Most People Don’t Know This Park In Pennsylvania Was Built On Top Of A Burial Ground
Laughter and shrieks of unbridled excitement have emanated from Weccacoe Park in Pennsylvania for more than a century. Perhaps the centerpiece of the community, the park is a favorite with children who climb the play set, kick toward the clouds on the swings, and play on the tennis courts. But, part of the unassuming park in Pennsylvania sits atop an important part of Pennsylvanian history.
The city of Philadelphia built Weccacoe Park in 1910, after the area had sat empty for several years. It wasn't until the 21st century, when the city decided to renovate the park, that a long-forgotten cemetery was unearthed below the recreation building and the tennis courts at the playground.
Bethel Burying Ground provided the final resting place for approximately 3,000 African-Americans, many of them believed to have been members of the Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, the oldest African-American Church in the United States.
When the Mother Bethel AME Church purchased the property to be used as a cemetery in 1810, the land was not considered a part of the city of Philadelphia as it is today. At the time, African-Americans were banned from burial in cemeteries within the city limits.
The burial ground was used until 1864 when the land, not marked as a cemetery, began to deteriorate. The Mother Bethel AME Church eventually sold the land to the city to help fund the construction of its current church.
Ironically, an historian discovered the existence of the burial ground beneath Weccacoe Park around the time the city announced its plans to renovate the popular neighborhood playground.
Archaeologists began digging three feet below the park's surface in 2013, eventually uncovering the tombstone - but not the grave - of a woman named Amelia Brown, who died in 1819 at age 26. The tombstone read "Whosoever live and believeth in me, though we be dead, yet shall we live."
The archaeological team worked diligently to determine the borders of the cemetery, and how far down the graves would have been, to ensure that the park's renovation would not disturb the bodies that remained in their original burial spots.
Weccacoe Playground
Catharine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19147 215-685-1887
What do you think of the tale of this burial ground partially built below a park in Pennsylvania? Explore more of Pennsylvania’s storied history by clicking here.
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