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Graham proclaims February 2025 Black History Month, highlights Oak Grove Colored Johnson Cemetery designation and community award
Summary
The Graham City Council proclaimed February 2025 as Black History Month, noted the Oak Grove Colored Johnson Cemetery’s designation as a historic site and announced a Feb. 15 community celebration and an archaeology community-engagement award.
The Graham City Council read and adopted a proclamation proclaiming February 1–28, 2025, as Black History Month and recognized recent preservation and awards tied to a local historic cemetery.
The proclamation noted that on May 9, 2024, the Texas Historical Commission designated the Oak Grove Colored Johnson Cemetery — located along the US 380 bypass and State Highway 16 inside Graham city limits — as a historic site. It also noted the cemetery archaeology team, led by Dr. Tamara Walker of Texas Tech University, received the 2025 Mark Emac Community Engagement Award from the Society for Historical Archaeology. The city announced a community celebration of the site on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 11 a.m.
The mayor read the proclamation and invited descendants and community representatives; Julia Cox introduced herself as representing Reverend Vanessa Sims and the descendant community during the council presentation.
Council asked citizens and businesses to observe the month with reflections and events recognizing African American history in Graham. Staff and council also thanked volunteers, descendants and preservation partners for their work on the cemetery.
The proclamation and the scheduled Feb. 15 event were presented as ceremonial and community-recognition items; no formal policy change or expenditure was recorded in the meeting minutes on this item.
