TAMPA, Fla. — Editor's note: The above video 10 Investigates' special called "Erased," which focuses on forgotten and destroyed Black cemeteries in Tampa Bay.
A new exhibit at the University of South Florida will highlight the multi-year project to uncover forgotten, erased and unmarked burial grounds and cemeteries in Hillsborough County, many of which were the final resting place for Black residents.
"What Lies Beneath: The Search for Unmarked Burial Grounds in Hillsborough County" opens Sept. 15 and will be available for public viewing through Jan. 30, 2024, at The Waterman Exhibit Gallery.
The exhibit features the culmination of multiple years of work led by forensic anthropologist and associate professor Dr. Erin Kimmerle. Kimmerle and her research team rediscovered and identified 45 unmarked cemeteries in throughout the Tampa Bay area. These cemeteries were "previously lost to history."
Now, they will be "shared with the public through historic and modern photographs, archival documents, maps and mixed media sculptures." You can find more information on the exhibit by clicking here.
Since 2019, 10 Tampa Bay investigative reporter Emerald Morrow has extensively covered the search for, rediscovery and identification of destroyed Black cemeteries across the Tampa Bay area through her series "Erased."
Her reporting included the rediscoveries of Zion Cemetery and Ridgewood Cemetery, which were both segregated Black burial grounds in Tampa destroyed and built over in the 1950s. Zion Cemetery lies on Florida Avenue property owned by the Tampa Housing Authority and the Ridgewood Cemetery is on the grounds of King High School, owned by the Hillsborough School Board Authority.
The discovery of both these destroyed Black cemeteries led the Hillsborough County Board of Commissioners to open an investigation into whether more unmarked and destroyed cemeteries were on county-owned property.
Of the 45 unmarked cemeteries found by Kimmerle and her team, at least 18 — 44 percent — of the sites were predominantly African American, Afro-Cuban or were classified as "Colored" during segregation, according to USF.