West Point Cemetery, Norfolk, Virginia

“Under pressure from the black community, in 1873 the City of Norfolk designated an area of the city specifically for African American burials. Black city councilman and Union war veteran James E. Fuller proposed it be named West Point Cemetery in 1885, and asked the city council to dedicate a section of the cemetery to his fellow black Civil War veterans. This resulted in the cemetery’s most distinguished feature, as well as a prominent example of African Americans exercising newfound political power during Reconstruction: a grouping of 58 headstones of African American Union Civil War soldiers and sailors, and a monument dedicated to their service. It took over 30 years for the money to be raised for the monument, which was completed in 1920, one of only a few similar known monuments in the South. The model for the soldier featured atop it was Norfolk native Sgt. William H. Carney. The 14-acre cemetery also contains a Potter’s Field, or burying ground for the indigent, of 55 headstones that predate the formal establishment of West Point by 30 years; an 1876 mausoleum for a local mason; and several family plots.”

Donna Bluemink and Tim Bonney created a database of West Point Cemetery burials. Their sources included the City of Norfolk Register of Deaths, 1852-1897, St. Mary’s Parish Records, and obituaries.

National Register of Historic Places — Final Nomination Form — West Point Cemetery — #122-5181
includes these facts:
“When federal policy allowed the Union army to enlist blacks, Norfolk was one of the few major cities in the South where blacks could be recruited because the area had been re-occupied by Union forces. After the Conscription Act of 1863 went into effect, northern recruiters flocked to Norfolk and offered bonuses of $300 to blacks who were willing to serve as substitutes for white draftees. The large amount of money that local blacks received led to the establishment of a bank for freedmen in Norfolk and it served as a model for freedmen’s banks in other cities.1 In addition to local blacks serving in northern units, they enlisted in the 1st and 2nd Cavalry Regiments on the peninsula, and the 36th, 37th, and 38th Infantry
Regiments which were organized in Norfolk and Portsmouth. About 1200 local blacks served. They distinguished themselves at the battles of Chaffin Farms, New Market Heights, Fair Oaks, Dutch Gap, and the sieges of Petersburg and Richmond. Many were cited for bravery and awarded medals.”