Iredell County Public Library recognized for efforts to establish Green Street Cemetery as historic site

Posted on by Mike Fuhrman
Pictured (from left) are Library Director Juli Moore, Assistant Director Amanda Cain, Local History Program Specialist Shellie Taylor, and Local History Librarian Joel Reese.

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The Iredell County Public Library Local History and Genealogy Department has been recognized for its efforts to discover unmarked graves at the Green Street Cemetery and establish the cemetery as an historic site.

The National Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society (AAHGS) in Washington, D.C., recently presented the Paul Edward Sluby Sr./Jean Sampson-Scott Meritorious Achievement Award to the library for distinguished performance in support of African American Genealogy.

The award was presented during the organization’s 45th National Conference in October. The Paul Edward Sluby Sr./Jean Sampson-Scott Meritorious Achievement Award is the second highest honor bestowed by AAHGS. The award recognizes distinguished performance and measurable contribution to African American history and/or genealogy within the past two years.

In 2022, North Carolina Humanities awarded a grant to the Iredell County Public Library to conduct ground-penetrating radar surveys of Green Street Cemetery to discover unmarked graves and help establish the cemetery as a designated historic site. The cemetery is thought to be the oldest cemetery in Statesville and the largest in the county for formerly enslaved peoples.

The library staff expressed its appreciation to the following community partners: North Carolina Humanities, Statesville Branch NAACP #5454, City of Statesville, Downtown Statesville, Omega Mapping Services, local community members, descendants, and volunteers who supported and assisted with this effort.

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Visit https://nchumanities.org/grantee-spotlight-iredell-county-public-library/.