Friends of Bedford Burying Grounds

Happy Halloween from the Friends Of Bedford Burying Grounds!

God's Little Arce. This is the restoration project I've been working on this summer! Not a bad way to spend a summer. (Except this week, too hot). History Enric...hed, Not Rewritten On August 15th, 1720 Hector Butcher died. His is the oldest recorded death in God’s Little Acre in Newport, Rhode Island. The site includes the most carved gravestones for people of African heritage living in 18th century America. The 300th anniversary of his death is an appropriate time to commemorate his life and the lives of Africans who helped build this country. U.S. colonial history is commonly told from the perspective of white, British, Christian men and neglects to include other histories. As the United States discusses who and what we celebrate and teach, the contributions of Africans and African Americans should be included as an essential component that has been ignored for far too long. God’s Little Acre in Newport, Rhode Island should be included in any study of the colonial African experience. When history focuses on the people buried in a site, their gravestones contain valuable information about their lives, their community, and the times in which they lived. The stones provide information both individually and as a collection. In conjunction with primary sources of the African experience in colonial Newport, God’s Little Acre is a national treasure waiting to be explored. In 2016 the City of Newport revived its Historic Cemetery Advisory Commission to provide guidance regarding the city’s many historic burial sites. The commission identified the conservation of gravestones in God’s Little Acre as the highest priority and dedicated efforts and funds for treatment. With the support of the City, private donors, the Preservation Society of Newport County, and a grant from the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, 98 stones will have been conserved by the end of this summer, with plans underway to treat another 44. When the work is complete, all stones with historic information that need conservation will have been treated. As America reviews the history it teaches and the people it celebrates, God’s Little Acre should be prominently featured in the story of our country’s formative years. The conservation of Hector Butcher’s gravestone and others lays the foundation for the story, not rewritten but enriched! ~ Theresa Guzmán Stokes (Photo by Beyond the Gravestone, LLC)

Wow this is interesting! Right in Ridgefield CT, our neighbor to the north!