“When we came from Virginia we brought one daughter with us, leaving the dust of a son in the soil near Monticello.”
–Madison Hemings, 1873
Men, women, and children of Monticello’s African American community are believed to have been buried here. Almost four hundred persons lived in slavery at Monticello over a sixty-year-period and well over forty graves are estimated to be within this area. Some of the graves have uninscribed fieldstones at the head or foot, but most have no surviving markers.
Although the names of Monticello's enslaved residents are known, it has not been possible to identify where particular individuals were buried. No graves were disturbed in the course of the archaeological investigations.
The graveyard is located 250 feet to the southwest of the David M. Rubenstein Visitor Center.
Updates to the Burial Ground
The proposed project will enhance the burial ground in two ways. First, we will remove six adjacent parking spaces and install dense plantings between the burial ground and the parking lot. Second, we will build a new accessible path to encircle the burial ground. Seating around the burial ground—including a special section for descendants of Monticello’s enslaved community—will offer shaded places for people to think and remember.
The changes respect the burial ground’s existing historic landscape, which is similar in appearance to other surviving African American burial grounds from the period, while allowing for greater access and accessibility. A variety of plants, including Christmas ferns, witch-hazel, and other trees and shrubs, will help screen the burial ground from the surrounding parking lot.
Archeologists found evidence for more than 40 burials during excavations in 2000-2001. They only confirmed the location of the burials, and no graves were disturbed during the excavations. Historians suspect the existence of other African American burial sites at Monticello, and the archaeologists continue to search for their locations.
Archaeologists work by carefully removing and screening soil to complete their detailed investigations. At the burial ground, theys searched for evidence of burials as well as how people may have used the land over time. In their recent work, the archaeologists found only a few artifact and no new burial sites. As a result, we now know that the proposed improvements to the burial ground will not damage any burials or important traces of the site’s history.
The African American Burial Ground at Monticello affords an opportunity for honoring and reflecting on the over 400 enslaved people who lived at Monticello. The burial ground, which holds over 40 graves and was likely used beginning in the 18th century, was rededicated in 2001. In 2021, the Thomas Jefferson Foundation will install new paths, plantings, seating, and signs to reinvigorate this sacred space while preserving its solemn, healing atmosphere.
Julian Bond Dedicates the African American Burial Ground at Monticello
Play
October 6, 2001