Wake County North Carolina Cemeteries Other NC County Cemeteries

193    THOMAS FAMILY

Location - in the woods, down a logging trail behind an alfalfa field on Mid Pines Rd., Swift Creek Twp., Wake Co., NC.

Coordinates: 35d 44m 33.0s N; 78d 41m 52.0s W Click here for Online Maps

Surveyed by Shirley Olson in May 8, 2002.

Directions: From Hwy. I-40 on the south side of Raleigh take the Gorman Street (SR 1571) Exit # 295. Turn south at the stop sign and come to Tryon Rd. (SR 1009), about 1/4 mile. At the traffic light turn left (east) on Tryon and go 3/10 mile to Mid Pines Rd. (SR 1372) and turn right. From here it gets tricky as the cemetery is completely hidden in thick woods. Drive down Mid Pines and pass Macedonia Cemetery on the right, keep going another 1/2 mile to the first field of alfalfa on your left. There is a single power pole mid field. Park on the side of the road and walk across the field along the edge of the field. A logging road is barely discernible as you approach the woods. Be sure to wear covering clothes, long pants and a sleeved shirt. Once you spot the trail follow it a short distance and you will observe graves and grave markers on both sides of the trail, predominantly on the right side as you continue into the woods. The trail is easy walking but where most of the graves are located it is hilly and irregular and heavily covered with undergrowth, vines and large trees.

By now you have a mental picture of this cemetery. I had given up trying to find this cemetery, but after recording Macedonia Cemetery and being told it was definitely out there I was irresistably drawn to finding it. This is an African American burial ground. I don't know if it was clear at one time and has become immensely overgrown with trees, vines, etc., or if it was always a patch of woods where burials took place. The ownership of the land is not clear to me and there is no pattern to the burial locations. The name "Thomas Cemetery" is noted on the USGS list of Wake Co. cemeteries, and is on Topozone as "Thomas Cemetery", but does not appear in the Wake County land records. I seriously doubt that burials take place there any more. Much of the land along Mid Pines Rd. belongs to North Carolina State University as part of the agricultural research program, and the alfalfa field in front of the woods where the cemetery is hidden is state property. Recording was very difficult, most of the markers were old, bent and unreadable funeral home markers. Some sunken places were obviously graves,but not marked at all. Whatever was readable I recorded, but regretfully, the majority of graves could not be identified. Haywood Funeral Home, 2415 S. Wilmington St, Raleigh, NC 27603, Tel. # 832-2835, had the largest number of identified markers, readable and unreadable.

There are at least twice this number of graves that I was unable to record. Gordon Olson literally climbed into dense areas and called out what he read to me and I copied it faithfully. No pictures were taken.

1. Ashe, Topsy Lee   (b. 30 Jul 1926 - d. 25 Oct 1926)
son of Topsy and Rosina Ashe
2. Jacks, Eddie   (b. - d. 2 Aug 1961)
59 yrs.
3. Jeffries, Zebedee, Mr.   (b. ???? - d. 3 Mar 1961)
4. Kendrick, Annie U.   (b. 12 Oct 1890 - d. 13 Oct 1963)
5. McCauley, Beulah   (b. 1867 - d. 1980)
(very hard to read, probably b. 1967)
6. Moring, Bettie J.   (b. 12 Jan 1898 - d. 5 Jun 1968)
7. Powell, Evelyn B.   (b. 1948 - d. ????)
death date unreadable
8. Powell, Paul   (b. 1873 - d. 1978)
(very hard to read, probably b. 1973)
9. Wallar, Charlie S.   (b. 1883 - d. 1954)
10. Wallar, Ollie C.   (b. 1905 - d. ????)
death date unreadable
11. Williams, Frona, Mrs.   (b. - d. 21 Sep 1961)
76 yrs. old