Potter's Field

Front: From the 1880s to the 1930s the block bordered by Highmarket, Dozier, Duke, and Church streets served as a cemetery for criminals, the indigent, and the unknown. These types of cemeteries were located in many towns and communities and were typically referred to as a Potter’s Field. Many of the people buried here, most of whom were buried in unmarked graves, were African Americans. Reverse: The earliest known burial here took place in 1881 after Frank Magrath was hung in a public execution after being convicted of murder. Another of the known burials was Edward Rainey. Rainey was the brother of Joseph Hayne Rainey, the first African American member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Burials continued here until the 1930s. By the 1950s most of the graves had been relocated and the land was redeveloped.