service usually consisted of prayers and the singing of hymns. A small rock was placed to mark the head of each grave. In other instances, a simple wooden cross or headboard was used to delineate the grave., Spotsylvania County contains hundreds of these cemeteries many lost to the passage of time. The years have erased the stone markers and crosses from these sacred burial grounds. By recognition of these small plots of ground, we ensure that the enslaved African Americans who worked on this farm and others throughout the County, will not be abandoned nor forgotten.