On Saturday, October 11, the Museum of Durham History joined Friends of Geer Cemetery (FoGC) and Preservation Durham to offer a special guided tour of Geer Cemetery—our final program in the Unearthing Stories of Geer Cemetery series.

On that crisp fall morning, attendees walked the cemetery pathways among the historic headstones of one of Durham’s earliest African American cemeteries. Our guides—members of FoGC—shared stories of the families buried there and provided insights into the ongoing work to reclaim and restore the site as a sacred space for descendants and the wider community.

Two of the postcards that accompanied the exhibit were of two generations of Purefoys buried there — father and son, Haywood and Rufus Purefoy. It was very moving to associate these photographs with their actual grave site, especially since we have been seeing photos of them on the Museum walls for the last six months!

Visitors learned how archaeology, genealogy, and preservation intersect to tell the stories of those interred there, illuminating a vital part of Durham’s history that had long been overlooked.

In true bittersweet fashion, the tours that morning marked the closing chapter of Unearthing Stories of Geer Cemetery, an exhibit that Museum visitors resoundingly appreciated as a window into Durham’s African American past.  From a personal standpoint, having worked in The W.G. Pearson Center (off Spaulding Street in Hayti), I was moved to see that his father, George Pearson, is buried in Geer Cemetery. Consider how many references we have to the Pearson name in the City of Durham….

We at the Museum are deeply grateful to Friends of Geer Cemetery and Preservation Durham for their partnership, dedication and collaborative spirit, as well as all the donors who supported this project. Together, we continue the work of honoring those who came before us—and ensuring their stories endure.