Last updated: January 8, 2025
Article
Mount Peace Cemetery (Lawnside, New Jersey)
African American Civil Rights Network
Mount Peace Cemetery is an African American cemetery in the historically black borough of Lawnside, New Jersey. Established in the early 1900s, the cemetery is the final resting place for thousands of African American women, men, and children.
Mount Peace Cemetery was established on 18 acres of farmland in Lawnside, New Jersey in 1900. Lawnside, is a historically African American community with roots stretching to at least the late 1700s. First known as Free Haven, the community was a stop and way station on the Underground Railroad, a large informal network that helped enslaved people gain their freedom. In 1926, the community, then known as Lawnside, incorporated to become the first self-governing Black municipality outside of the South.
Mount Peace was developed to provide African Americans in Lawnside, nearby Camden, New Jersey, and surrounding communities appropriate and respectful burial of their dead due to discriminatory clauses that existed in many cemeteries of the era. The cemetery is the final resting place for over 7,000 African American women, men, and children, including formerly enslaved men and women, Civil War veterans, educators, abolitionists, ministers, community leaders, and everyday people.
Mount Peace Cemetery became a part of the African American Civil Rights Network in 2024.
The African American Civil Rights Network recognizes the African American Civil Rights Movement in the United States and the sacrifices made by those who fought against discrimination and segregation. Created by the African American Civil Rights Act of 2017, and coordinated by the National Park Service, the Network tells the stories of the people, places, and events of the U.S. African American Civil Rights Movement through a collection of public and private resources to include properties, facilities, and programs.
Mount Peace Cemetery is an African American cemetery in the historically black borough of Lawnside, New Jersey. Established in the early 1900s, the cemetery is the final resting place for thousands of African American women, men, and children.
Mount Peace Cemetery was established on 18 acres of farmland in Lawnside, New Jersey in 1900. Lawnside, is a historically African American community with roots stretching to at least the late 1700s. First known as Free Haven, the community was a stop and way station on the Underground Railroad, a large informal network that helped enslaved people gain their freedom. In 1926, the community, then known as Lawnside, incorporated to become the first self-governing Black municipality outside of the South.
Mount Peace was developed to provide African Americans in Lawnside, nearby Camden, New Jersey, and surrounding communities appropriate and respectful burial of their dead due to discriminatory clauses that existed in many cemeteries of the era. The cemetery is the final resting place for over 7,000 African American women, men, and children, including formerly enslaved men and women, Civil War veterans, educators, abolitionists, ministers, community leaders, and everyday people.
Mount Peace Cemetery became a part of the African American Civil Rights Network in 2024.
The African American Civil Rights Network recognizes the African American Civil Rights Movement in the United States and the sacrifices made by those who fought against discrimination and segregation. Created by the African American Civil Rights Act of 2017, and coordinated by the National Park Service, the Network tells the stories of the people, places, and events of the U.S. African American Civil Rights Movement through a collection of public and private resources to include properties, facilities, and programs.