Buried History: Raleigh’s City Cemetery (Part 1)

Welcome to Buried History, where we visit historic cemeteries to dig into the rich and fascinating lives of those who came before us. This isn’t about ghosts; it’s about people. Each life mattered, and by taking a moment to pause and contemplate their struggles and joys, we keep their memory alive. It’s this connection to the past that ultimately helps guide us toward a better future. Join us for the journey.

Today we’re kicking off our tour of Raleigh’s Historic City Cemetery. Established in 1798 as the capital city’s first city burying ground, the cemetery is the final resting place for many historical city founders including ‘Father of Raleigh,’ Patriot Joel Lane, to pioneering editor of the Raleigh Register and abolitionist Joseph Gales to Revolutionary War Colonel William Polk, founders of locale colleges Rev. Meredith (Meredith College) and William Peace (Peace College, now William Peace University), and many African American citizens like renowned educator Anna Julia Haywood Cooper.

Over the next few blogs we’ll ‘meet’ the residents of City Cemetery and learn about their fascinating life stories and impact they made on Raleigh’s history.

The Founding of a City and Cemetery:

Prior to European settlement, Raleigh was home to a number of Native American tribes including the Coharie, Cherokee, Haliwa-Saponi, Lumbee and Meherrin (among others).  

Colonial settlers began moving to the greater Raleigh area in the 1740s-1750s through the Great Wagon Road from Pennsylvania or from the eastern coastal communities under the promise of cheap land and opportunity. Wake County was founded in 1771 and named after then Royal Governor William Tryon’s wife Margaret Wake. When Father of Raleigh Joel Lane built his house in the late 1760s, his plantation/farm was named Wakefield, connecting it directly to the name of the new county.

Prior to the founding of Raleigh, Wake County was primarily populated by farmers, small communities tied to churches and mills, as well as famed thoroughfare stops like Isaac Hunter’s Tavern, which once stood near the North Raleigh Hilton. The tavern was so popular with legislators as they traveled the Cross Creek (now Fayetteville) and Petersburg VA stage road, that the 1788 Constitutional Convention in Hillsborough decreed that the new capital must be located within ten miles of Isaac Hunter’s plantation and tavern in Wake County.

The county’s early agrarian economy is best exemplified by the presence of Yates Mill, a water-powered gristmill whose original site dates back to the mid-1750s, making it one of the oldest surviving structures in Wake County.

During the Revolutionary War, Wake County was a sparsely populated, inland area, but it was a crucial nexus for major north-south and east-west colonial thoroughfares.

During the Revolutionary War, Patriots hailed from Wake County, including Joel Lane. Lane actively served in several North Carolina Provincial Congresses, including the Third Provincial Congress in Hillsborough (check out our blog about the Third Provincial Congress reenactment where we met Joel Lane!). Lane was also elected as a delegate to the Fourth Provincial Congress in Halifax, which produced the Halifax Resolves. The Resolves were the historic document that formally empowered North Carolina’s delegates to the Continental Congress to declare independence from Great Britain.

Raleigh: A Planned Capital

In the past, coastal cities like Bath, New Bern, and Brunswick Town (near Wilmington) had served as capital cities. Following the American Revolution, the capital was temporarily located in Hillsborough, a major Piedmont city and an important center of politics and commerce since its founding in 1754. After the American Victory, North Carolina recognized it needed to build a new capital city that would unite the interests of the eastern and western populations, leading them to choose this centrally located, accessible region. The legislature then abandoned Hillsborough, instead meeting itinerantly in various taverns and courthouses for several years while the final decision was debated.

The Battle of the Taverns: How Raleigh Became North Carolina’s Capital City. Raleigh is unique among major American cities because it was completely pre-planned for a specific purpose: to serve as the permanent state capital. Even more interesting, the city’s location was decided in a political skirmish often remembered as “The Battle of the Taverns,” fought between two competing establishments: Isaac Hunter’s Tavern (located near the modern-day North Raleigh Hilton) and Lane’s Tavern (situated not far from the current Capitol building).

The 1788 Constitutional Convention initially mandated that the capital be established within ten miles of Isaac Hunter’s Tavern, which served as the critical initial meeting spot for the site commissioners. However, Patriot Joel Lane, a major landowner and political figure known as the “Father of Raleigh,” had a different vision and was a rival to Hunter. The popular local legend states that after their mandated meeting at Hunter’s, the site commissioners next convened at Lane’s home. There, he allegedly plied them with North Carolina’s potent, famous cocktail, “Cherry Bounce.” The next morning, the commissioners cast their vote—not for Hunter’s land—but to purchase Lane’s tract, making it the permanent capital site.

With the state growing and its population shifting inland from the coastal plain, the new government decided to build a capital in the relative center of North Carolina. Raleigh was a prime location due to its access to the Neuse River and key wagon roads connecting the eastern and western parts of the state. Lane sold the land for a heavily discounted rate of $1,378.00. His original 1769 home remains standing today as the Joel Lane Museum House. Lane is interred at the City Cemetery—more on that in a moment…

1792, the North Carolina Legislature formally approved the purchase of 1,000 acres from Wake County land owner Joel Lane, hiring surveyor and city planner William Christmas to plot out the city grid for North Carolina’s new capital city. The city was named for Sir Walter Raleigh, the Elizabethan explorer who sponsored the Roanoke Colony, North Carolina’s first English settlement (it sadly disappeared in the 1580s). Christmas designed the city as a simple grid with a central Union Square (for the Capitol) surrounded by four smaller directional public squares.

The first capitol building was completed in 1796 and included a statue of George Washington by none other than Venetian Master Antonio Canova, showing North Carolina’s dedication to enlightened governance and hopes for a bright future of culture and industry in the state. Unfortunately, the first capitol building burned in 1831, but it was replaced with the stunning Neoclassical structure you see today.

The exterior fence surrounding the City Cemetery is historically significant: it once guarded the state capitol grounds from straying livestock before being moved here in 1898. It was forged at the local foundry of Silas Burns, who is buried in the cemetery.

As Raleigh became the seat of state government, the population quickly increased, and so did the need for a proper cemetery.

The North Carolina General Assembly authorized the purchase of the City Cemetery in 1798. It was originally four acres (later expanding to seven, moving closer to New Bern Avenue). It was divided into four quadrants: the northern two were designated for white residents and white strangers (non-Raleigh residents), and the southern quadrants were designated for free African Americans and enslaved persons.

Many prominent early residents were buried in the cemetery, each contributing to the fabric of Raleigh’s dynamic story. Visitors interested in learning more should download the City of Raleigh’s walking tour guide; it brings historical context and stories to the many notable names interred here.

After the Civil War, the City Cemetery was almost at capacity. The City of Raleigh then authorized the creation of two additional cemeteries: Oakwood (founded in 1869, still an active burial site, and the final resting place of many Civil War soldiers) and Mt. Hope Cemetery for African Americans (1872).

Sadly, the City Cemetery was all but abandoned by 1917, requiring the City to take over its maintenance. It remains one of several historic sites maintained by the Raleigh Parks Service today. Unfortunately, the identity of some interred persons is unknown due to a major fire at the municipal building in 1930 that destroyed the cemetery records for both the City Cemetery and Mt. Hope Cemetery.

Despite efforts, many gravestones show damage due to powerful storms over the decades. Raleigh’s history of severe weather, including Hurricane Fran in 1996 and a major 2011 tornado that uprooted caskets, illustrates the ongoing challenges of preserving this historic site.

Because the City Cemetery has so many spirited residents, we’re going to break up this series into a few parts so I can give each Buried Soul the justice they deserve.

In our first post, we’ll meet the Father of Raleigh, Joel Lane, as well as the father of a future U.S. President and other notable early Raleigh residents with stories to tell.

Getting Started:

I recommend you download the cemetery map and guide in advance.  There is an audio tour you can listen to as well from your mobile device.

Joel Lane: Patriot, Planter, Surveyor and Father of Raleigh

No visit to the City Cemetery is complete without stopping by to pay your respects to Joel Lane.

To me Joel Lane feels like an old friend. When I was six years old, my mom got a job as the head curator at the Joel Lane House in Raleigh. I dressed up as a Colonial girl and would help give tours during special events, about children’s games in the 18th century and tell the origins of ‘don’t let the bed bugs bite.’ My mom was responsible for researching Joel Lane’s life as they created a new docent guide, often going to the archives and interviewing other historians in the area.  It was this exposure that no doubt helped plant the seeds of my history passion. 

It took me about twenty minutes to locate Joel Lane’s grave. Though the grave marker is well maintained, it is a humble site, in the corner under the shade of the trees.  A Revolutionary War marker denotes his service as a patriot.  

It was a pleasure to stop by and say ‘hello,’ saying a prayer for Lane and his descendants (many still live in Raleigh) and remember the fun times I had at the Joel Lane House with my mom growing up in Raleigh.

My grandmother, who was involved with the Colonial Dames (the organization that purchased and maintained the Joel Lane House), used to tell the story about the 1969 discovery of Joel Lane’s original grave. The burial site, which was found under what was to become a parking lot near the house, contained the remains of Lane and several family members. Ironically the original Lane Cemetery had been disturbed years prior by a man named Peter Browne who purchased the Lane property (Wakefield) in the early 1800s. Browne was known as an astute lawyer and businessman, but he soon became a disliked man in Raleigh when he committed the unforgivable deed of desecrating the original Lane Burial Ground. Frustrated the cemetery would not provide profitable soil for farming, he plowed it up and planted cabbage among the graves! This act of desecration infuriated the citizens of Raleigh. Funny enough Peter Browne is properly buried in City Cemetery (no cabbage in his plot though).

After the remains were carefully excavated and preserved, they were officially reinterred at the City Cemetery on March 30, 1974, in a ceremony arranged by the Colonial Dames. My grandmother said that during the process of preparing the new plot, one of the Dames, Anne Townsend, was so eager she slipped right into the grave site (the casket hadn’t been put in there yet)—talk about a grave-shaking experience!

Who was Joel Lane?

Born near Halifax, North Carolina, in 1739, he established a large plantation in 1769 in what was then Johnston County (later the center of Wake County). His plantation home, often called “Wakefield,” stood on a small hill overlooking the future site of Raleigh. He owned thousands of acres of land, $1,000 of which he later sold to the State of North Carolina for £1,378 (often cited as a generous or discounted rate) for the creation of Raleigh.

Joel Lane married his first wife, Martha Hinton, on December 9th,1762 They had three children together before she passed away in 1771. Lane married his wife’s younger sister, Mary, a year later in 1772. While as a child I thought this was strange, my mom explained to me that families in what was then the backcountry of North Carolina would maintain close family ties through marriage. Lane knew that Mary loved her nieces and it turned out to be a happy marriage. They had nine children! That means that Joel Lane had a total of 12 children; at least two of his daughters are also buried at the City Cemetery.

When I was younger, tourists could see the Lane Family Bible with the dates of marriages, births, and deaths in the family, which really moved me—to think that the Bible had been in the family’s care and where they collected memories tugs at the heartstrings.

While we think of Raleigh as being a huge city and epicenter in North Carolina, circa 1769 it was considered the backcountry. The closest large town would have been Hillsborough, some forty miles away.

Much of this area included plantations, mills, and small tenant farms. Interestingly enough I just learned that my Lassiter relatives settled in what is now Wake County from Chowan County as early as 1755. I wonder if they ever met Joel Lane in passing. Lane’s Plantation included 43 enslaved persons, notably the parents of future businessman and abolitionist Lunsford Lane (look for a post on him soon). A monument at the Joel Lane House pays homage to those who worked the property. We’ll focus on the City Cemetery’s African American residents in an upcoming post.

Lane became active in politics starting as a representative from Johnston County in 1770, where he petitioned the legislature to form Wake County from parts of Johnston, Orange, and Cumberland Counties. Wake County is named for Royal Governor William Tryon’s wife Margaret Wake.

Lane, like many plantation owners and businessmen, in spite of their later patriot leanings, were close with Governor Tryon and his wife. Lane was part of Tryon’s militia for Wake County during the Regulator uprisings (see our post Reckoning with the Regulators), but Tryon decided that Wake County’s militia should stay in place in case they were needed to defend the area.

After Governor Tryon was replaced with Governor Martin, alongside growing national tensions between Britain and the Colonies, Lane became an ardent patriot and a voice for the Revolution in North Carolina. He was present at the Third Provincial Congress in Hillsborough (see our article about the reenactment here) in August-September 1775, where he was appointed to the Council of Safety for the Hillsborough District.

The Councils of Safety were the governing body for the state when the provincial congress was not in session.

Though Lane was not involved at the important Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge in February 1776, he had family that fought in the battle including his Father-in-Law John Hinton and two of Joel Lane’s brothers-in-law. Lane was responsible for distributing 100 bushels of salt raided from the Loyalist/Tories. Salt was an essential commodity for food preservation and trade.

While Lane was elected as a delegate to the Fourth Provincial Congress (which produced the Halifax Resolves), his name is not listed among those officially present when the Resolves were passed. This crucial event, which occurred in April 1776, was an important turning point: North Carolina became the first state to authorize its delegates in the Continental Congress to vote for Independence.

 In August 1776, Lane hosted a Committee of Safety council meeting in his home.

In the years following the American Revolution, Lane was active in politics serving in the General Assembly as a representative from Wake County in 1782-85 and 1787-95.

Lane served as a delegate in both the 1788 Constitutional Convention in Hillsborough and the 1789 Convention in Fayetteville. He originally voted against ratification on the basis there was no Bill of Rights, however with the promise of a Bill of Rights to be enacted upon ratification, Lane became a Federalist in his 1789 vote.

With a new Federal Constitution, North Carolina recognized it needed a new state capitol. In the 1788 Constitutional Convention in Hillsborough they determined it should be within ten miles of Isaac Hunter’s Plantation.

Both Hunter and Lane were savvy businessmen who wanted their land to be purchased for the city site. While Lane certainly wanted to turn a bit of a profit off the sale, he also believed his property was better sited for the capital.

The two Wake County businessmen started wooing legislators through tavern diplomacy. While Isaac Hunter’s Tavern was much beloved by legislators at the time, Lane’s Cherry Bounce Recipe, along with his impassioned appeal to make his land the capital city, led the commissioners to choose his property over Hunter’s, resulting in the formation of Raleigh as we know it today. Read more about Isaac Hunter’s Tavern here.

Lane and his wife sadly died only five days apart from one another in 1795 (I’m assuming infectious disease, but could not find a record in researching).

Lane’s children married into prominent local families including the Mordecai Family (Mordecai House is where Andrew Johnson’s Birthplace is located—more on that in a moment) and the Hinton Family…

Lane was passionate about education and served as a Trustee for the University of North Carolina; one of his in-laws, Hinton James, was the first student at Chapel Hill and is famous for having walked all the way from Wilmington to start his classes (over 130 miles!)

A Raleigh Hero and Father of a President: Jacob Johnson

We previously explored the Andrew Johnson National Historic Site in Greeneville, TN, which details the life of America’s 17th President. Check out the posts here:

Greeneville TN – Where History Comes Alive

Tennessee Detours: Andrew Johnson’s Historic Greeneville

While Johnson made his career in Tennessee, first as a tailor then a politician, he was born not far from the State Capitol in downtown Raleigh to Jacob Johnson and Mary ‘Polly’ McDonough, a laundress. You can visit a reconstruction of Andrew Johnson’s birthplace at the Mordecai House Historic Site in Raleigh. (A replica of the structure is also on display in Greeneville TN.)

Jacob Johnson was a poor man, but a hard worker who was respected by the community. He served as a city constable, sexton at the Presbyterian Church, and porter at the State Bank of North Carolina (by appointment of Colonel William Polk, also buried in the City Cemetery). He also worked as a hosteler at the popular Casso’s Inn and Tavern. Furthermore, Johnson was one of the city’s few bell-ringers—a duty which ultimately contributed to his undoing.

Casso’s was a popular gathering spot for locals and traveling legislators. Built in 1790-95 on the Northeast corner of Fayetteville and East Morgan Streets (where the Justice Building is located today) by Revolutionary War soldier Peter Casso, the inn was at the center of political and social life in Raleigh. Its chief competitor was a hotel and tavern called The Indian Queen. Today a boutique hotel on Morgan Street called The Casso pays homage to the historic hotel.

The Johnsons lived in a small kitchen house on the Casso property where they both worked as servers in the tavern. They were popular with patrons and knew most everyone in town. Peter Casso’s inn was the best-loved tavern in Raleigh at the time, offering food, drink, and lodging to members of the General Assembly from all over North Carolina. It was also the site of auctions, a Winter Ball, and an annual Fourth of July feast for everyone in the city.

In spite of his low financial station, Jacob was friends with many of Raleigh’s elite like his employer at the bank, Colonel William Polk. Polk was a hero of the Revolutionary War and cousin to future president James K. Polk, as well as Raleigh Star editor Thomas Henderson Jr. (Polk is also buried in the cemetery and we’ll focus on his backstory in a future Buried History Feature).

During a winter fishing trip on Walnut Creek in Wake County in December 1811, a canoe carrying Colonel Polk, Thomas Henderson Jr., and a Scottish merchant named Callum capsized in the icy water. Jacob plunged in and saved his fellow fishermen. From the shock and toll on his body, he soon became gravely ill.

It seemed he was on the mend to a full recovery, to the point he went back to work. It was in January 1812, while attending his duties as a bell-ringer—tolling for a funeral on a bitterly cold day—that he collapsed, succumbing to exhaustion and weakness.

His tragic death left the community reeling. His friend Thomas Henderson printed an obituary for Jacob, thanking him for saving his life.

His obituary from the Raleigh Star newspaper (dated January 10, 1812) read as follows:

“Died, in this city, on Saturday last, Jacob Johnson, who had for years occupied a humble but useful station in Society. He was a city constable, sexton, and porter of the State Bank. In his last illness he was visited by the principal inhabitants of the city, by all whom he was esteemed for his honesty, industry, and humane and friendly disposition. Among all whom he was known and esteemed, none lament him more (except, perhaps, his relatives) than the publisher of this paper; for he owes his life, on a particular occasion, to the boldness and humanity of Johnson.”

In the aftermath of Jacob’s death, Polly struggled to provide for her family working as a launderess. Polk tried to help the young widow by offering her older son Bill an apprenticeship, but Polk died before this could be realized.

Polly eventually remarried and found apprenticeships for her sons with James Selby, a Raleigh tailor. Andrew proved exceptional in the trade, but legend states that while trying to catch a young girl’s attention, he threw a rock at a neighbor’s window. The neighbor and Selby were furious, forcing Andrew and his brother to flee Raleigh. Selby feverishly pursued Johnson, even placing a $10 bounty on his head. Johnson, unable to pay the fine, fled first to Carthage, NC, and then to South Carolina before eventually settling in Greeneville, Tennessee.

In Greeneville, he began a successful tailoring business and, with the help of his wife, Eliza McCardle, he was able to pursue deeper learning past his rudimentary education. He even took classes at what would become Tusculum College in Greeneville.

Andrew Johnson was unique in that he rose in stature by appealing to his humble background and deep care for the poor and tenant farmers. When the Civil War broke out, Johnson, a fervent Constitutionalist, refused secession. He was the only southerner to remain in Congress during the war, before serving as the wartime military governor of Tennessee and later as Vice President and President.

In 1867, during his presidency, Andrew Johnson returned to Raleigh (this time without fear of being arrested for the $10 fine to honor his father with a new memorial marker in City Cemetery. At the time, Jacob’s grave was unmarked and was replaced by the current marker, which is inscribed:

“In memory of Jacob Johnson. An honest man, loved and respected by all who knew him.”

Then-President Andrew Johnson was invited by Raleigh Mayor William D. Haywood to attend the public erection of Jacob’s monument. He agreed, marking Johnson’s only trip to the South during his term as President. He departed Washington, D.C. on June 1, 1867, and arrived in Raleigh on June 3rd, staying at the Yarborough House Hotel on Fayetteville Street, where he delivered a lengthy speech about various topics shortly after arriving.

Today you can connect with Andrew Johnson in Raleigh by visiting the Mordecai Historic Park, which features the Mordecai House (one of the oldest homes in Raleigh) as well as the Johnson kitchen house that was once located on the site of Casso’s Inn. Plan your visit to Mordecai House here.

You can visit Andrew Johnson, along with other NC born presidents James K. Polk and Andrew Jackson at Capitol Square. For the record Jackson was born on the NC/SC state line near Waxhaw, but in NC, Jackson’s a Tar Heel.

We’ll pick up our City Cemetery Tour in our next Buried History Post…I originally intended to do one post on this cemetery, but the history is so fascinating we’ll be here for a spell.

As a sixth-generation Raleigh native, I love learning about my hometown and studying its history. We’ll be doing more features on Raleigh’s dynamic history—don’t forget to subscribe.

Interested in more Buried History? Check out our feature on Burial Grounds in Hillsborough NC here.

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Hi, I’m Adele Lassiter, the travel enthusiast behind American Nomad Traveler. This is where I share my love for history, cool museums, art, and travel tips. When I’m not writing, I’m a singer-songwriter with a passion for Americana music. You can find my new album here: adelelassiter.bandcamp.com

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