DNA Testing May Soon Uncover the Story Behind Segregated Black Graves

A small gravesite near Goodlette-Frank Road and Pine Ridge Road in Collier County, Florida, contains eight unmarked graves believed to hold African Americans who lived during segregation and are connected to the historic Rosemary Cemetery. County officials have recently formally acknowledged this segregated burial section as the resting place of eight unknown Black pioneers, which has sparked renewed interest in identifying those buried there. The Collier County NAACP is exploring DNA testing to determine the identities of the deceased, though this would require exhuming remains and could take at least a year to gain necessary approvals from state and county authorities.