Applications

The Neely Slave Cemetery, now located in the midst of South Point business park, a lush suburban office park in southwest Mecklenburg County, was once part of a large plantation in the farming community of Steele Creek. The cemetery is presently located in a large, undisturbed parcel of land at the center of the business park, and several elements of the surrounding landscape remain which help to preserve a sense of the cemetery’s originally rural setting. The small grove of trees in which the cemetery is located gives way to a small meadow facing South Ridge Drive. These two elements are particularly significant – according to Neely family records, the cemetery originally sat in a stretch of woods at the edge of a large field. A line of cedar trees along the front of the grove spans the length of the cemetery and marks the western side of the cemetery. These trees provide the only indication of the graves that lie behind, and may have been planted originally for this purpose.

In order to retain and protect the Neely Slave Cemetery’s rural setting, which is an integral part of the landmark, a sufficient amount of these elements must be included as part of the historic landmark. The grove of trees in the immediate vicinity of the cemetery (including the row of cedars) and a sufficient part of the meadow (enough to give a sense of the original juxtaposition of wooded area and open field) should be included in the landmark designation. In addition, the designation should include an unobstructed view of the cemetery from a public right of way, so that the rural feeling of the landmark is evident to viewers driving or walking by.

Because the large parcel of land on which the Neely Slave Cemetery is located has been plotted for development, this consultant cannot at this time recommend specific boundaries for the Neely Slave Cemetery as a local historic landmark. However, using the present state of the cemetery and its surroundings, a rough estimate can be determined. A parcel of land of approximately 48,000 square feet, or 1.1 acres, is sufficient to meet all of the above requirements, assuming South Ridge Drive to be the public right of way from which the cemetery will be viewed. This configuration includes the entire grove of trees to the east of the small meadow and approximately 40 feet of open space behind the grove, extending northward to where the periwinkle covering the cemetery ends, a distance of approximately 300 feet. From this point, the parcel of land extends west approximately 242 feet to South Ridge Drive, following the northern edge of the meadow as it gives way to a large grove of trees covering the northern corner of the property. The parcel’s western boundary, extending approximately 100 feet southward along South Ridge Drive, provides an unobstructed view of the cemetery, and the southern boundary, extending approximately 320 feet to the beginning point, just southeast of the southern edge of the grove containing the cemetery, protects a sufficient area of meadowland. These estimated boundaries can only be used as a guide to the Commission’s final decision on the boundaries of the landmark, which will be affected by development plans for the property surrounding the Neely Slave Cemetery.