Apparently the truth wasn't good enough for some individuals who went ahead and contacted the news to tell a different story to the press. Before anyone knew it, Fox40, KCRA and even the Stockton Record did segments on the alleged "racial" story that Block 27 was the "colored" section of the cemetery, where the early African-American pioneers were buried there and forgotten, while their graves were purposely neglected. The news jumped on the story without even bothering to see if it was true. I don't know about you, but that says a lot about where journalism is going today, doesn't it?
I am also a journalist, I also write for a newspaper as well as my own blogs, but I have integrity for what I write about, and I
refuse to tell a story without checking on the facts and finding proof to back
it up or debunk the claim before telling others about it. Unfortunately it
seems most "professionals" today don't do their homework, leaving it
up to people like me, the ones who actually go out there and do the research to
tell the truth for the world to read for themselves.
First off, if anyone
who reads this blog feels the need to fact check my findings, feel free to do
so. In fact, I encourage it! People need to start questioning what they read
and what they see on the news and in the newspapers, books, and at schools and
colleges. Do not believe everything you are told, even if it comes from what
you expect to be a reliable source. More often than not, people just don't do
their homework and keep regurgitating the same old stories over and over
without even trying to see whether or not it was fact or fiction.
History of the
Cemetery
Before we dive into
the whole "Block 27" issue, lets go into a short history of Stockton
Rural Cemetery, shall we?
The land the cemetery
is on was originally owned by Captain Weber. Stockton Rural Cemetery is one of the oldest cemeteries in Stockton.
According to the History of Stockton by George Henry Tinkham, Captain Weber deeded
the land for the cemetery to "rural associates" who then brought in
plants and trees to make the cemetery more like a park. When Captain Weber was
still alive, he was often seen there in the cemetery spending a lot of his time
working on the grounds. In his older years he was more reserved and spent a lot
of time gardening and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the cemetery as well as
other gardens.
History of Block 27
In 1862, Reverend Jeremiah King approached the trustees of the Rural
Cemetery asking for a place for members of his congregation to be buried
together. The trustees allowed King and members of his congregation to be
buried in the non-endowment section, along with everyone else who could not
afford to pay endowment care fees. Perhaps at one time they considered that small area within Block 27 to be a "colored section" for that particular church group, but Block
27 as a whole was not a segregated section of the cemetery. No, it was just an
non-endowment care area just like Block 36 and Block 14 that are adjacent to
Block 27 on both sides.
Even the Stockton
Pioneers book written by the late Glenn Kennedy, who was a long time part of the history of
Stockton Rural Cemetery even mentioned the fact that from the time Reverend
King requested a spot for his people, that they had "reserved a special
place" at their request. Did you catch that? They granted a request, meaning they wanted to be buried together, not that they were forced to, and not because of segregation. In fact he went
on to add that Reverend King was "loved and respected by all the
people of the community as a builder of men." If anyone
knew the relationship Reverend King had with people in Stockton they would know
that he was a respected man, and even Captain Weber himself gave King the land
for the African Baptist Church.
It appears that the
earlier African-American settlers who were buried at Stockton Rural Cemetery
chose to be buried next to one another, not because of being forced to due to
segregation but instead because they wanted to. Reverend Jeremiah King
requested that they all be buried together and the cemetery granted the
request.
All those who were
buried in Block 27 were not all African-American either. No, in fact there are
many burials and headstones in that block that are Caucasian, and I have done
the research to prove this.
What about the rumored 300-700 unmarked graves?
There have been rumors spread within a few news articles that Block 27 holds the remains of several hundreds (somewhere along the lines of 300- 700) of African-Americans that are unmarked. I believe this to be false. This rumor started in a newspaper article in the Record.net back in
2006, yet when I have written the cemetery, its manager and its trustees to
question them about that subject as well as many other things, they have failed
to respond time and time again.
Could it be because they actually have no proof
of these alleged "unmarked" graves? I think so.
Personally, it
doesn't seem possible given the size of the area that encompasses Block 27
along with the graves that are already there, to have that many people buried
there without any markers or any additional information. Another fact we must consider is that from 1860, 1870, 1880 and even up to the turn of the century, there
weren't more than a few hundred African-Americans total living in the entire county,
let alone Stockton.
If you look at the chart below, the circled numbers
show going backwards from 1880, 1870 & 1860 the population of
African-Americans in San Joaquin County. As you can see during 1860 there were
126, In 1870 there were 223 and in 1880 there were 328.
If you read my earlier
blog about the first African-American churches you would see
that by 1880 there were only 16 adults and 30 children in attendance at the
African Baptist Church, while there were 19 adults and 28 children attending
the African Methodist Church in 1880. These numbers correlate these
statistics below. Remember the list below shows all African-Americans in the
county, not just Stockton. It is safe to say more than likely even by 1880
there weren't more than a few hundred, if even that many living in Stockton
who were African-American, adults and children included. With these statistics
in mind it would be mathematically impossible that there were so many hundreds
of unmarked graves of African-Americans buried there.
Personally I think
someone down the line has confused this "unmarked" grave story with
the forgotten graves on the other side of the fence facing California Street.
That open space beyond the chain link fence was once one of the two burial
grounds that once belonged to the State Hospital and now it is just a forgotten
field, with hundreds and upwards to thousands of remains buried there,
literally forgotten in time. You see, that is a story worth looking into, and
one with actual proof that it exists.- Please see: History of Stockton State Hospital Cemetery & Its Decline
So far
I have recorded about half of the visible graves in Block 27 and what I have
found has proven to be more interesting than any conjured up story! There appears to be just as many Caucasian burials as African-Americans in this block which disproves the "colored-section" theory.
The truth shall set
you free
The area that is known
as Block 27 is simply a non-endowment area, meaning that it is not maintained like an
endowment care area is supposed to be. If people are looking for someone to
blame about the non-endowment care areas, you really can't blame anyone, not
for that. Back when Stockton Rural Cemetery was established, the area was dry
in the summer and plush during the other seasons. There was no irrigation
systems for that part of the cemetery. The people who purchased plots there
knew what they were getting, a dry spot on the east side of the cemetery.
 |
| Pioneers graves buried for years (block 26 & 28 areas) |
Time and the elements haven't been kind to some of the headstones, especially the ones flat to the surface of the ground. As time went on and little to no maintenance done, eventually many of the flat stones have been buried under overgrowth of grass, weeds or dirt. Again, this isn't anything you won't find at other cemeteries with non-endowment sections. (ex: Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland). If you look at many of the nicer monument headstones, a lot of them are African-Americans too, not just the Caucasian headstones. Like I said, it wasn't about color, it was about money.
 |
| See the overgrown hedges? This is in an endowment care area. |
In Block 26, 28 and 35, which are endowment care areas, there are headstones of early pioneers laying flat in the dirt and encased
in years of mud build up, basically cementing them into the ground. Broken
stones covered by twigs and leaves intentionally by the landscaping staff at
the cemetery and no one is doing a news story about that. These were the
original pioneers of Stockton, the 49ers who came during the Gold Rush. Their
graves are forgotten, broken and ignored. Where is the outrage over that? What
about the pioneers buried there? Are they less important that those in Block
27? No.
What about the west end of the cemetery, at Blocks 19 and 22? They have been clearly neglected for years, with dirt, debris, leaves and build up covering row after row of flat markers. What about the family crypts that are not protected from thievery, or the plots such as the E.S. Holden plot or Stewart-Smith plot, where the hedges are so overgrown you cannot even reach the crypts or monuments from their entrances?
 |
| Sections 19 & 22 (west side) are in worse shape than Block 27 Where's the outrage?? |
In the end, the facts
are the facts and neither you nor I can change that to suit an agenda. There
are African-Americans buried in Block 27, but there are African-Americans buried all over the cemetery from Block 26, Block 14, Block 35, as well. And remember this, there are Caucasians buried in Block 27, too, meaning it was not the "colored section."
I hope this article will settle the segregation debate once and for all. I suggest that
next time a news channel or newspaper reporter decides to do a story on this subject that they at
least do a little homework before hand.
(Copyright 2015- J'aime Rubio) Originally posted June, 2015
Photos by: R. Boulware & J. Rubio
All research and data compiled by J. Rubio
Photos by: R. Boulware & J. Rubio
All research and data compiled by J. Rubio
All photos are
copyright protected.
All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means without prior written permission by the author/publisher, J’aime Rubio
