26 Possible Graves Paved Over By DeKalb County

DEKALB COUNTY, GA — For 50 years, Fred Kinnemore told DeKalb County he believes his ancestors were buried under the pavement along Wilson Road and the county needed to investigate. Now Kinnemore, deacon at St. Paul Baptist Church, has proof.

After WSB-TV first led an investigation into Kinnemore's claims in 2018, a team hired by DeKalb County conducted a study into the suspected area — located near St. Paul Baptist Church Cemetery — using ground-penetrating radar technology starting in 2019. It showed 26 geophysical anomalies consistent with possible graves.

On Friday, an archaeologist with the team discovered at least one grave after digging up four sections of the study area.

“This is exactly the type of features that we associate with finding a historic gravesite,” the archaeologist told WSB-TV.

St. Paul Baptist Church has stood on Nelms Drive since the late 1930s, but this was not the church's original home. Kinnemore — whose grandfather, George, was one of the church's original founders — and other church members say racism drove them out of their original location on Wilson when it was still just a dirt road.

The move came after white neighbors threatened the church and its small cemetery on Wilson Road, where the church's burials are still performed today, according to the county's 100-page report of the investigation. The church relocated to Nelms Drive in 1948.

“They desecrated the inside of the cemetery. After that, they said they were gonna put a bomb and just blow it up and that would get them out,” Kinnemore told WSB-TV's Sophia Choi in 2018.

St. Paul Baptist Church still maintained the cemetery property on Wilson Road even after the church moved to Nelms Drive. Kinnemore took on the responsibility after he returned from Vietnam in 1969, and found that the county had paved a road through a portion of the cemetery.

Since then, Kinnemore has tried to get DeKalb County to dig up the area, which is in the county's right-of-way, and investigate for disturbed graves.

"Those were my grandparents that are there and if you are going to pay respects to your people or anybody, you need to be able to get to them,” he told WSB-TV in 2018.

DeKalb CEO Michael Thurmond presented a summary of the findings of the investigation to the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners Tuesday morning, in addition to publishing the 100-page report on the county's website.

In the report, New South Associates recommended the county seek grant funding to create a complete map of the cemetery; place a historic marker for St. Paul Baptist Church Cemetery; replace the existing fence around the cemetery for better protection; and consider creating a countywide alliance for caretakers or stakeholders of historic cemeteries that are no longer in use.

"Such an alliance could set out guidelines for their preservation and would allow community voices to be heard that can enrich our knowledge of DeKalb County’s history," the report reads.

No action was taken on the presentation of the findings, as it was just a presentation of the report; however, the county plans to hold a meeting with family members and neighbors Saturday to go over the evidence and next steps, WSB-TV reported.

"I'm glad we're taking the lead to do what is right and we're taking the lead at a time where we're recognizing Black history," Commissioner Mereda David Johnson said Tuesday.

The board also joined in apologizing to Kinnemore for ignoring his pleas for five decades and said a proclamation will be issued at some point to honor him.