Remembering Owen County’s Black pioneers: Walden Cemetery honored with new state marker

On a bright, sunlit Saturday afternoon, community members, historians, and descendants gathered Oct. 10 for a solemn and uplifting unveiling ceremony at the historic Walden Cemetery. Set against a tranquil backdrop of early autumn trees, the gathering marked a milestone in local historic preservation.

The afternoon program highlighted the deep historical significance and decades-long preservation efforts surrounding the sacred grounds, located just west of Spencer along Hillcrest Drive.

A Sacred Resting Place

Historian and documentarian Elizabeth Mitchell opened the formal presentations by reflecting on the spiritual weight of the property and the urgent need to reclaim its history from the ravages of time.

“This cemetery is more than a piece of ground. It is a sacred resting place. It is a record of lives lived, families formed, hardships endured, as well as contributions made to the history of Owen County,” Mitchell said. “The people buried here were part of the foundation of a community and deserved to be remembered with dignity and respect. Unfortunately, over time this cemetery has been neglected. When a cemetery is neglected, the memory of the people buried is placed at risk. Headstones, names, family histories can fade away from public awareness.”

Rather than leaving the site to decay, Wilson framed the current efforts as a crucial turning point to reclaim its history.

“With care, recognition, and action, we can restore honor to this historic site,” Wilson explained. “This site is historically notable for being the resting place of several Civil War veterans who served in the United States Colored Infantry and the United States Colored Troops. It is one of the few historically documented African American burial grounds in Indiana. Very few visible headstones are left; the rest have been desecrated. Your presence here today is a step closer in recognizing and remembering the community members buried here who were once a significant part of this county and our country.”

A Tumultuous Era

Videographer Bob Appleman, who collaborated with Mitchell on a documentary project for The Nature Conservancy, spoke next about the volatile political and social climate that greeted Black pioneers settling in Owen County during the early 1800s.

“Studying the history of this area, especially the Black families who helped develop this area in the 1830s, you don’t realize how tumultuous the time period was before the Civil War,” he said. “You had the federal government doing one thing, and then the state governments doing another that was absolutely opposed. So, to be a Black in this area was a pretty tenuous existence. But one thing that I found in studying the history [of the area] was that the Spencer community was one of the largest communities in the state because there was a sense of the culture and respect for the culture. This cemetery, and the fact that it could exist, is a statement to the group of people that were living here at that time.”

Walden Legacy and Civil War Sacrifice

Local historian, author, and former newspaper reporter Dixie Kline Richardson stepped forward next to trace the migration of free Black families, such as the Waldens, from North Carolina to Indiana decades before the outbreak of the Civil War.

“The Waldens were among a large group of Black families migrating from North Carolina to Indiana and were in Owen County three decades before the Civil War,” Richardson began. “Seven Walden men are listed as landowners in Owen County Deed Book 1, including Richard Walden, on whose land we are gathered. He gave this ground for a cemetery for his family, including the Wilsons, and his friends in 1842.”

Richardson highlighted the military service represented in the cemetery by focusing on one soldier’s story.

“Let me have Joseph Walden represent the veterans of the war whose bodies were buried here,” she said. “He was living in Orange County in 1860, where several families had settled, and there he enlisted in the United States Colored Troops in 1863. He was 25.”

Pointing to a blank headstone nearby, Richardson noted the mystery surrounding his final resting place.

“Joseph didn’t leave much of a paper trail, and here stands his stone with no inscriptions, evidently identified by someone who knew,” she explained.

Through research at the National Archives, Richardson uncovered key details of Joseph’s wartime service and its lasting personal toll.

“His unit, Company D, 28th Infantry, fought in some of the worst battles, including the Siege of Petersburg, Virginia, and the Battle of the Crater, when the dynamiting for a tunnel went wrong and killed troops in a friendly fire tragedy,” Richardson recounted. “He was discharged as a corporal in the field because deafness from the shelling from gunboats rendered him unfit for service.”

Following his military discharge, Joseph made his way back to Owen County.

“I don’t know if Joseph married. I don’t know when he came to Owen County—surely, it was to reunite with relatives,” Richardson reflected. “I don’t know much more about Joseph. I don’t know what caused his death when he was 34. I do know that he lived out those last eight years of his life in silence.”

Closing her remarks, Richardson reflected on the broader meaning of the sacred grounds and the enduring debt owed to those buried there.

“We don’t know the individual life experiences of those interred in this cemetery, but we do know by these markers that they existed,” Richardson said. “Their lives had meaning, and we need the visual testimonies that they were here.”

Ancestral Pride

Vivian Bridgewater, a direct descendant of the Wilson family, addressed the gathering to express deep gratitude for the renewed public recognition of her ancestors and their enduring contributions.

“I just want to thank all of you for being out here this afternoon. I am a proud descendant of John and Adeline Wilson. They also have roots in Owen County and the Lick Creek settlement that you spoke about, Mr. Walden coming up from that area,” she said. “I’m proud, especially in today’s environment, to be able to stand here as a surviving descendant of these families and these veterans, Civil War veterans, World War veterans, in my family on the Wilson side and on the Thomas side. There’s been so much said to belittle the contribution of African Americans that it does my heart good to see people stand out here and recognize not just where they lay, but what they contributed.”

Uncovering Hidden History

Owen County Historian Dr. Tony Neff later shared his ongoing amazement at the rich tapestry of local Black history that continues to surface through archival and community research.

“I’m really proud of what’s going on here,” Neff said. “I’ve been [researching] the history of Black Americans in Owen County for some time, and it always surprises me when some new thing comes up. Like years ago, I didn’t know we had a school or we had a church. And then, I found out about [this] cemetery and one of the first things I did was come here, try to figure out what was going on, and find ways to bring it back to life and get recognition.”

Preserving the Archival Record

Jason Kinney of the Owen County Historical & Genealogical Society (OCHGS) opened his remarks by expressing gratitude to Mitchell for securing the Indiana Cemetery Heritage sign and organizing the day’s program. Kinney then paused to honor the late Roger Peterson, who served for many years as the Owen County Historian and Archivist and remained an active member of the OCHGS from 1990 until his passing in 2003.

“Roger was instrumental and a driving force in organizing the old county records into the Owen County Archives,” Kinney said. “A special interest of his was researching the African American history of Owen County. Roger said, ‘African Americans were among the pioneers of Owen County and did their share in contributing to the development of the county.’ He felt it was important that their story be told.”

Kinney recounted how Peterson’s extensive local research began in 1990 while searching for a serious research topic. A chance encounter with Coy D. Robbins, president of the Indiana African American Historical & Genealogical Society, while waiting at a copy machine at Kinko’s in Bloomington sparked a pivotal collaboration. Sharing Peterson’s own account, Kinney noted:

“During the conversation the thought occurred that I might have found the subject. I made a preliminary search of Owen County records and thought such an investigation might be fruitful. I then asked Coy if he would like me to research Owen County records for references to African Americans. He responded affirmatively and during a few meetings he coached me as to things I should look for. I then began a search for every reference I could find, in every record book, in the courthouse to discover what the research would reveal.”

Following this deep dive into county records, Peterson published his findings in a book, as well as in the local newspaper and the historical society’s magazine. Kinney pointed out that years ago, Peterson and the historical society originally installed a historical sign about Walden Cemetery, which has now been carefully recreated to be reinstalled soon.

Decades of Community Stewardship

Nancy Lorenz, a well-known local resident and former educator who lives across from Walden Cemetery, spoke about her decades of collaboration with students from Indiana University’s Atkins Living-Learning Center to protect the burial site. The Atkins LLC is a residential community at IU Bloomington focused on academic excellence, leadership, and African American history and culture.

Reflecting on her four decades at the university and her long-standing collaboration with students, Lorenz explained that introducing them to the cemetery was a vital part of their personal and academic development. She frequently welcomed students to her home and brought them to the historic site at the start of each academic year to impress upon them its significance. Although many of the original headstones have vanished, Lorenz preserved a collection of historical headstone rubbings created by her students over the years, adding invaluable documentation to the site’s ongoing legacy.

Summing up her deep personal connection to the hallowed grounds, she reflected that while she does not own the property, she has always felt like its dedicated “caretaker.”

Lorenz also highlighted the creation of a new entrance sign—a recreation of one her father had built years earlier—by friend Mike Bruner. The sign is constructed out of 200-year-old poplar wood from New Harmony, IN, featuring an official 1860s coin-reverse eagle emblem.

Libation Ceremony and Roll Call

The afternoon’s events culminated in a traditional African libation ceremony, officiated by Mitchell’s cousin, Carolyn Tillman, who was visiting from California. Following the African proverb that “people who lack knowledge of their past are like a tree without roots,” cool water was poured into the earth to purify and nourish souls while invoking the ancestors. After each name was called, the audience joined in unison with the Swahili affirmation, “Asé” (pronounced Ah-Shay, meaning “So be it”):

• E. L. B. (1848 – unknown)
• John Boon (1810 – unknown)
• Ellen Burnett (March 1846 – unknown)
• Leonard O. “Len” Burnett (Nov. 24, 1855 – Jan. 21, 1919)
• J. C. Cline (1842 – April 21, 1908) — Co. D, 28th United States Colored Infantry
• Clorenda Evans (Aug. 1, 1847 – April 1, 1892)
• Nettie Evans (Dec. 14, 1865 – March 18, 1872)
• Sarah A. “Sadie” Cole Hayes (May 26, 1856 – Sept. 8, 1909)
• William Hayes (1856 – unknown)
• Mary Magazine (Aug. 8, 1856 – April 2, 1864)
• Baby Powell (Oct. 2, 1841 – Oct. 2, 1841)
• Elizabeth “Betsey” Walden Powell (1810 – Oct. 2, 1841)
• Lincoln “Link” Reid (Aug. 16, 1860 – Aug. 6, 1905)
• Leanna Walden Scott (1819 – unknown)
• Charles Wagstaff (April 13, 1862 – Oct. 25, 1930)
• Hannah Garlits Wagstaff (Feb. 10, 1869 – Feb. 10, 1910)
• Morton Wagstaff (Nov. 16, 1869 – Oct. 22, 1966)
• Jesse Walden, Sr. (1795 – unknown)
• Joseph Walden (1838 – Feb. 17, 1872) — Co. D, 28th United States Colored Troops
• J. M. Wilson — Co. D, 28th United States Colored Troops
• J. T. Wilson — Co. H, United States Colored Infantry

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