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Hidden Oberlin Cemetery could get historic status |
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Tucked away behind the InterAct shelter and an apartment complex, Oberlin Cemetery is one of the least-known burial sites in Raleigh. It's not maintained by the city, and many of its graves aren't even marked.
But Oberlin is one of Raleigh's oldest black cemeteries, dating to the 1870s. And it's among the last reminders of an earlier age in this section of town - long before Cameron Village shopping center brought major development to Oberlin Road.
Before Cameron Village, the area was known as Oberlin Village: Wake County's largest settlement of free blacks after the Civil War. A businessman sold plots of land to former slaves, and before long the area had its own school and businesses.
Few of those homes remain today, with most bulldozed decades ago to make way for new shops and neighborhoods. Former residents of Oberlin Village and others in the modern neighborhood want to see the cemetery - and the history it represents - recognized. Last week, they made their case to the Raleigh City Council to add Oberlin Cemetery to the list of Raleigh Historic Landmarks.
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(The News & Observer, 1/22/2013)
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