By 1881, people who were living along old Carter’s Mill Road (present day Gleedsville Road), the road to Mountain Gap (present day Gap Road), and the vicinity had established a burial ground across the road from Emanuel Day’s property (present day 20369 and 20377 Gleedsville Road). The official deed was not recorded at the courthouse until November 1886 when the administrator of John F. Elgin’s estate filed the deed that conveyed the parcel to John Barnes, Hiram Valentine and John Gleed as trustees. Elgin had sold the land to the trustees “for a burial ground for colored persons in the vicinity” but died before it was fully paid for and without a deed being recorded. The burial ground was, and still is, accessed by a narrow lane stretching back from Gleedsville Road.
Establishing a burial ground was a high priority for people newly freed from slavery. While they had been held in bondage, their enslaver probably chose the spot where their loved ones could be laid to rest. After slavery ended, freed people either lost access to the burial ground on the enslaver’s land or they had to seek permission for a new burial. Thus, establishing their own cemetery was important.
The Gleedsville Cemetery has continued to be used since its creation. While much of the village of Gleedsville has changed since the late 1800s, the cemetery remains a quiet spot surrounded by newer development. A group of trustees lovingly cares for the cemetery.
A precise list of people buried in the cemetery does not exist for several reasons. Virginia did not require birth and death records to be kept at the state level between 1896 and 1912. Even when death records were mandated, imprecise wording about the burial location, such as simply “in Gleedsville”, leaves open the question of whether it occurred on the family’s property or at the cemetery. Additionally, cemetery records have been lost as trusteeship changed hands.
To see a list of known and probable burials at the Gleedsville Cemetery, click here.
