Southend Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Southend Cemetery in Walker County. Pull over if you can — this one deserves your full attention. There was once a neighborhood southeast of Sam Houston State University — a tight-knit, predominantly African American community folks called the Flat.

Dozens of homes. Families putting down roots, building lives, raising children. And then, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, as the university expanded, residents were forced to sell their property and relocate.

The Flat, as a neighborhood, was erased. But not entirely. Southend Cemetery remains.

The last historic link to the Flat — still standing, still holding memory in the ground. In 1920, four community leaders stepped up to make sure their people would have a place to rest. Will Ezell, Colonel Williams, Byrd Stubblefield, and Richard Dillard purchased five acres from Gibbs Brothers and Company.

Their intention: to establish an African American cemetery. Those same four men were listed as the original trustees for what was then called Pine Grove Cemetery Association. Now — why the name eventually changed to Southend Cemetery, nobody knows.

No record has been found. No explanation survives. That mystery just sits there, quiet as the graves themselves.

In those early days, the surrounding area was deeply wooded. You couldn't get there except by way of a narrow dirt road cutting through the trees. Remote, yes — but not forgotten.

The cemetery has been surveyed to contain at least two hundred graves. Veterans. Businessmen.

Civic leaders. Prominent Huntsville families going back generations. The earliest known burial is for Sarah Skelton, who died in 1920 — the same year the ground was purchased.

And the oldest marked grave belongs to Eldredge Cox, born in 1843, died in 1924. Among the noted burials: Sergeant Luby L. Smither, founding member of the first Black American Legion Post in Huntsville.

And Mance Williams — owner of the city's first African American-owned auto repair shop. These weren't footnotes. These were pillars.

As Huntsville grew, that narrow dirt road became something else entirely. It turned into an extension of Montgomery Road, and when construction connected Highway 75 all the way to Bowers Road, Southend Cemetery — once hidden back in the woods — suddenly found itself visible to the world passing by. In 1998, a group of descendants and others reorganized the Southend Cemetery Association to keep caring for this place.

And they have. The Flat is gone. But Southend Cemetery endures — a testament to the people who lived there, and to generations of African American heritage in Huntsville.

Some legacies, it turns out, you cannot force to relocate.

What the marker says

A predominantly African American neighborhood called the Flat once numbered dozens of homes in an area southeast of the original boundaries of Sam Houston State University. As the university expanded in the late 1960s and early 1970s, residents were forced to sell their property and relocate. Southend Cemetery remains the last historic link to the Flat neighborhood. In 1920, community leaders will Ezell, Colonel Williams, Byrd Stubblefield and Richard Dillard purchased five acres from Gibbs Brothers & Company to establish an African American cemetery. The four men were also listed as the original trustees for what was then called Pine Grove Cemetery Association. No record or explanation has been found for the name change to Southend Cemetery. The surrounding area was once deeply wooded and could only be accessed by way of a narrow dirt road. The cemetery has been surveyed to contain at least 200 graves, including dozens of veterans, businessmen, civic leaders, and many other prominent Huntsville individuals and families. The earliest known burial is for Sarah Skelton (d. 1920), and the oldest marked grave is for Eldredge Cox (1843-1924). Noted burials include Sgt. Luby L. Smither, founding member of the first black American Legion Post in Huntsville; and Mance Williams, owner of the city’s first African American-owned auto repair shop. As the city of Huntsville grew, the dirt access road to Southend Cemetery became an extension of Montgomery Road, and its construction from Highway 75 to Bowers Road made the site highly visible. In 1998, a group of descendants and others reorganized the Southend Cemetery Association to care for this special place. It remains a testament to residents of the Flat and generations of African American heritage in Huntsville. HISTORIC TEXAS CEMETERY – 2017