I-TEAM: Hurricane Helene damages historic cemeteries in Augusta

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – City leaders have focused hurricane recovery efforts on the living but Helene disturbed the dead, causing damage to cemeteries throughout Augusta.    

If you’re thinking about taking a stroll through any of the city’s historic cemeteries, let us stop you.   

They have all been shut down since the hurricane hit more than a month ago with no date in sight to reopen.  

They’re closed up, and people are locked out.  

But revealed behind the rusted padlocks, barbed wire and crumbling brick walls are signs of history re-written by Hurricane Helene.   

Each step farther into the cemetery is anything but a place of rest. 

“This is the worst hit,” said Joyce Law, curator for Fitten Street Cemetary. 

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From sunken remains of war heroes to movers and shakers, moved and shaken out of their final resting place. 

“The historic Smiley family, they were entrepreneurs here in Sand Hills Historic District,” said Law.  

Some sites might look like they are out of a ghost story.  

“You can see a lot of the flags were snapped in half by the force of the wind,” said Law. 

The stories here belong on the pages of history books.  

“So, there are over 50 military veterans spanning from the Spanish-American War through Vietnam,” she said.  

Law’s own military career prepared her to uncover the lost history buried at Summerville cemetery — Fitton Street cemetery. 

“Back in 2018 when I was collecting information for World War One memorials, I just made a promise that when I had more time, I would devote my time to this cemetery because there is so much history here that is not documented for the general public,” said Law. 

Augusta-Richmond County’s website states that not much is known of this cemetery except that supposedly 12 Black Summer Hill residents bought the land in 1906 for a Black cemetery. The location of the record book is unknown or if it even exists.  

But through military records and oral histories from family members, Law was able to uncover more. 

She’s been piecing together the incredible history of the Sand Hills community.  

“Borkin Wright was the state attorney general at one time and where he lived his home is utilized now on the Summerville campus of Augusta University and there are a number of the estate workers that are buried here at the cemetery, so we are looking at the 1870s forward into the 1950s,” said Law.  

The men and women of the historic Sand Hills community not only served their influential neighbors but built Augusta and the system for Black Augustans to prosper. 

“To the left that is James Magnect. He is second generation general contractor, and he was one of the chief stone masons for the sluskey building which is now the headquarters for RW Allen,” said Law. 

“The gentleman that we are going to, Afra Barrington, was one of the charter directors for the penny savings and loan,” she said. 

“Thomas J. Walker is one of the founding members of the Tribunal Life Insurance Company. This is his older brother Rev. Samual Walker. He was the third pastor at Elim and Walker Baptist Institute.” 

She’s been uncovering the stories buried under these unmarked graves for the past six years.  

“So, we have a lot of tremendous stories of wealth and achievement as well as some heartbreak,” said Law. 

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She felt her own heartbreak when she saw the destruction by Hurricane Helene.  

“I thought about all of our work that had just been done that had been obliterated,” she said. 

The Fitton Street Cemetery is privately owned, but Augusta-Richmond County maintains it.   

The city itself owns five cemeteries, all of which have yet to reopen since the Hurricane hit more than a month ago. 

“Then I thought about it because we had been working on it, other people will say yes. This is a valuable piece of Augusta history that we need to continue to maintain and celebrate,” said Law. 

But the story of Summerville Cemetery Fitton Street has only just begun.  

The mayor does not yet know how much it will cost to repair the city’s cemeteries, like at Magnolia, but he’s hopeful FEMA will help out.   

Fitten Street is another story though. It’s privately owned.   

The cost estimate for the repairs is at $50,000. 

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