Lee on endangered historical cemetery: 'We're in danger of losing some of the final resting spots of some people buried here'

One of Houston's oldest black cemeteries has landed on a distinctive list, Houston ABC affiliate KTRK reported. 

According to the station, flooding has caused Olivewood Cemetery to be placed on the National Trust for Historic Preservation's (NTHP) 2022 "America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places" list. 

The cemetery at 1300 Court St. near Downtown Houston was incorporated in 1875 just as Reconstruction was about to end, per KTRK.

Jasmine Lee, who's a member of Descendants of Olivewood board, told KTRK that the cemetery took in more than 10 feet of water in the past.

"[It] has a detrimental effect," she said, according to the station.

The nonprofit organization has been responsible for the cemetery's upkeep since 2003, KTRK reported.

Lee said, the station reported, the flooding has caused headstones to be misplaced, burial plots to shift and the graveyard's north side to erode.

"We're in danger of losing some of the final resting spots of some people buried here," she told KTRK.

Descendants of Olivewood said that anyone interested in helping clean the cemetery can attend a monthly workday from 9 a.m. to noon, with the next one slated for June.

According to the group's website, the cemetery's inclusion on the endangered places list brings awareness to the ever-growing threat of damage and erosion ushered in by increased flooding in the city and surrounding areas.

"This sacred place and the dedicated volunteers who have brought it back to life need expanded partnerships and support to help protect Olivewood Cemetery from the increasing impacts of climate change-related extreme weather," NTHP Chief Preservation Office Katherine Malone-France said on the website.