Know someone buried at Oakwood Cemetery?

Oakwood Cemetery Chapel staff members are searching for the descendants of people of color buried in the Oakwood Cemetery. The descendants will be invited to participate in a “vision session” this spring with historic preservation and archaeology project specialists, who are researching the “collective memory of the history of Austin, Texas, and the American South,” according to a news release. One cemetery staffer has researched over 2,700 burials at Oakwood Cemetery and has a list of names of people known to be buried in the area, dating back to the 1860s. Participants may be asked to record an oral history of their family and share photos and other information about their family heritage in order to create a family tree. If you are a descendant of someone buried at Oakwood Cemetery, or have information that might be useful to the project, email Jennifer.Chenoweth@AustinTexas.gov or call (512) 978-2310.