About this property
African Cemetery No. 2, also known as The Cemetery of the Union Benevolent Society No. 2, is a historic burial site located in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. The first burials occurred on the property as early as the 1820s. The Colored Peoples Union Benevolent Society No. 2 purchased the property for use as a cemetery in 1869. The last burials in the cemetery took place in 1974. In 1889, 300 bodies were moved from the Presbyterian Cemetery on Limestone Street to African Cemetery No. 2 under the supervision of C. O. H. Thomas. In 1973, Lexington city government took control of the cemetery. In 1979, the African Cemetery No. 2, Incorporated was organized to save the cemetery. In June 2003, a Kentucky Historical Highway Marker was placed on the site. The cemetery was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 31, 2004. The 7.7 acre (3.1 ha) cemetery contains more than 5,000 graves, of which 1,200 are identified, with fewer than 600 being recognized with markers. Military veterans graves total 148, with 112 being U.S. Colored Troops of the American Civil War. About 80 of those veterans trained at nearby Camp Nelson, a Union supply depot and recruitment site. Of Kentucky's almost 24,000 U.S. Colored Troops, 10,000 trained at Camp Nelson. In addition to Kentucky, states represented among civil war veterans are New York, Massachusetts, Arkansas, and Tennessee. Since 2005, Juneteenth Jubilee has been celebrated annually honoring Civil War veterans. An American flag is placed on each grave and every name is read aloud. Veterans are also interred from the Buffalo Soldiers/Spanish-American War, 12; World War I, 18; and World War II, 4. Clarence Espy was one of the soldiers who served with the 369th Infantry, the regiment which became known as the "Harlem Hell Fighters". Espy, a native of Lexington, was awarded the Croix de Guerre, France's highest military honor. R. C. O. Benjamin, a journalist and an attorney, was murdered on October 2, 1900, during an altercation involving voting rights for African Americans. In 1910, a monument was dedicated at his grave site. More than 150 graves are of those who worked in the equine occupations-trainers, jockeys, foremen, stablehands, and grooms. The range of birthdates, 1842 to 1897, and the dates of death, 1890 to 1932, indicate the prominence of African-Americans in a thriving horse and racing industry. Birthdates before 1866, show the likelihood that eight people were born enslaved. Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame jockey, Isaac Burns Murphy, born 1861, was originally buried in African Cemetery No. 2. Murphy, the first jockey to win three Kentucky Derbys, died February 12, 1896, of pneumonia. In 1967, his remains were moved to the Man o' War gravesite off Russell Cave Road, and were moved again in 1987 to the Kentucky Horse Park.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about African Cemetery No. 2
This page lists African Cemetery No. 2. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was African Cemetery No. 2 listed on the National Register?
African Cemetery No. 2 was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 30, 2004.
What type of historic resource is African Cemetery No. 2?
African Cemetery No. 2 is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for African Cemetery No. 2?
The period of significance for African Cemetery No. 2 is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near African Cemetery No. 2?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near African Cemetery No. 2 will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Fayette County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Fayette County.
Explore FayetteCounty ›More historic places in Kentucky
Browse all historic places in Kentucky.
View Kentuckyhistoric sites ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near African Cemetery No. 2 will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.