A Miami County judge has approved transferring ownership of a historic African American cemetery and two neighboring lots to Land of the Freed, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the legacy of the Randolph Freedpeople. The cemetery, located in Springcreek Township, holds the graves of nearly 200 people, many of them descendants of the Randolph Freedpeople, along with Civil War veterans.
The transfer, approved Wednesday, moves the site from the Rossville-Springcreek Historical Society, which acquired the cemetery and wooded parcels over several years, into the care of an organization built specifically to restore it, according to einpresswire.com. Land of the Freed was founded in 2023 by Paisha Thomas, who is a descendant of the Randolph Freedpeople; members and descendants of that group are buried at the cemetery. The nonprofit now operates with four board members and three cemetery committee members. As WYSO reports, the group hopes to use the restored cemetery for education and to honor those buried there.
The Randolph Freedpeople's story stretches back to 1846, when nearly 400 formerly enslaved people migrated to 3,200 acres purchased for them in Mercer County after being freed under the will of John Randolph. John Randolph had promised to free everyone he enslaved through that will, but German and French squatters prevented the group from settling on the land they'd been promised, reportedly using Ohio's Black Codes and Black Laws to threaten politicians who might enforce Randolph's wishes. Blocked from Mercer County, the Randolph Freedpeople instead established communities in Miami and Shelby counties and founded a cemetery in Springcreek Township.
A Cemetery Left Without a Caretaker
Though the township has provided basic maintenance, the cemetery fell into disrepair without anyone left to actively manage the site, according to einpresswire.com. The decline accelerated after the death of Helen Gilmore, who had looked after the grounds; a Springcreek Township commissioner has since kept up the cemetery grass, but that basic upkeep wasn't enough to halt the site's deterioration.
An Ohio Historical Society marker notes the African Jackson Cemetery was established in 1866, according to Miami Valley Today. Planning for its revival has unfolded in stages over several years. Miami County commissioners initially approved spending up to $2,500 for Choice One Engineering of Sidney to draw up a concept plan back in 2022, the station's report notes, an early step toward the more comprehensive restoration effort now underway.
From Master Plan to Ground Survey
Land of the Freed later hired Design Jones LLC, a Black-owned landscape architecture firm, to formulate a full restoration master plan. The contract for that master plan was $30,000, and the plan was completed in the spring of 2025, per the same account from Miami Valley Today. Ground-penetrating radar and other equipment were used to locate graves during summer 2025.
Design Jones' plan calls for identifying those buried at the site, restoring existing gravemarkers, and installing new ones for graves that were previously unmarked, according to Design Jones LLC. The firm's vision also includes a welcome center meant to serve as both an event space and an informational hub, with design considerations around topography and water flow factored into the site plan. Land of the Freed's broader focus areas include grave locations and restoration, a sitting area, a memorial wall, and parking, and the group plans to build a visitor center on an adjacent parcel.
Funding and the Road Ahead
Miami County commissioners have already backed the effort with a $75,000 grant, per einpresswire.com's reporting. The restoration plan is expected to cost upwards of $2 million overall, and Land of the Freed still plans to raise additional funds and hire contractors to carry out the work. The nonprofit also needs to collaborate with the owner of an adjacent wooded area to access and preserve headstones located there.
The Rossville effort echoes a similar preservation push underway at the United Colored American Cemetery in Madisonville, the burial place of more than 12,000 people including abolitionists, civil rights leaders, and military veterans. Union Baptist Church recently received a $750,000 National Park Service grant to preserve that cemetery, and WCPO reported that Fifth Third Bank donated $50,000 to that site's preservation fund and pledged to match up to $200,000 in community donations over three years. For Land of the Freed, the Miami County court's decision marks a legal foundation on which that kind of fundraising and restoration work can now proceed.
