Finding Arthur “Blind” Blake’s Grave

*photo depicts me standing at the head of Arthur Blake’s grave.  NOTE:  No headstone.   THIS MUST CHANGE.

© Angela Mack 4/7/11

April 3, 2011

Alex van der Tuuk emailed me that some important information had been obtained about Blind Blake’s death.  He asked if I would be willing to try to search and obtain a death certificate from Milwaukee, WI.   I said that I would, especially since it is in such close proximity to me and that my schedule had freed up a bit.  He emailed me the small obituary excerpt that Rob Ford had found containing the date of Arthur Blake’s death as well as his Milwaukee address.

April 4, 2011

I first drove around North 10^th street in Milwaukee to try to find his home.  I asked a Time Warner employee for assistance.  The neighborhood was African American and largely run down.  I could not find his address.  I found some factories, a Baptist church, a school that had been ruined by fire, some newer built multi-unit buildings and Leinenkugel’s brewery in the area.  The area is known as Bronzeville…Milwaukee’s great African American district that had a thriving music scene at one time.

Next, I tried to find his funeral home.  But it didn’t seem to be in existence.  Oddly, I found a Paramount sign on a building along Cherry Street where his funeral home was.  I took pictures.

Then I went to the Milwaukee Courthouse and applied for a non-certified copy of Arthur Blake’s death certificate.  I filled out a self-addressed envelope and they told me that it would arrive within 2 weeks.  Upon Alex’s prompting, I visited the Milwaukee Historical Society to search city directories for an Arthur Blake.  I began with the year that he died.  He was listed in the 1934 directory as living at 1844B North 10^th Ave. with Beatrice.  He was listed in the 1933 directory as living with Beatrice at 621 W. Brown Street in Milwaukee.  He was also listed here as a musician. Arthur Blake was also listed in the 1932 directory as living with Beatrice.  His occupation was listed as an artist and living at 621 W. Brown in Milwaukee, WI.  He was not listed in the 1931 or 1930 directories.  I left the research library to call Alex but my cell phone would not allow me to.

I tried to obtain any other information about Blake at the Historical Society but could not find any.

When I got home, I emailed Alex immediately with the information that I dug up.  He said that Beatrice was certainly a surprise.  He was hopeful that Blake was listed as a “musician” and “artist”.  Alex and I talked about emailing him the document once it arrived.

April 7, 2011

The death certificate from the Milwaukee Courthouse arrived much to my surprise.  My initial feeling was fear.  I was scared to open it. I knew that the envelope in my hands most likely contained information that would finally lead to more clues about Arthur’s life and how he died. I knew that researchers around the globe had long looked for this one particular document in my hands.  It was almost like a “Holy Grail” of a document that I felt extremely humbled to open.

I hesitated for about 5 minutes and carried it around the house with uncontrollable shouts of elation and fear.  My son David was home.  I was trembling.  I wanted to video the opening but was in too much of an excited state.  I took photos of the unopened letter. Finally, I ripped the letter open by hand and took photos of the process.  First thing I noticed?  Cause of death.  Pulmonary Tuberculosis.  THAT was a surprise. Next I noticed his birthplace.  New Port News, VA.  Another surprise.  Immediately I emailed Alex that it had arrived.  My email text? “OMG OMG OMG” with a request for him to call me ASAP.

While I waited for him to contact me, I noticed that Arthur Blake’s burial place was listed as being Evergreen Cemetery.  I did some Google searches and was shocked to see that there was an Evergreen Cemetery close by and just south of me in Glendale, WI.  It appeared that the cemetery had been renamed as Glen Oaks Cemetery.  I called the number listed online.  Surprisingly, somebody answered.

“I am wondering if there is an Arthur Blake in your cemetery.”

“Can I ask what this is for?” he asked.

“I’m doing some research.  Is Arthur Blake buried there?”

“Let me check the records.  When did he die?”

“December 1, 1934.”

“Yes, we have an Arthur Blake here who died in 1934.  His address was 1844 N. 10^th Street?”

“Yes.  That’s the one.  I will be driving down there right now.”

I was surprised that the cemetery that Arthur Blake was buried in was so close to me!  I started jumping up and down for joy, laughing and shouting, “You son of a gun!” I marveled that his cemetery was on the same road as the pressing plant and recording studio in Grafton, WI.  (12^th Avenue in Grafton leads into Green Bay Road otherwise known as the historic Green Bay Trail once paved by elk, Indians and recording artists.)

I got lost.  My mind was in such an excited state.  I forgot to write down the address of the cemetery.  I just drove.  Friends were calling me on my cell phone.  But I declined them all.  I just wanted to get to Arthur Blake’s grave as quickly as I could.  Nothing else mattered.

When I got to Glendale, I noticed that the area contained a lot of African Americans.  I stopped at a gas station to ask where the cemetery was.  They didn’t know.  I asked a lady at the gas station.  She didn’t know.  So I kept driving south on Green Bay Road.

Alas!  There it was!  I took a left and pulled in to take a picture of Glen Oaks Cemetery in Glendale, WI.  I went to the office.  The person manning the office was occupied for a good 5 minutes.  So I took photos of my documents and inside of the office to help calm my nervous energy.

When he came to greet me, I asked if there was any documentation on Arthur Blake that I could see.  He said that he already printed it out and then handed it to me.  I asked for directions to the cemetery plot.  Realizing that it was in a very remote part of the cemetery, I kindly asked him to lead me to it.  Meanwhile, Alex called and I tried to give him as much information as possible over the phone while trying to contain myself.  I told him to call me back in a half hour.  Hopefully by then I could visit the grave site and give him more information.

The employee brought me to a remote part of the cemetery in the back that was obviously unkempt.  He tried to help me find Blake’s grave.  But we couldn’t find it.  He kept insisting that it was in one place.  But I pointed to the unkempt area and said, “Don’t you think he might be over there?”

“God I hope not.  They’re digging a road there.”

He said that he would go back to the office to look up names nearby on the computer.  He directed me to call him.

While I waited for him to drive back to the building, I quickly and frantically looked at all of the gravestones in the unkempt area.  I saw a lot of “Mother so and so” and “Brother so and so” names on the stones.  I saw a lot of garbage and hidden gravestones.  I quickly tried to clean each one up looking for Blake’s name.  NOTHING.

So I called him.  “I’m at so and so’s grave right now.”

“You need to go to the next row.”

“Ok.  Now I am at so and so’s grave.”

“Head north.”

We went back and forth like this for quite some time.  Finally, we determined that the exact location where Blake was buried did not have a tombstone.  The records at the cemetery have him listed as being a single large grave 72 Range 115.  Caroline Harvey was the closest tombstone to that.  She was born in 1896 and died in 1934.  Just north of him in Range 114 lies Willie Mae Hess who died in 1935.

Alex called back.  I stood at Arthur “Blind” Blake’s grave while talking to my world renowned Paramount research friend.  It seemed fitting that we should be on the phone together at that particular moment.  It was very special.  Alex deserved to be a part of that moment.  But with him being in the Netherlands, it was impossible for him to be there physically.  He requested more clarification on Arthur’s parents.  At that point, the certificate was in my car a good few blocks away.  I told him that I would walk to my car, contain myself and go through the certificate information with him once again while sitting in my car.

Directly east of Blake’s unmarked grave lies a bush.  Inside the bush is a forgotten tombstone, garbage and an American flag.  He’s buried in the farthest back, farthest east and “forgotten part” among many other presumably African Americans.  I had to tromp through the mud to get there.  The cemetery dumps dirt back in that area.  Many of the stones are damaged and remote hiding under trees and such.

I took photos of the unmarked grave, his neighboring deceased, my muddied feet which had collected burs as well as my expressive face.

Clearly, this has been one of the best days of my life.  And I want to stress that this was a team effort between Alex van der Tuuk, Bob Eagle, Rob Ford, Eric LeBlanc and myself.  We all did our part.  I was just fortunate enough to be able to reel the fish in.  This discovery about Blind Blake will surely be remembered throughout history and around the world.  I am honored and humbled that somehow a fellow musician and music teacher got to first visit Arthur Blake’s grave.  It felt very kindred.  Definitely spiritual.  I am truly honored and humbled.  Alex is convinced that it won’t be an unmarked grave for long.  Arthur “Blind” Blake is among the blues legends.  And we finally found our man.  AMEN to that.

 

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Tags: alex van der tuuk, angela mack blind blake, ARTHUR BLAKE, ARTHUR BLAKE DEATH, blind blake coroner's report, blind blake death, blind blake death certificate, blind blake grave, blind blake's death certificate, blues, blues and rhythm, eric leblance, glendale cemetery, grafton, music, paramount, rob ford
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