Scattered and forgotten by tens of thousands of residents, 11 men lie about a cemetery behind Mt. Zion AME Church off Route 73.
Two gravestones include the names Alonzo Small and Charles Reese clearly across the cold, dark stone.
Meanwhile, the gravestone above William Jones’ resting place gives his name and date of death, but rather than be engraved and written, it appears as if the information was written with a finger as the stone dried when being prepared.
For others, their stones were vandalized or broken years ago or are simply no longer legible after more than a century of waiting for no visitors year after year.
These 11 men are Civil War veterans, having served with the United States Colored Troops on the side of the Union. The USCT were established on May 22, 1863. An estimated more than 180,000 African-Americans served in the Union Army during the Civil War, comprised of both runaway slaves and free African-Americans.
The 11 men buried behind the church in Voorhees Township served in varying capacities with the Union and were honored two years ago at the Voorhees Town Center by having their own plaques placed on the Voorhees Wall of Honor alongside veterans added each and every year.
Mt. Zion AME Church has been at its location since 1848, before Voorhees Township existed and was part of Waterford Township. Voorhees became established in early 1899, by which several of these Civil War veterans had already died.
Regardless, these 11 men were buried at the church despite where they may have lived in South Jersey and are honored for their sacrifice and service toward the Union’s cause.
Although original complete records are gone after a fire years ago at the church destroyed them, as well as the passing of approximately 150 years having led to records located elsewhere having been misplaced and lost, efforts by those in the community have led to these men continuing to be remembered in some fashion.
Jeanette Schelberg, former township clerk for Voorhees Township, spearheaded the Wall of Honor project years ago and added the portion for the United States Colored Troops after a resident brought it to the attention of the township committee.
The project came with plenty of obstacles when first starting.
“We had always heard there were Civil War soldiers buried in this cemetery, but no one really ever had information on them or knew anything about them,” Schelberg said.
The wall comes with a generational limit for those able to be on the wall, limiting it to parents, a spouse, a sibling or children, due to limited space. Obviously, no one living in Voorhees currently has such a relationship to anyone who fought in the Civil War, however it was agreed the township should honor these individuals in some way.
Church Pastor Gervine Bell was able to receive a broad description of those buried there after an Eastern Regional High School student more than a decade ago assembled information for a project to attain the rank of Eagle Scout. He combed through pension record at the National Archives to dig for where these men were located.
Ultimately, such information, coupled with Schelbergs’ diligent research combining the combing of Civil War research and records, led them to piece together as much information as possible to honor these 11 men.
The soldiers’ tales, although limited, still tell haunting stories at a glimpse of what their service was like during the Civil War.
On the plaques at the Voorhees Town Center, it states one soldier assisted in the capture of President Lincoln’s assassin, while another participated in the surrender of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
Thanks to the hard work of those in the community, these men are not forgotten for their service. This Black History Month, all are invited to take a moment to read their stories and keep their legacy alive.
“This is very important for Voorhees Township… there’s so many changes happening in Voorhees all the time and no one is recording what used to be there,” Schelberg said. “This is a very important part of Voorhees history and it’s an interesting part of Voorhees history — and honestly one that most people don’t know about.”
