Burr Oak Cemetery and Restvale Cemetery
Encyclopedia
Burr Oak Cemetery is a 150 acre (0.607029 km²) cemetery located in unincorporated Cook County, Illinois
, adjacent to Alsip
, a suburb slightly southwest of Chicago
. As one of the few cemeteries focused on the needs of the African-American community, it is the final resting place of many black celebrities, including Chicago blues
musicians, athletes, and other notables.
Ellis Stewart, secretary of the black-owned Supreme Liberty Life Insurance company, joined with Earl B. Dickerson
, a prominent Chicago lawyer, to develop a cemetery that would meet the needs of the burgeoning African-American population in Chicago, a demographic change brought about by the great migration
of blacks from the South during the early decades of the 20th century.
Stewart had located a possible site for the cemetery just outside the Chicago city limits near Alsip, Illinois. The owners of the land ultimately sold 40 acres for $50,000, $40,000 of which was loaned by the Roosevelt State Bank and the remainder raised by subscription. The new group was incorporated as the Burr Oak Cemetery Association, and a suitable corpse was found in the morgue to legally dedicate the cemetery.
Unfortunately, the Alsip townsfolk did not approve of a black cemetery next to the village and, "with the assistance of armed police", drove the burial party away. The burial party eventually returned, however, with a deputy sheriff (courtesy of Robert E. Crowe
the Republican state's attorney) and was successfully able to legally dedicate Burr Oak.
During the Great Depression
, the Burr Oak Cemetery Association defaulted on the mortgage. Dickerson again stepped in to help arrange for the black-owned Supreme Liberty Life Insurance company to buy the mortgage at roughly 10 cents to the dollar. The re-constituted Chicago Burr Oak Cemetery Association eventually paid off the mortgage. Dickerson later said that "saving that cemetery was one of the great achievements as a lawyer".
alleged that four workers at Burr Oak cemetery dug up more than 200 graves, dumped the bodies into unmarked mass graves, and resold the plots in a scheme that went back at least five years. The three men and one woman were charged with one count each of dismembering a human body and face up to 30 years in prison. They are currently free on bond and awaiting trial.
Because of the investigation, the entire cemetery was declared a crime scene
by the Cook County Sheriff's Office and temporarily closed to the public. The court-assigned receiver
managing the cemetery had hoped to reopen it in September, but on October 13, 2009 visiting families found the cemetery still closed, with no statement on when it would reopen. The sheriff's office set up a searchable database with photographs of most headstones. The cemetery records were in great disarray, but the usable ones were computerized and turned over to the receiver for integration into the database.
A study of the records indicated that between 140,190 and 147,568 people were buried at Burr Oak. However, the cemetery has space for a maximum of 130,000 graves, and some areas appear never to have been used for burials. After burials resumed in November 2009, some human remains were found in areas that no one knew had been used.
On May 24, 2011, a federal judge approved a plan to place the cemetery into a trust that will use about $2.6 million of a $7 million insurance settlement to renovate and run the cemetery. The judge set aside at least $50,000 for a memorial to honor those whose graves were lost or desecrated. Those who can prove they buried relatives in the cemetery will receive $100 per grave. Those whose relatives' graves were destroyed may apply for more money.
Cook County, Illinois
Cook County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois, with its county seat in Chicago. It is the second most populous county in the United States after Los Angeles County. The county has 5,194,675 residents, which is 40.5 percent of all Illinois residents. Cook County's population is larger than...
, adjacent to Alsip
Alsip, Illinois
Alsip is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,725 at the 2000 census. It is a suburb of Chicago.Alsip was settled in the 1830s by German and Dutch farmers. The village is named after Frank Alsip, the owner of a brickyard that opened there in 1885...
, a suburb slightly southwest of Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. As one of the few cemeteries focused on the needs of the African-American community, it is the final resting place of many black celebrities, including Chicago blues
Chicago blues
The Chicago blues is a form of blues music that developed in Chicago, Illinois, by taking the basic acoustic guitar and harmonica-based Delta blues, making the harmonica louder with a microphone and an instrument amplifier, and adding electrically amplified guitar, amplified bass guitar, drums,...
musicians, athletes, and other notables.
History of Burr Oak
The origins of Burr Oak Cemetery date back to 1927 whenEllis Stewart, secretary of the black-owned Supreme Liberty Life Insurance company, joined with Earl B. Dickerson
Earl B. Dickerson
Earl B. Dickerson was a prominent African American attorney, community activist and business executive who successfully argued before the U. S. Supreme Court in Hansberry v. Lee.-Early life:...
, a prominent Chicago lawyer, to develop a cemetery that would meet the needs of the burgeoning African-American population in Chicago, a demographic change brought about by the great migration
Great Migration (African American)
The Great Migration was the movement of 6 million blacks out of the Southern United States to the Northeast, Midwest, and West from 1910 to 1970. Some historians differentiate between a Great Migration , numbering about 1.6 million migrants, and a Second Great Migration , in which 5 million or more...
of blacks from the South during the early decades of the 20th century.
Stewart had located a possible site for the cemetery just outside the Chicago city limits near Alsip, Illinois. The owners of the land ultimately sold 40 acres for $50,000, $40,000 of which was loaned by the Roosevelt State Bank and the remainder raised by subscription. The new group was incorporated as the Burr Oak Cemetery Association, and a suitable corpse was found in the morgue to legally dedicate the cemetery.
Unfortunately, the Alsip townsfolk did not approve of a black cemetery next to the village and, "with the assistance of armed police", drove the burial party away. The burial party eventually returned, however, with a deputy sheriff (courtesy of Robert E. Crowe
Robert E. Crowe
Robert E. Crowe was a Chicago lawyer and politician, who is best known as the prosecutor in the 1924 Leopold and Loeb murder case....
the Republican state's attorney) and was successfully able to legally dedicate Burr Oak.
During the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, the Burr Oak Cemetery Association defaulted on the mortgage. Dickerson again stepped in to help arrange for the black-owned Supreme Liberty Life Insurance company to buy the mortgage at roughly 10 cents to the dollar. The re-constituted Chicago Burr Oak Cemetery Association eventually paid off the mortgage. Dickerson later said that "saving that cemetery was one of the great achievements as a lawyer".
Burr Oak Scandal
On July 9, 2009 Cook County Sheriff Tom DartTom Dart
Thomas J. "Tom" Dart is the current Sheriff of Cook County, Illinois. His department is the second largest in the United States after the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.-Career:...
alleged that four workers at Burr Oak cemetery dug up more than 200 graves, dumped the bodies into unmarked mass graves, and resold the plots in a scheme that went back at least five years. The three men and one woman were charged with one count each of dismembering a human body and face up to 30 years in prison. They are currently free on bond and awaiting trial.
Because of the investigation, the entire cemetery was declared a crime scene
Crime scene
A crime scene is a location where an illegal act took place, and comprises the area from which most of the physical evidence is retrieved by trained law enforcement personnel, crime scene investigators or in rare circumstances, forensic scientists....
by the Cook County Sheriff's Office and temporarily closed to the public. The court-assigned receiver
Receivership
In law, receivership is the situation in which an institution or enterprise is being held by a receiver, a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights." The receivership remedy is an equitable remedy that emerged in...
managing the cemetery had hoped to reopen it in September, but on October 13, 2009 visiting families found the cemetery still closed, with no statement on when it would reopen. The sheriff's office set up a searchable database with photographs of most headstones. The cemetery records were in great disarray, but the usable ones were computerized and turned over to the receiver for integration into the database.
A study of the records indicated that between 140,190 and 147,568 people were buried at Burr Oak. However, the cemetery has space for a maximum of 130,000 graves, and some areas appear never to have been used for burials. After burials resumed in November 2009, some human remains were found in areas that no one knew had been used.
On May 24, 2011, a federal judge approved a plan to place the cemetery into a trust that will use about $2.6 million of a $7 million insurance settlement to renovate and run the cemetery. The judge set aside at least $50,000 for a memorial to honor those whose graves were lost or desecrated. Those who can prove they buried relatives in the cemetery will receive $100 per grave. Those whose relatives' graves were destroyed may apply for more money.
Notable burials
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- James Kokomo ArnoldKokomo ArnoldKokomo Arnold was an American blues musician.Born as James Arnold in Lovejoy's Station, Georgia, he got his nickname in 1934 after releasing "Old Original Kokomo Blues" for the Decca label; it was a cover of the Scrapper Blackwell blues song about the city of Kokomo, Indiana...
(1901-1968), blues musician - Walter BarnesWalter BarnesWalter Barnes was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist and bandleader....
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(1968-1995), actor - Ezzard CharlesEzzard CharlesEzzard Mack Charles was an African-American professional boxer and former world heavyweight champion. He holds wins over numerous Hall of Fame fighters in three different weight classes. Charles retired with a record of 93 wins, 25 losses and 1 draw.-Career:He was born in Lawrenceville, Georgia,...
(1921-1975), world heavyweight boxing champion - George "Sonny" CohnSonny CohnGeorge T. "Sonny" Cohn was an American jazz trumpeter.After working for fifteen years with Red Saunders , he went on to spend another 24 years in Count Basie's trumpet section .-Biography:...
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(1915-1992), blues musician and songwriter - John Donaldson (1892-1970), star pre-Negro League baseball pitcher and barnstormer businessman
- Jodie Edwards (1895-1967), of comedy duo Butterbeans and SusieButterbeans and SusieButterbeans and Susie were a comedy duo made up of Jodie Edwards and Susie Edwards, née Susie Hawthorne . Edwards began his career in 1910 as a singer and dancer. Meanwhile, Hawthorne performed in African American theater. The two met in 1916 when Hawthorne was in the chorus of the Smart Set show...
- Carl Augustus HansberryCarl Augustus HansberryCarl Augustus Hansberry was an American real estate broker, inventor and political activist. He was also the father of award-winning playwright Lorraine Hansberry and the great-grandfather of actress Taye Hansberry....
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in 2006 - Edward Giles IrvinEdward Giles IrvinEdward Giles Irvin was a founder of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Incorporated. He was a recipient of the Laurel Wreath, the highest recognition of achievement for the fraternity.-Early life:...
(1893 - 1982), founder of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. - Inman Jackson (1907-1973), player with the Harlem GlobetrottersHarlem GlobetrottersThe Harlem Globetrotters are an exhibition basketball team that combines athleticism, theater and comedy. The executive offices for the team are currently in downtown Phoenix, Arizona; the team is owned by Shamrock Holdings, which oversees the various investments of the Roy E. Disney family.Over...
- Roberta MartinRoberta MartinRoberta Martin was an American gospel composer, singer, pianist, arranger and choral organizer, helped launch the careers of many other gospel artists through her group, The Roberta Martin Singers.-Early years:...
(1907-1969), gospel music singer, pianist, composer and founder of The Roberta Martin SingersThe Roberta Martin Singers-Career:The Roberta Martin Singers were an African-American gospel group based in the United States. The group was founded in 1933 by Roberta Martin, who in that same year had just become acquainted with the then new trend of Christian music known as gospel, which was different than the traditional... - Graham T. PerryGraham T. PerryGraham T. Perry was a prominent African American attorney who served as assistant attorney general for the State of Illinois. He is also the father of stage director Shauneille Perry and uncle of playwright Lorraine Hansberry.-Biography:...
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(1930-1970), blues pianist - James A. "Candy Jim" TaylorCandy Jim TaylorJames Allen "Candy Jim" Taylor was an American third baseman and manager in Negro league baseball.-Biography:Born in Anderson, South Carolina, Taylor was one of four brothers who played in the Negro Leagues, along with Ben, C. I. and "Steel Arm" Johnny...
(1884-1948), Negro League baseball player and manager - Emmett TillEmmett TillEmmett Louis "Bobo" Till was an African-American boy who was murdered in Mississippi at the age of 14 after reportedly flirting with a white woman. Till was from Chicago, Illinois visiting his relatives in the Mississippi Delta region when he spoke to 21-year-old Carolyn Bryant, the married...
(1941-1955), murder victim whose death helped galvanize the U.S. Civil Rights Movement - Ted "Highpockets" Trent (-1944), Negro League pitcherPitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
with 45 wins and 13 losses - Bishop William M. Roberts (1876-1954), oversaw churches in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Iowa, Arkansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Wisconsin
- Dinah WashingtonDinah WashingtonDinah Washington, born Ruth Lee Jones , was an American blues, R&B and jazz singer. She has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the '50s", and called "The Queen of the Blues"...
(1924-1963), "Queen of the Blues" - J. Mayo WilliamsJ. Mayo WilliamsJay Mayo "Ink" Williams was a pioneering African-American producer of recorded blues music. Ink Williams earned his nickname by his ability to get the signatures of talented African-American musicians on recording contracts...
(1894-1980) Early blues and jazz record producer and one of the first black players in the NFL