Man’s gravesite in unexpected spot on Jacksonville sidewalk
The grave of Thompson Williams has been etched on a sidewalk in Jacksonville, Florida, a location where children play and the community gathers. The gravestone, situated next to a community center and tennis courts, has a story that has only recently come to light.
Historical origins
Local historian and urban planner Ennis Davis uncovered the history behind Williams’ gravesite. “You dig up older maps and I came across an 1800s map of Jacksonville that had a zoomed-in map of ownership in the LaVilla area, and this was identified as the Mount Herman Cemetery,” Davis told News4JAX.
The gravesite’s location indicates that the area was once part of a historic cemetery. “This alone should let you know that the development of this street and its infrastructure was built over a cemetery, and they moved the grave in the middle of the sidewalk just to do it,” Davis explained.
From cemetery to community center
An 1887 map from the State Library and Archives of Florida shows Durkeeville, with railroad tracks next to the cemetery, just feet from where Williams’ grave is located. Williams, who was shot dead in 1908 while protecting a woman, was buried in what was then a cemetery predominantly for Black citizens.
“This park is unique because it is Jacksonville’s largest 19th-century African American cemetery,” Davis noted. The cemetery was originally owned by the family of Francis L’Engle, LaVilla’s first mayor. In the 1940s, the family donated the cemetery to the city, which subsequently removed many of the bodies and constructed the Emmett Reed Community Center over it.
Unresolved mysteries
While Williams’ grave has remained largely undisturbed, the fate of many other graves is unknown. This includes the burial plots of the Fagin family from the 1800s. Jacksonville native Freddie Paney, a descendant, expressed skepticism about ever finding his ancestors’ graves. “What they should do is put a big sign up and let people know that it was a cemetery,” Paney suggested.
The city has yet to comment on any efforts to locate the lost graves.
Unusual sidewalk discoveries
Williams’ gravesite is not the only strange object found on a sidewalk. Earlier this year, a rat-shaped hole in a Chicago neighborhood sidewalk went viral and attracted so many tourists that it was eventually removed and preserved.
The discovery of Williams’ grave highlights the layers of history embedded in urban environments and the importance of preserving and acknowledging past communities.