Ambury Hill Cemetery, Othello/Springtown, NJ (1818)
AMBURY HILL CEMETERY, OTHELLO/SPRINGTOWN, NEW JERSEY
Located in Othello, New Jersey, is Ambury Hill Cemetery, the original burial ground of Bethel A.M.E. Church in Springtown, New Jersey. The deed to the acre-wide cemetery, dated 1818, is held by the church.
According to local residents, more than 200 gravesites are in the Ambury Hill Cemetery. Some of the gravestones are marked U.S.C.T., identifying soldiers who fought with the 22nd and 45th regiments in the Civil War. The last veteran laid to rest there was William B. Bryant, who was the grand-nephew of another Black Civil War veteran buried there, Levi Grinage. The Grinage grave marker notes that he also belonged to the Grand Army of the Republic. Other gravesites belong to those who fought in the Spanish American War, and possibly with the United States Cavalry in the Indian Wars. Also there are the final resting places of Underground Railroad operators Alges and Julia Stanford and their friend, neighbor and colleague, David Boley.
The following list, compiled by a C. L. West, shows the names of a few of those buried there:
Edward Staten, 1866, Co. B, 22nd Reg. (Col.)
John Williams, 1855, Co. A, 22nd Reg. (Col.)
George H. Miller, Co. A. 25th Reg., (Col.) D. Sept. 1889, age 61
Joseph Blakely
Elizabeth Windro
David Boley, a basket weaver of Indian blood
Charles Bryant
John Thomas
Maria Clark
Julia Stanford
Alges Stanford
Jacob Jackson, slave
Old Blind Blake, slave
Benjamin Clark
Charles Washington
John Winchester
The grandson of the chief of the tribe
Two slaves given by Dr. George Wood as a wedding present
Edward Boley, 1 male, 1 female
Phyllis and Paul, slaves of Abel Bacon
William Bryant
Levi Grinage
SOURCE: C.L.WEST, EMMA MARIE TRUSTY, THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD: TIES THAT BOUND UNVEILED, 2000
