Holmes/Rice Cemetery (African-American), Rapides Parish Louisiana Submitted by Jane Parker McManus ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** HOLMES - RICE CEMETERY - Rapides Parish Directions: Going North on Cottingham Expressway from Pineville, exit at Kings Country Shopping Center. Turn left immediately on US Hwy. 71/165 (toward Alexandria), and go .2 miles. At the Frontage Road (directly across the highway from K-Mart), turn right and go .4 miles. Turn left on Parish Rd. 1203 and continue for .4 miles. After passing the sign for Mary Hill Seminary and just before reaching the railroad track, park beside a dirt trail on the right side of the road. Walk approximately 1/4 mile down the path that is a regular hiking trail for residents on retreat at the Mary Hill Seminary located to the right, adjacent to the trail. On the left side, watch for trees which have white painted trunks. Follow the white painted trees to the abandoned cemetery. Several years ago, Mr. James Collins of Pineville became concerned that the burial site for his ancestors might be lost for all time. He made a trip to the wooded area, and after relocating the graves, painted white rings onto certain large trees to mark a path. When he learned of our interest in preserving information on all burial sites in Rapides Parish, he offered to guide us to the location. He and his daughter, Rose Collins, accompanied our group and graciously provided us with the background history of the cemetery. After Mr. Collins identified some of his relatives who he knew were buried in this cemetery, Rose researched the additional information on the family. We are indebted to Rose and her father for their support in our project. At one time, this large African-American cemetery was the primary burial ground for members of the Lone Star Church. Members and their families would gather at the cemetery to clean the area and place fresh flowers in preparation for All Saints Day. This practice was discontinued sometime before the 1940's, and the cemetery, through disuse, was abandoned and slowly sank into exile. Today under a blanket of leaves and pine needles, amid underbrush and trees, two stones, several pieces of concrete, and many depressions are all that remain to mark the burial place for so many members of our Black community. The two stones and depressions are laid out in a circle, rather than a traditional East - West burial. We were unable to determine where this custom came from, but would be interested in any information about burial practices of this type. If any of our readers know of other burials in this cemetery or can provide additional history, we would be happy to update this listing with an explanation. Tombstone inscriptions were recorded by Mary Parker Partain and Jane Parker McManus, May 1993, and submitted by Jane McManus, July 2000. Rice, Susie - [died] 21 Oct 1818 Holmes, M. E. [probably Ameal Holmes] - [no dates] [Note: A footstone for Susie Rice is across the circle from her marker. Another footstone of same type is next to it, has three initials, but the first two are unreadable. The third initial was an "E" and although on the opposite side of the circle, could belong to the Holmes marker. There are several more broken pieces of concrete in the circle which could be broken parts of markers. One of them is a base and a small piece of upright stones.] [In the same area as the above two stones is a broken upright marker with part of the epitaph the only readable information. The top half where the name would be inscribed is missing. The epitaph: "Please don't cry for I'm going home to Heaven, just waiting on the Lord..." Other persons known to have been buried here are: Lemott, Sip Sr. - [no dates] [He married Agnes Seals 17 Jul 1882, and was 80 years old when he died.] Wells, Austin - [no dates, born Summerset, LA] [He was the son of Sip Lemott and Agnes Seals, and married to Mattie Washington. Austin was a young preacher and died when he was quite young.] Holmes, Ameal, husband of Lila Mae Holmes - [could be M. E. Holmes above, no dates] Hall, Haas, husband of Rosa Mills - born Summerset, LA / died 30 Mar 1917 Hall, Jackson, son of Haas Hall & Rosa Mills - 26 May 1906 / 9 Dec 1912