Black Georgetown Foundation-dba

Black Georgetown Foundation-dba Mt Zion Church and Female Union Band Society Cemeteries are two of the oldest Black cemeteries in Georgetown and greater Washington, DC.

Listed on the National Registry of Historic Places and designated as a UNESCO Slave Route Project site of memory.

As promised at our August 4 Town Hall, we sent our remaining questions to the agencies in writing and said we would shar...
09/01/2026

As promised at our August 4 Town Hall, we sent our remaining questions to the agencies in writing and said we would share their responses publicly.

DDOT responded on August 27. Their responses are included here, along with the questions we actually asked.

And some of the most important questions are still not answered.

We still do not have the complete findings from the October 2025 Lyons Mill Road archaeological survey, the map showing where those findings are located, or a date for when they will be marked in the field.

We still do not have an archaeological accounting of what happened during more than 30 days of excavation when no archaeologist was onsite. DDOT’s response is that its construction contractor did not find artifacts during that period. But a construction contractor saying it did not find artifacts does not answer who was qualified to recognize, document, retain, or discard archaeological material when there was no archaeologist there.

And we still do not have a written protection and reopening plan for Lyons Mill Road — including who will lead that process, how known and potential burials will be protected, and when DDOT, the National Park Service, and Black Georgetown Foundation will meet to address next steps.

The last slide lays out what we are still waiting for.

Read what we asked. Read what DDOT said.

A response is not necessarily an answer.

We also received written responses from the D.C. Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service. Those are coming next.

Very different levels of protection.At a historic African American cemetery in Silver Spring, Maryland (under a parking ...
08/27/2026

Very different levels of protection.

At a historic African American cemetery in Silver Spring, Maryland (under a parking lot) the message is clear: DO NOT ENTER. CEMETERY PRESERVATION ZONE. BURIALS PRESENT ONSITE. The area is fenced and the public is plainly told that burials are being protected.

At Lyons Mill Road beside Female Union Band Society Cemetery in Georgetown, DDOT has identified potential burial locations and stakes and flags remain in the ground — yet the ROAD CLOSED / DO NOT ENTER signage has been removed.

We are still waiting for the complete findings from the October 2025 Lyons Mill Road archaeological survey. We are still waiting for a protection and reopening plan.

In the meantime, we are asking for the bare minimum: keep the area clearly closed and protect the archaeological markings and potential burials while the reports, legal discussions, and planning continue.

Unresolved archaeology is not a reason to remove protection.

It is the reason protection is needed.

ROAD CLOSED until D.C. Department of Transportation and DC Office of Planning mark the field and announce their protec...
08/27/2026

ROAD CLOSED until D.C. Department of Transportation and DC Office of Planning mark the field and announce their protection plan.

We submitted our questions to DDOT and asked they be answered by August 18th. We'll keep you updated. Also if anyone knows this entitled trespasser please ask him to respect the ancestors. If he needs a walk figure out the parallel path on the East side.

CLOSED until D.C. Department of Transportation and DC Office of Planning come up with a plan. There are shallow burials ...
08/25/2026

CLOSED until D.C. Department of Transportation and DC Office of Planning come up with a plan. There are shallow burials on this path.

Respect the ancestors. CLOSED FOR A REASON

Thanks to Patrick and Erika for sending video and photos of our deer friends 🧡
08/22/2026

Thanks to Patrick and Erika for sending video and photos of our deer friends 🧡

Some good news from Mount Zion Cemetery: two names have come back into view.While examining the area near the historic b...
08/15/2026

Some good news from Mount Zion Cemetery: two names have come back into view.

While examining the area near the historic burial vault, Black Georgetown Foundation Patrick (board member) rediscovered the long-buried headstone of John Carr. The nearly six-foot Virginia bluestone marker weighs approximately 600 pounds and was not recorded in the 1975 cemetery surveys.

Its inscription tells us that Carr was a Philadelphia native, a mason by profession, and died October 31, 1815, “in the hope of a better hereafter.” It was erected by his friend and “well wisher,” Robert Leckie—another mason who helped build important infrastructure in early Washington.

Research by Dr. Mark Auslander suggests that Carr may be the Philadelphia resident found in the 1790, 1800 and 1810 censuses. He may have come to Washington when masons were urgently needed to rebuild the city after the British burning of 1814. His full story is still unfolding. John Carr also reminds us this was an in*******al cemetery.

Patrick also rediscovered the headstone of Guy B. Bennett lying face-down near the Doughty family monument. Born around 1854 in Warren County, Georgia, Bennett may have been born into slavery. He later worked in Augusta as a porter and driver before moving to the Washington area. Beginning in 1903, he worked as a civilian teamster for the War Department at Fort Myer, and in 1907 he lived at 2704 P Street in Georgetown.

Although Bennett’s shield-shaped marker resembles a military headstone, Mark found no evidence that he served in the military. Bennett was also a member of the J. McC Crummill Lodge No. 1437 of the Grand United Order of Odd Fellows, an important African American mutual-aid organization.

The stone gives his death as January 7, 1928, but newspaper notices and a memorial placed by his widow confirm that he died January 7, 1929.

Each headstone can reopen a life,its labor, family, friendships, faith and journey. Thank you to Patrick for bringing these markers back into view and to Mark for helping return John Carr and Guy Bennett to the historical record.

Read more at Dr. Mark Auslander’s website www.markauslander.com

08/14/2026

Email from MT Zion - Female Union Band Historic Memorial Park, Inc What we heard, what remains unresolved and next steps Thank You for Standing with Us Thank you to everyone who attended the Black Ge

"This is like an outdoor library. They're pages of history. It can't be erased."That's what I told NBC4's Paulina Inglim...
08/12/2026

"This is like an outdoor library. They're pages of history. It can't be erased."

That's what I told NBC4's Paulina Inglima, standing among seven wooden stakes that mark potential graves about three feet below the ground of the Mt Zion – Female Union Band Society cemeteries — the oldest remaining intact Black cemeteries in Washington, DC, dating back to 1808 and 1842.

She came to our August 4 town hall, then walked the grounds with us afterward. What her reporting found:

→ A 2025 report recommends special monitoring within 50 feet of an identified burial. DDOT's margin on the Mill Road project was five feet.

→ We weren't told burials had been found until a DDOT employee mentioned it in passing in November 2025.

→ DDOT's head of external affairs: "We should have just put the time into finding another location."

→ DC's historic protection act contains no specific protocols for protection around graves.

This is American history.

Release the Report. Show the Maps. Protect the Burials.

SWIPE --->

BlackHistory DDOT

Address

2501 Mill Road NW
Washington D.C., DC
20007

Telephone

+12025966474

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Black Georgetown Foundation-dba posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Museum

Send a message to Black Georgetown Foundation-dba:

Shortcuts

Share