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Cleanup Day for Free Black Family Cemetery located at Pleasant Grove United Methodist Church

There is a Black cemetery section at Pleasant Grove Church Cemetery in Raleigh. This cemetery is the resting place for several members of a Chavis family who lived on the land adjacent to the Pleasant Grove Church. The family were Free Persons of Color.  Graves within the Chavis cemetery appear below. 

Click image to view larger
Headstones read left to right - Richard, son of Anderson and Tabitha Chavis, Mar.15, 1842-Jan.8, 1914;
Rhoda, Wife of Richard Chavis, (B&D are illegible); Small stone marked ACR (no dates)

A committee of PGUMC church members intend to clean and preserve this portion of the cemetery with an eye to restoration and historical significance.  They are seeking volunteers to help with their efforts.

Seeking descendants of this Chavis family, 
willing hearts, 
and helping hands for
a cleanup day.

Saturday, April 25, 9 am to 1 pm.

at Pleasant Grove United Methodist Church

4415 Pleasant Grove Church Road, Raleigh 27613

Direct questions to 
Email: pgumcchurchsociety@gmail.com

If you are or know of descendants of this family, please get in touch with the cleanup group or share quickly so those interested can participate. 

This Chavis cemetery appears in the Wake County Cemetery files on our website at this link.

The survey form for the Black cemetery at Pleasant Grove Church Cem. shows "about 12 graves in an abandoned Black Family Cemetery.  There are 2 marked stones."

  • Richard Chavis (15 Mar 1842 - 8 Jan 1914), Son of Anderson and Tabitha Chavis.
  • Rhoda, Wife of Richard Chavis (8 Aug 1842 - 8 May 1926) note that this date is worn beyond recognition in the photo above. About 30-40 years have elapsed between the survey and photo above.
The rest are recorded as unmarked. (Anderson and Tabitha Chavis had a large family, these other graves could be members of their family.)

This cemetery also appears on these websites:


An Ancestry Search for Anderson (1810-1875?) and Tabitha (Hinton?) Chavis (1817-1916) reveal that they were Free People of Color*. They had 12 children in total (including Richard) and others of their children may be buried here. 

*The fact that Anderson and family are recorded in the 1840 and 1850 census indicate that they are Free People of Color. 

There is much more to learn about Anderson and Tabitha Chavis and their descendants. Their story is still being discovered.


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