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Push to identify the unknown
Jennifer Kveglis reports.
CRYSTAL RIVER, Fla. - Crystal Memorial Gardens Cemetery was established in 1884 as one of the area’s earliest burial sites for Black residents.
Over the decades, flooding and the lack of a permanent caretaker left the grounds overgrown, with many grave markers broken, buried or lost entirely. The McCray family, descendants of some of the cemetery’s earliest pioneers, has deep ties to the site, with multiple generations buried there.
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What we know:
In 2023, the McCrays launched the non-profit "Friends of the Crystal Memorial Gardens Cemetery." They now host quarterly community cleanups to clear brush and uncover long-forgotten headstones, some dating back to the Civil War.
What they're saying:
Andrea McCray, the president of Friends of the Crystal Memorial Gardens Cemetery, said the effort is deeply personal.
"My family is a pioneer family in Crystal River… My mom and dad, my grandmother, my great-grandparents [are buried here]," she said.
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She said seeing the damage firsthand was heartbreaking.
"At the time, it was severely overgrown. This is a community cemetery, so it does not have a dedicated caretaker," McCray said.
And now, the group’s mission has grown beyond her own family.
"The hope that we are passing on is phenomenal. It’s community," she said.
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What's next:
A comprehensive radar survey of the cemetery will be completed with state funding, while engineers conduct a flood mitigation study to address water damage. The next community cleanup is scheduled for Saturday, October 4.
To learn more, click here.
The Source: Information in this article comes from interviews conducted by FOX 13’s Jennifer Kveglis with Andrea McCray, the president of Friends of the Crystal Memorial Gardens Cemetery.