The second largest African American cemetery in the area, Woodland is surpassed only by
Evergreen Cemetery. The cemetery was founded and designed by
Richmond Planet editor
John Mitchell, Jr. The cemetery is designed in the
rural cemetery style and incorporates winding roads on terraced slopes and laid out with concrete roads and pathways. The layout was inspired by the design of Hollywood Cemetery, designed by John Notman in 1847 Until about 1970, private cemeteries like Woodland and
Evergreen Cemeteries were the only cemeteries open to African Americans for burial in the city of Richmond. The city-owned cemeteries remained
segregated until over a century after slaves became free in America. As far back as the early 1900s, Woodland Cemetery was known as a prestigious place of interment for African Americans. Buried here are many of Richmond's Black elite, including leaders in the
Civil Rights Movement, doctors, dentists, bank officers, a female African American spy for the Union and church leaders. For many years, the cemetery saw serious neglect including overgrowth and dumping, In 1993, the city of Richmond stepped in to assist with a clean-up in anticipation of media coverage anticipated for the interment of Arthur Ashe. In 2020, Woodland was purchased by local businessman Marvin Harris, founder of the Woodland Cemetery Restoration Foundation, which raised the funds to purchase the cemetery. Mr. Harris is also involved with efforts to restore nearby Historic
Evergreen Cemetery. As of 2022, the foundation is working to raise more funding to complete the restoration process. ==List of notable interments==