Woodlawn
MAKING THE INVISIBLE VISIBLE
Thanks to the work of all of our volunteers you can now see Woodlawn Cemetery from the street at 7800 S. Huron River Drive, Ypsilanti.
In 1946, Pastor Garther Roberson Senior purchased a plot of land in Ypsilanti to provide a resting place for Black community members when there were few options due to discrimination and racism. Woodlawn Cemetery, the only documented Black cemetery in the County, has since fallen into disrepair. Initial research indicates that Woodlawn Cemetery has served as the final resting place for over 150 African Americans whose lives were central to the development and history of Ypsilanti and broader Washtenaw County. This Restoration Project includes the necessary steps to preserve and protect the historic cemetery for future generations while maintaining its historical integrity.
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Volunteer Clean Up Days
Over the past two years, the Woodlawn Cemetery Restoration Project has been propelled by more than 300 dedicated volunteers who reclaimed nearly an acre of sacred ground from decades of overgrowth. In 2024, this collective effort focused on the rigorous physical task of clearing dense brush and trees to uncover sunken and shifted headstones. By 2025, the mission evolved into the vital work of documentation and identification. This achievement stands as a powerful testament to our community's commitment to honoring ancestral legacies and restoring historical dignity to Washtenaw County.
Do you have a relative buried at Woodlawn Cemetery? If so, please contact the Project Coordinators at historicpreservation@washtenaw.org to assist with adding them to the list.
More information
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Read the Restoration Plan
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Learn more about the cemetery's history
Media Coverage:
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Click on Detroit Historic Black cemetery abandoned for 60 years in Washtenaw County to be restored.
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MLive: A historic Black cemetery was abandoned 60 years ago. Now, it could be restored. May 2025
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Michigan Bridge Article June 2025 Abandoned Michigan cemetery unearths history of segregation — even in death.
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CBS News Volunteers clear overgrowth at historically Black cemetery in Ypsilanti to celebrate Juneteenth June 19, 2025
This project is made possible through the collaborative efforts of multiple organizations and people: the co-leadership of Dr. Debby Covington (Historic District Commissioner and AACHM Chair), and Kat Slocum, archeologist, the Washtenaw County Historic District Commission, the African American Cultural and Historical Museum of Washtenaw County, and Ypsilanti Township, the African American Genealogical Society of Washtenaw County, the Roberson Family, and descendants of family members for whom Woodlawn Cemetery was their final resting place, and the Washtenaw County Racial Equity Office to restore the site.