"All these people were someone": The Cedar Grove Memorial Project

Описание: Recorded on February 11, 2026

8:10 Presentation
48:21 Q&A

The Boston Women’s Heritage Trail (BWHT) leads the Cedar Grove Memorial Project in Dorchester. We honor the lives of 133 women, who were residents of the Home for Aged Colored Women—a historic site on Beacon Hill founded in 1860 in Boston by a group of abolitionists to provide support to elderly Black women in need of housing and financial aid. These women are buried in individually unmarked graves at the Cedar Grove Cemetery and their legacies are unknown to the Greater Boston community. BWHT is committed to uncovering, sharing, and preserving the stories of Boston’s women, amplifying their legacies by marrying public art and historical initiatives.

Rita Steele, whose ancestor Sarah Smith is buried in one of the Cedar Grove Cemetery gravesites, will share her genealogical research journey and instrumental role in the Cedar Grove Memorial Project Steering Committee. Dr. Alexandria Russell, Executive Director of BWHT, will provide an overview of the project and exciting developments expected in 2026.

About Rita Steele

Rita Steele is a Data Analytics professional with a Bachelor of Science in Corporate Communication and Master of Arts in Human Resource Development (HRD). Her genealogy journey began as a hobby in 2015 while researching her maternal grandfather's Native American history and, much to her surprise, discovered that she has family born and raised in the United Kingdom. Her diligent research and curiosity led her to discovery of an aunt, uncle and several cousins and others that she was unaware of. Upon this discovery and meeting these family members, this reinforced her desire to delve deeper into genealogy, not just for her own family but helping to assist other friends and family to discover theirs. Her specialty of specific research strategies led to additional successful findings, including finding ancestors who were abolitionists and business owners in pre-Civil War New England, and directly connected to the Underground Railroad (working with Frederick Douglass, William Cooper Nell and William Lloyd Garrison).

She is honored to have her genealogical journey included in the Dorchester Reporter, as well as a blog written by a nationally-recognized sports writer and considers herself a fierce researcher who is eager to continue honoring her ancestors however she can.

About Dr. Alexandria Russell

Dr. Alexandria Russell is the Executive Director of the Boston Women’s Heritage Trail. As a historian, memorializer, and public history practitioner, she is committed to ethical research practices that recover obscure histories and create accessible pathways for bringing diverse histories to people of all backgrounds. Her work in the digital humanities has yielded several flourishing projects, including the Webby Nominated Harvard & the Legacy of Slavery Tour Experience. Her first book, Black Women Legacies: Public History Sites Seen & Unseen with University of Illinois Press, examines the evolution of African American women’s memorialization in the United States from the late nineteenth century to the present.

This presentation represents the view of the speaker and not necessarily that of the Slave Legacy History Coalition.