ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — A big effort is now underway to restore two of the oldest Black cemeteries in Florida.
Volunteers have uncovered hundreds of years of history just outside downtown St. Augustine.
Weeds and grass had overtaken hundreds of graves in the San Sebastian and Pinehurst Cemeteries.
Now that they've been revealed, the next step is making sure each gets a tombstone so they aren't forgotten again.
"You literally couldn't even see the gate,: said West Augustine Improvement Association President Willie Cooper Sr. "It was that much overgrown."
The San Sebastian and Pinehurst Cemeteries are believed to be the earliest segregated African American cemeteries in Florida.
Cooper felt inspired to get involved after watching two older sisters cut a path to get to their parents' graves.
"After seeing that, it's something that touched my heart that I continue to do this 20 years later," said Cooper.
When Cooper and the West Augustine Improvement Association took over the cemeteries 10 years ago, they had to cut their way in.
What they found - tombstones dating back to the 1800s.
"You find some tombstones with chains on them. "If the chains are linked together, we've been told those were people who were born into slavery who actually died in slavery," said Cooper.
As many headstones as he found, he also found a lot of seemingly empty plots.
"You have a headstone here, then another 15-20 feet down," said Cooper. "Between there, you have to realize there's someone buried between those two spots."
Some of the graves are marked, but they used placards that have started to decay.
Before those names are lost, The West Augustine Improvement Association is raising money for 100-150 new headstones to mark those graves.
At about $200 a piece, the headstones aren't cheap, but Cooper feels like it's worth it every time he sees someone visiting a relative.
"Pleasure in it, because it's something they probably wanted to do, but because it's so overgrown, they didn't have access."
The group set up a GoFundMe seeking to raise about $20,000 for new headstones: Fundraiser by Lisa Lewis : Help Save Lost Graves at St Augustine Cemeteries (gofundme.com)
The cemetery may get a little help from state leaders.
A new law passed this year set aside a million dollars to help restore historic cemeteries.
Cooper says they also need help from anyone who may have an ancestor buried there, to show them where they are buried so they can identify even more of the lost graves.
Anyone with any information is encouraged to give the West Augustine Improvement Association a call at 904-347-0187.