The movement, in the early 1900s, came on the backs of Black artists, doctors and community leaders who in some cases have been forgotten -- until now.
Monday, February 9, 2026 11:35PMThe Harlem Renaissance was a celebration of Black culture and creativity that gave a voice to a community long-ignored in mainstream American society. The movement, in the early 1900s, came on the backs of Black artists, doctors and community leaders who in some cases have been forgotten -- until now.
Inside Woodlawn Cemetery where the ground is blanketed with snow, local historians have uncovered forgotten tales - often overshadowed by thousands of towering headstones. "We knew that Woodlawn was famous for many musicians, dancers, entertainers, veterans, but who are the other folks in the Harlem Renaissance that really made the Harlem community work?" said Meg Ventrudo with the Woodlawn Conservancy. The Woodlawn Conservancy was able to answer that question thanks to a $50,000 grant from the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund in 2024. The conservancy teamed up with community history buffs like Eric Washington to highlight 25 notable Black people buried there and unearth their stories from the period leading up to and during the Harlem Renaissance."He's credited with being Americans first Black ophthalmologist and otolaryngologist," Washington said."Much of what we know about the Harlem Renaissance is thanks to Bessie Bearden, from her regular columns for the Chicago Defender," Washington said. These narratives now have a new voice as part of the Woodlawn Conservancy's "Where Harlem Rests" initiative."This tour will have a booklet, it will have an online component, and it will have some outdoor signage, which is something we have not yet done in Woodlawn," Ventrudo said. Well-known names like Duke Ellington, Miles Davis and Illinois Jacquet draw thousands of visitors to Woodlawn Cemetery each year."I think it paints the full picture of the Harlem community that Harlem had their own newspapers, that Harlem had their own flourist, that Harlem had their own undertakers," Ventrudo said. The work to illuminate the history only scratches the surface of the countless other stories waiting to be told.
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