Cayce recently received the results from a project to identify and assess the preservational needs of Black cemeteries in the city of nearly 14,000.

Engineering company Stantec was contracted earlier this year through a $15,000 grant from the state Department of Archives and History and matching city funds to take on the survey, getting input from the public at an open meeting in January before conducting field work and research.

Stantec identified seven known Black cemeteries in the city, along with four that may have some Black burials. These are a few of the details about the seven confirmed cemeteries included in the lengthy report (which can be viewed at caycesc.gov):

• St. Ann 1 Cemetery (owned by the Protestant Episcopal Church of South Carolina Trust) — “Consisting of 34 identifiable marked interments and approximately a dozen marked graves of unknown individuals, this cemetery is located immediately south of the Cayce Historical Museum as part of the City Hall complex. ... The marked graves span the years from 1937 to 2005, but unmarked graves are present. Death certificates and obituaries indicate at least 28 additional unmarked burials ranging from 1915 to 1977. The cemetery is historically associated with St. Ann’s Mission, for which the first land purchase occurred in 1886 and the church was actively meeting at this location by 1891.”
• St. Ann 2/Earle Cemetery — “Located at the southwestern end of Lavern Jumper Road. ... A total of 24 graves were marked in the cemetery, although only 17 were legible. ... Historic research indicated at least nine individuals noted on their death certificates as buried in the Earle Cemetery, but with no apparent markers. Due to confusion over many members belonging to the St. Ann’s Church, some of the death certificates marked as St. Ann’s Cemetery may be interred in this cemetery. ... Based on the history of this site, it is likely that there are numerous unmarked burials inside and outside of the parcel lines of this cemetery, and probably include much of the Earle family, Hart family, Barnwell family, and possible former enslaved individuals.”
• Wilkinson Street Cemetery (owned by the South Carolina Federation of Women’s and Girls’ Club) — “No official name was found for this cemetery. It is located on the east side of Wilkinson Street north of Monkey Spring Branch. ... Broken piers mark the presumed entrance to the former property of the Wilkinson Home for Girls, while a fence borders the edge of both that parcel and the cemetery lot. However, no evidence was found of interments. No death certificates indicating burials at this location were found either. "
• Guignard Cemetery — “By georeferencing the Guignard Cemetery site on the 1950s and 1960s era plats to current aerials, this cemetery incorporated roughly one acre of land east of Slann Drive. In 2002, this land was developed with the Vista Hills subdivision consisting of six houses flanking Riverhill Court. No above ground evidence of burials remained on the property at the time of the field visit for this study. Limited research into death certificates identified a dozen burials that indicated interment in the Guignard Cemetery. However, given the origins of this cemetery and the number of death certificates that simply indicated burial in Cayce, there were likely many more burials in this plot. Of the death certificates found, the dates range from 1916 to 1944 with most individuals tied to the brick works as either an employee or a relative of an employee.”
• Taylor-Seaboard Cemetery (owned by Arthur Carroll Spires) — “This cemetery was identified in this January 24, 2023 public meeting as the Taylor Cemetery and the Seaboard Cemetery. ... Field survey identified only three marked graves in the Taylor Cemetery. Background research identified at least 15 additional burials in the Taylor Cemetery based on the place of interment listed on death certificates. Similarly, 12 individuals were identified on their death certificates as buried in the Seaboard Cemetery, but no markers were found for this burial plot. The death dates on the Seaboard Cemetery certificates range from 1928 to 1956, while the death certificates from the Taylor Cemetery range from 1906 to 1932. The 1906 interment, which is still marked, is for a child born in 1904, but the top of the marker is broken so the child’s identity, likely a Taylor, remains unverified.”
• Mt. Pisgah Cemetery (owned by Mt. Pisgah AME Church) — “Located at the end of Cemetery Court. ... Over 200 marked graves are located within this cemetery. Of these, 178 are legible. An additional thirteen are marked, but illegible, while ten have blank funeral home markers. Twelve stones, two wooden crosses, and a pile of bricks may also represent graves. Death certificates, obituaries, or newspaper articles identified an additional 19 burials in this cemetery. Thirty-five of the graves have associated footstones.”
• Mt. Pleasant Cemetery — “The exact location of this cemetery remains unknown but is believed to be on property owned by the Open Space Institute Land Trust, Inc. The general location of a cemetery along Six Mile Creek west of the railroad was identified during the January 24, 2023 public meeting by local residents. Archival research did not reveal the exact location of this cemetery but did indicate the historical existence of a Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church and Cemetery along Six Mile Creek. According to the current Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church, their organization was an offshoot of the Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in the New Brookland (West Columbia) area. The archival information found during this project may pertain to the New Brookland congregation or to a separate, earlier organization in the Cayce area. Death certificates indicate a dozen burials in which the interment location was marked as Mt. Pleasant. Death dates on these certificates range from 1918 to 1951. Field survey did not reveal any evidence of a cemetery in the location identified during the January 24 public meeting.”

At Cayce City Council’s Oct. 3 meeting, members were briefed on the project results by a Stantec representative. During that session, Mayor Pro-Tem James “Skip” Jenkins, whose long-standing push to identify and preserve African-American cemeteries in the city, was a key driver in Cayce taking up the effort, said that he and an archaeologist from the University of South Carolina, who donated their time and equipment, had used ground-penetrating radar to confirm the location of the Seaboard Cemetery near Steal Hands Brewing.

Jenkins and City Manager Tracy Hegler told the Chronicle that when the team got to the Seaboard site, they found at least 20 graves within minutes.

More ground-penetrating radar excursions to other sites will be key to identifying grave sites moving forward, as will working with the owners of the largely private property on which the identified cemeteries sit, Hegler said. She emphasized working with the property owners will continue to be important when they look to cut back overgrowth on many of the sites and work to keep the graves from deteriorating further than many already have.

Council and city staff will work together moving forward to figure out the best ways to proceed and find funding for those efforts, Hegler said.

Jenkins said he is pleased with the progress but eager to keep seeing the effort through. He emphasized the duty he feels to the community members who have expressed interest in finding where their family members are buried and keeping in touch with that history.

“It’s a burden that's been lifted,” the mayor pro-tem said, “but it's still got a lot of weight that needs to be taken off as well.”