Historic cemeteries increasingly rely on groups of descendants and volunteers to bring fresh energy and care to their sites. The city of Richmond is the beneficiary of one more of these groups with the creation of the Friends of Maury & Mt. Olivet Cemeteries in 2026. Though the two cemeteries have always been managed as a single unit, their historic division reflects the legacies of Jim Crow segregation. This new Friends group promises to unite energies across that line.
The nonprofit group is led by Kat Sharp and Bronwyn Hughes, a pair of nearby residents. Sharp has a personal connection to the cemeteries, as a descendant of the Beattie family, notorious for a tragic and sensationalized murder in the early twentieth century. The victim, Louise Beattie, is buried in the same plot and under the same headstone as her husband Henry, who was convicted and executed for her murder. Hughes working with Sharp to develop a book to tell the story. Over the past several years, Hughes and Sharp have been conducting research on the cemeteries, including in my Richmond Cemeteries course at VCU.
The previous manager of the city’s cemeteries, Jim Laidler, had earlier reached out to me regarding the desire of community members to have a historical marker raised for Mt. Olivet Cemetery. Laidler identified Charles Vaughan, a onetime member of the Richmond Slave Trail Commission, and Eddie Radden, a leader in several area organizations, as the points of contact for that effort. Unfortunately Radden died in 2025 before plans for the marker came to fruition.
But Sharp and I were able to sit down with Charles Vaughan at the Maury Cemetery office in February 2026. We had a lovely conversation about the area’s history. And we shared a funny moment when Vaughan almost jumped out of his chair upon hearing that Sharp was a Beattie descendant — he well remembered hearing that tale of murder as a youngster.
Building on this momentum, Sharp and Hughes participated in the city’s recent volunteer days at the cemeteries. And they used their managerial expertise to formalize a 501c3 Friends organization, much like the Friends of Shockoe Hill Cemetery, the Friends of Hollywood Cemetery, or the Friends of East End, so that they are eligible to receive donations and grant funding. As those groups know, there is plenty of work ahead, but what an exciting day for this often overlooked southside site!