Rich stories of Miami’s Black pioneers can be found in this 10-acre plot off Biscayne

The Miami City Cemetery, a 10-acre plot just off Biscayne Boulevard around 18th Street, holds the earthly remains of some of the city’s Black pioneers, the city’s first Black attorney and judge among them.

Back in 1897, about a year after the city of Miami was incorporated, officials purchased the land from Mary Brickell for $750.

Julia Tuttle and others had campaigned for Miami’s incorporation, leading to a vote in 1896. The measure passed, with 368 affirmative votes, of which 162 came from Black Bahamians, the city’s earliest settlers, according to Marvin Dunn, the Miami historian and former Florida University professor who authored “Black Miami in the Twentieth Century.”

Segregated cemetery

For more than 60 years, the cemetery was segregated by race and religion. Whites were buried on the east side and Blacks were on the west side. It remained that way until the 1960s.

“Cemeteries were included in the segregation,” said Paul George, a Miami historian. “In other words, you’re apart in life and you’re apart in death, based on race.”

Although the first burial at the cemetery was not officially recorded, local lore claims it was an elderly Black man who died of an edema and whose resting place remains unknown. The first official burial was of H. Graham Bascomb, a white man who died of tuberculosis on July 20, 1897.

“The history of Black people in that cemetery is similar to the history of Black people in most cemeteries in Southern towns,” said Dunn. “Black people were buried in the back of cemeteries in segregated areas of the cemetery. So, the city of Miami cemetery is typical of cemeteries during that time.”

Preserving the historical plots

Up until the end of the 20th century, the cemetery was frequently vandalized. But in the 1990s, the Dade Heritage Trust, TREEmendous Miami, and other organizations began to preserve the historical plots.

Starting in the 1980s until about five years ago, the Dade Heritage Trust held annual “Dade Heritage Days” to celebrate Miami’s history and culture. Enid Pinkney, who became the trust’s first Black president in 1998, noted at the time that there wasn’t really anything being done to commemorate Miami’s Black history.

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“As I looked at it, there was nothing there that celebrated the Black history, heritage and culture,” said Pinkney. “We formed the African American committee, so that we could have a contribution in this program.”

In 1994, the trust started to hold commemorative services as a part of Dade Heritage Days to honor those who were buried there, but were forgotten. On a Sunday in April, they’d march from the Historic St. Agnes Episcopal Church, 1750 NW Third Ave., alongside a marching band, to the cemetery.

In the early 2000s, they began to honor some of the city’s Black incorporators with new headstones.

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Penny Lambeth, who was the vice president of the trust at that time, started her own committee: the Miami Cemetery Task Force, which had the goal of transforming the cemetery into a beautiful garden that would allow people to explore its history and admire the scenery. Lambert died in 2016.

Today, the grounds are protected by a high fence and maintained by both Miami city employees and volunteers.

One man’s effort to restore the cemetery

Ronnie Hurwitz has spent more than 30 years of his life cleaning up and attending to the cemetery without any pay. He serves as a chairman of the Historic Miami City Cemetery Restoration Committee.

“I’d go to the Miami-Dade Library genealogy section and I’d have the newspaper articles from when they died in my hand,” said Hurwitz, recalling how he’d capture the story of each individual.

There are more than 9,000 people buried in the cemetery, near its 10,000-plot capacity. Though people continue to be buried to this day, the only way to get in is to prove you have the deed to a space.

Here are some notable people interred there:

City of Miami Incorporators

These were some of the Black men who participated in the vote towards the incorporation of the City of Miami in 1896. They were buried in the Miami City Cemetery and have been honored with new tombstones.

▪ Christopher C. Scott, 1871-1905

▪ William D. Bascomb, 1866-1902

▪ London Blackstone 1856-1905

▪ Joseph Cooper, 1848-1908

▪ John Ross, 1873-1911

Other Black pioneers buried in the cemetery

M.T. Mitchell, who died in 1902, was the first African-American undertaker and embalmer in the City of Miami. He also took part in the vote for the city’s incorporation.

Alexander C. Lightburn was an African-American founder of the City of Miami. Lightburn, who died in 1908, was listed as an incorporator of the city and was a founder and trustee of the Bethel A.M.E Church.

Dr. Irene G. Prat, who died in 1996, was the first Black baby born in Miami-Dade County in 1896. She was the daughter of Bahamian settlers Rev. Samuel and Margaret Sampson, the founders of St. Agnes Baptist Church in Coconut Grove, the first Black Baptist church in Miami, founded in 1905.

John Stephens, who died in 1947, was one of the founding members of the Historic Mt. Zion Baptist Church, which served as a meeting ground for the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. when he would come to Miami.

Richard E.S. Toomey was the first Black attorney in the City of Miami. Toomey, who died in 1948, was a vital part of Black Miami’s growing professional population. He served in the Spanish-American War.

Rev. Theodore Gibson was a civil rights activist and president of Miami’s NAACP chapter. Gibson, who died in 1982, preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Coconut Grove, and served as a city commissioner.

Bernard Arthurneal Mackey was a singer and guitarist. Mackey, who died in 1980, was a member of the Ink Spots, the popular singing group. They were among the first Black artists to perform on television.

Lawson E. Thomas was the first Black judge in Miami. Thomas, who died in 1989, was a civil rights activist.

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