About Bethany Cemetery Association

Bethany Cemetery is one of Austin's most historically significant Black cemeteries and a sacred resting place for formerly enslaved people, early Black settlers, veterans of World War I and II, Buffalo Soldiers, United States Colored Troops, educators, laborers and community leaders who helped to build the city we know today.

For generations, Bethany Cemetery has quietly held these stories- many unmarked, many nearly lost, because of decades of neglect, environmental challenges, and development pressures surrounding the site.

The Bethany Cemetery Association is leading a comprehensive preservation and revitalization effort to protect this historic burial ground, restore dignity to those interred, and ensure their stories are researched, recorded, and shared with the public. This fundraiser supports critical on-the-ground preservation work as well as educational programming that transforms Bethany Cemetery from a forgotten space into a living history site rooted in truth, remembrance, and community healing.

Funds raised through this campaign will directly support cemetery maintenance and landscape care, historical research and documentation, interpretive signage and QR code storytelling, guided heritage tours, and community events that engage residents, students and visitors.

Bethany Cemetery is not only a place of burial, it is also a classroom, a cultural landmark, and a powerful link to Austin's Black history. Preserving this site protects irreplaceable historical records, honors the ancestors who endured enslavement and segregation, and ensures future generations can learn from their lives and legacies.

Through this fundraiser, donors and partners are invited to play an active role in safeguarding Austin's shared history, Every contribution- monetary, in-kind, or volunteer support- helps uncover forgotten names, restore sacred grounds, and carry these stories forward.