Greenwood Cemetery Hillsdale MO
Greenwood Cemetery Preservation Association is a non profit organization.
Greenwood Cemetery is a historic black cemetery located in North St. Louis County at 6571 St. Louis Ave, Hillsdale MO 63121. This was one of the first cemeteries in Missouri where blacks could be buried with dignity in a place they could call their own. The Greenwood Cemetery was the first non-denominational commercial cemetery for African-Americans in the St. Louis area. This is a valuable place not based on money, but based on the fact that it is the resting place for many war veterans, including Buffalo Soldiers, Civil War Veterans and many other wars. It is the resting place of Harriet Scott, a slave that hired a lawyer to fight for her freedom right here in Missouri, freed slaves and slaves still in captivity; the home of doctors, musicians and countless babies. (Featured in The Nation Magazine: http://www.thenation.com/article/black-deaths-matter/)
Every Saturday as we walk thru the cemetery history comes to life before our eyes. One Saturday we found a tombstone that I will never forget. It has the person’s name and his date of birth, but after the dash it has the words "Died free and happy" instead of a date of death. These words should be an inspiration to us all to keep his resting place clean and free. We need to make sure that this person and all of those laid to rest here are able to rest in a place we can all be proud of. That is why we need your help, donations, services and time. We cannot do it without you.
Every Saturday morning at 8:00 am, weather permitting, we are cleaning up Greenwood Cemetery. We are in desperate need of help by way of donations and volunteers. We need donations to rent the much needed equipment each week for the cleanup. Friends of Greenwood Cemetery Association (http://www.greenwoodstl.org/ ) is a non-profit organization and every penny that we raise will go toward the cleanup efforts for the 32 acres of historic land that our ancestors took pride in as they laid their loved ones to rest.
We appreciate the efforts of volunteers whether you come alone or bring a large group we need you. We also need equipment donations and financial donations.
We can also be reached:
PO Box 266
Florissant MO 63033