TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Community members came together to honor the lives of enslaved people buried at the Houstoun Plantation Cemetery in Tallahassee on Monday. <\/p>\n
This comes as the city prepares for Emancipation Day, which is celebrated on May 20 as the day where slaves in Florida were told they were free.<\/p>\n
City leaders said this cemetery tour is part of the week long celebration to pay respect to those who were enslaved and never got to experience freedom. <\/p>\n
\u201cBecause of the Emancipation Proclamation, individuals like those buried here finally, finally heard freedom cry,\u201d Althemese Barnes said. <\/p>\n
As leaders celebrate Emancipation Week, the community came together to recognize one of the burial sites for enslaved people at the Houstoun Plantation, which sits on the Capital City Country Club golf course. <\/p>\n
Visitors were able to view markers on the historic site. Officials say the cemetery has been on the course property since the 1930s. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnybody coming here to play golf, beautiful golf course, but it\u2019s okay to know what it was before,\u201d Barnes said. \u201cThat\u2019s the tie to Emancipation. We are celebrating the freedom of over 60,000 enslaved people just like these in Leon County.\u201d<\/p>\n
The burial grounds were rediscovered by Archaeologists in the 1970s.<\/p>\n
Enslaved people made up about three-fourths of Leon County residents in 1860 and officials say 78 were owned by Houstoun. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo, they produced a whole generation that had the opportunity to do more than what they could do. So, it\u2019s very important, I think, for us to remember. They contributed to a lot of the development across Leon County,\u201d Barnes said. <\/p>\n
As people toured the historic cemetery, city leaders say it\u2019s important to continue learning about the area\u2019s history and why Emancipation Day is celebrated. <\/p>\n
\u201cHopefully, we will all learn from what happened during that time and refuse to allow it to ever happen again,\u201d Tallahassee Mayor Pro Tem Curtis Richardson said. \u201cAs we lead up to that day, we wanted to recognize those whose lives were taken as slaves in the Tallahassee and Leon County community.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Houstoun Plantation had between 80 and 100 enslaved people buried there before 1900. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a journey to freedom and these individuals participated in that,\u201d Tallahassee City Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox said. \u201cThey weren\u2019t able to survive it, but those of us who did survive, we want to make sure that we don\u2019t ever forget the cost that some paid for us to celebrate freedom.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Emancipation Day celebration continues Tuesday and on Wednesday, the ceremony and reading of the proclamation will take place on the steps of the Knott House Museum. <\/p>\n
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