“In Westtown Township, Chester County, there is a neglected cemetery where at least 12 Civil War U.S. Colored Troops are buried,” writer Gail Guterl shared in an email. “Their gravestones and those of 100 others buried there are gone, as is the church they attended,” she said.
The church, Shiloh AME, closed in 1921. In 1960, the land was sold and both the church and the graves were razed.
Since the land is now privately owned, descendants of the USCT veterans are not able to visit their relatives’ final resting places. It also means no one will be placing flags on the graves of these soldiers come Memorial Day. The Friends of Shiloh AME Church is hoping to change that.
“This month, millions of veterans will be honored on the Memorial Day holiday. But no one will be visiting the graves of these proud Black soldiers,” they shared in a release.
On Saturday, May 25 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., they will hold a rally on the Old Courthouse steps to call attention to these forgotten soldiers. Eventually they hope to work with the current landowner to reopen access to the site and maybe even get a permanent reminder of their sacrifice.
“We’d love it if the landowner were to deed that half acre of land to the township or Friends of Shiloh and we would then honor the dead with a monument,” said Gail.
During the rally, the Sons of Union Veterans will present arms, and author Dr. Cheryl Renee Gooch will speak, along with Sons of Union Veterans member David Walter and Friends of Shiloh Chair Stephen Lyons. The public is invited to attend the rally to learn about these forgotten soldiers.
A few other ways to give back this weekend:
Give a few hours of your time each month. The Trinity Treasures Thrift Shop is at 10 W. Barnard St. behind the 7-Eleven. This all-volunteer shop gets all its inventory via donations and they are currently inundated with supplies, store manager Lisa Lauritsen told me. “We are currently only open every Friday and the first Saturday but would like to be open five to six days a week. Only problem is we need a lot of volunteers to do this,” she said. Volunteers work a three-hour shift. That could be weekly or monthly depending on how much time you have to spare.
All proceeds raised by Trinity Treasures goes to support Act in Faith and other local nonprofits.
“The mission is so amazing and I have personally helped women from the Domestic Violence Center get free clothing and helped them dress for interviews. I have also given so much clothing to the homeless. This is such a rewarding job that not getting paid is no big deal,” said Lisa.
If you can help out, send Lisa an email at lisalauritsen@comcast.net.
I prefer to just drop and run. The Community Warehouse Project of Chester County is holding a drop-off day at their West Chester location (800 E. Virginia Ave.) on Saturday. If you can help, they are looking for toasters, blenders, crock pots, coffee pots, and vacuums.
The Friends Association is also has an urgent need for household essentials – although theirs are more of a cleaning variety. They are looking for mops, large buckets, hand soap, body wash, shampoo and conditioner, bath mats and pot holders. Items can be dropped off at their W. Chestnut St. office anytime between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday or you can order online and have it delivered directly to them.
Originally published on May 17, 2024
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