‘A Grave in the Street:’ Why is there a tomb in the middle of this Florida road?

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. – Given the number of tourist hotspots in New Smyrna Beach, there’s little reason to visit this quiet neighborhood nestled in the city.

But for those who take the backroads and drive through Canova Drive, they’ll see a strange site in the middle of the street.

An eerie tomb sits on an island in the middle of the roadway.

Upon closer inspection, the tomb features a small statue of a dog, and an inscription that reads as follows:

Sacred to the memory of

CHARLES DUMMETT

born

Aug. 18, 1844

died

April 23, 1860

Inscription on Charles Dummett’s gravesite

The small island is still maintained by either local residents or the city, and a couple of nearby signs indicate that it’s a popular spot for turtles.

But why is this nearly two-century-old grave in such an unusual spot?

According to the local history museum, it all began when the Dummett family came to Florida in the early 1800s.

The family had decided to abandon their plantation on Barbados Island (a British colony in the Caribbean) to avoid freeing their slaves, which was required under a new British law.

As a result, the family moved to St. Augustine, and one of the sons — Douglas — later left for Volusia County (called “Mosquito County” at the time) and went into the citrus business.

According to the museum’s executive director, Greg Holbrook, Douglas Dummett later took a young slave girl — half black and half Seminole Indian — named “Anna” as his wife, and they had three daughters and one son: Charles Dummett.

In a decades-old article by the Ocala Star-Banner titled “A Grave in the Street,” Charles Dummett was described as his father’s favorite, and he was sent to a school up north for “a proper education.”

However, when 16-year-old Charles returned home for holiday on April 23, 1860, he decided to go hunting with a friend.

During the hunt, Charles Dummett reportedly tripped over some foliage, and as he tried to regain his balance, his gun went off — leading to the teen’s death.

In the aftermath, Charles was buried a short distance from the family’s home, and the remainder of the family moved to an orange grove in Brevard County. Douglas Dummett died around 12 years later, and he was buried in an unmarked grave on Merritt Island.

Unlike his father, though, Charles Dummett’s grave is still marked.

Nearly a century later, the property his family once lived on was razed by construction crews, though his tomb was left where it stood.

Allegedly, it would have been more trouble than it was worth to go through the legal channels necessary to move it, and the pavement along Canova Drive was instead split to go around it.

Over 164 years after Charles Dummett’s death, his tomb still sits there.

And it’s not likely to go away anytime soon.

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