Photo Credit: Berry College

Berry College has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation to assess and preserve two historically African American cemeteries located on its campus. These sites are the last physical remnants of two Reconstruction-era settlements, Freemantown and the Shelton Family, founded by formerly enslaved people in Mount Berry, Georgia, between 1870 and the 1920s.

The cemeteries, located within Berry’s expansive Mountain Campus, hold significant historical value, predating the establishment of the Berry Schools (now Berry College) in 1902. The grant funding aims to support comprehensive site surveys, detailed condition assessments, and the development of a long-term preservation plan to protect these sacred spaces and the stories they represent.

“I am excited that we have received support from the National Trust for Historic Preservation African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to support our documentation and preservation efforts of these two historic resources on the Berry College campus,” said Jennifer Dickey, a Kennesaw State University professor of history, campus preservationist, and Berry College alumna who is serving as the project’s preservation consultant. “The additional documentation generated by the assessments and surveys and the ensuing preservation report will guide Berry’s preservation and interpretation efforts going forward.”

The Freemantown and Shelton family settlements, originally located within a mile of each other, began to disperse in the 1910s and 1920s. During this period, the expanding Berry Schools acquired land occupied by the descendants of the founders. By 1926, the last remaining family members had sold their land and migrated, either to the nearby city of Rome or to distant urban areas as part of the Great Migration.

The scope of work for the project is extensive and includes both above-ground and below-ground condition assessments. A crucial component will be a ground-penetrating radar (GPR) survey, which will allow the project team to accurately determine the true number and condition of burials, as well as the precise boundaries of the cemeteries. This detailed information will inform the preparation of a comprehensive cemetery preservation plan.

The grant awarded to Berry College is part of the National Grant Program, a signature initiative of the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund at the National Trust for Historic Preservation. This year, the fund is distributing $3 million in grants to 24 sites across the country, all of which represent integral aspects of Black American joy, resilience, innovation, and activism.