HALOS IN HALTOM CITY: The Unfeigned Hope of Black Pioneers Resting at Historic New Trinity Cemetery — A National Treasure.

 

HALOS IN HALTOM CITY: The Unfeigned Hope of Black Pioneers Resting at Historic New Trinity Cemetery — A National Treasure.

There are stories buried in the soil of America.

Stories of courage.

Stories of sacrifice.

Stories of faith that endured even when the world seemed unwilling to see it.

Stories of men and women who refused to allow their lives, their service, or their dignity to disappear from the pages of history.

In Haltom City, Texas, just northeast of Fort Worth, those stories rest quietly beneath the trees of Historic New Trinity Cemetery. Beneath that sacred ground lie generations of Black pioneers—pastors, teachers, mothers, fathers, builders, and more than 500 Black veterans whose lives helped shape Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas, the United States, and communities across the world.

These men and women served their country across the defining wars of the twentieth century.

They fought in World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and beyond. They traveled across oceans, marched across continents, and served in distant lands where freedom itself was being tested.

They wore the uniform of the United States.

They saluted the same flag as every other soldier.

They stood ready to defend the promise of liberty not only for America—but for the world.

Yet many of them served during a time when that promise was not fully extended to them at home.

Still, they served.

Still, they excelled.

Still, they prayed.

Still, they believed.

And still, they returned home to build the very communities of Fort Worth and Tarrant County that generations now call home.

Their lives tell a story not of victimhood, but of determination, courage, faith, and an unbreakable commitment to dignity.

Today, New Trinity Cemetery stands not merely as a burial ground, but as a field of quiet halos—lives illuminated by service, sacrifice, and spiritual strength.

The Buffaloes of Haltom City

Long before many people recognized the historic significance of New Trinity Cemetery, the city of Haltom City had already embraced a powerful symbol connected to its identity.

For decades, the students and athletes of Haltom High School have proudly carried the name the Haltom Buffaloes. The buffalo symbolizes strength, endurance, and the rugged spirit of the American frontier.

But in recent years, a remarkable discovery has given that symbol deeper meaning.

As researchers, historians, and community volunteers began documenting the lives of those buried at New Trinity Cemetery, they uncovered something extraordinary.

Among the pioneers buried there are veterans connected to the historic regiments known as the Buffalo Soldiers.

This discovery created a powerful historical connection—linking the modern Buffaloes of Haltom City with the legendary Buffalo Soldiers who helped shape the American West.

The symbol of the buffalo in Haltom City now carries deeper meaning.

It represents not only school pride and athletic spirit, but also the legacy of Black soldiers whose courage, discipline, and sacrifice helped build the nation.

Service Across the Nation and Around the World

The pioneers resting at New Trinity Cemetery did not live lives confined to one city.

They helped build communities across the nation and served across the world.

Many left Texas to serve in distant battlefields. Others moved to cities like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Detroit, helping build Black institutions, churches, businesses, and neighborhoods that strengthened the fabric of American life.

Yet when their work was finished, many returned home.

Among them was Negro League baseball great L.D. Livingston.

Livingston played professional baseball during the era of the Negro Leagues, when Black athletes were barred from Major League Baseball but still displayed extraordinary talent across ballparks throughout the country.

When the United States entered World War II, Livingston served his nation in uniform. After the war, he continued his life of service as a Harlem police officer in New York City, protecting and serving one of the most historically significant Black communities in America.

His life carried him across the nation—but in the end, he returned home.

Today he rests among fellow pioneers at New Trinity Cemetery, where the stories of those who helped build America come together again.

His story reflects the broader truth of the cemetery itself:

The men and women buried at New Trinity did not simply shape one neighborhood or one city.

They helped shape a nation.

Faith That Walked Beside Them

What makes the story of the pioneers resting at New Trinity Cemetery especially powerful is not only their military service, but the spiritual life that sustained them.

Many of these men and women came from homes where the church was the center of community life.

They were raised on Sunday sermons and Wednesday prayers.

They were shaped by scripture and by the belief that God walks beside those who serve with courage and humility.

The words of Jesus carried special meaning for many who wore the uniform:

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

— John 15:13

They carried Bibles into war zones.

They whispered prayers in foxholes.

They sang hymns before battle.

Faith traveled with them across oceans and battlefields.

And when they returned home, that same faith helped them build churches, raise families, and strengthen the moral backbone of Black communities across Fort Worth and Tarrant County.

Some became pastors.

Some became deacons.

Some simply became faithful saints who served quietly in the pews every Sunday morning.

Builders of Communities

The pioneers buried at New Trinity Cemetery represent a remarkable tradition of excellence.

After returning from military service, many continued serving their communities in extraordinary ways.

Among those laid to rest in this historic cemetery are:

• Soldiers who defended democracy across the world

• Pastors who strengthened churches and nurtured faith communities

• Doctors and nurses who led Black medical institutions

• Educators who lifted entire generations

• Entrepreneurs who built businesses during segregation

• Negro League athletes who broke barriers through sport

• Community leaders who helped shape the growth of Fort Worth and Tarrant County

They were not simply veterans.

They were builders of families, guardians of faith, and architects of community progress.

They did not wait for permission to succeed.

They built lives of purpose, excellence, and spiritual conviction.

New Trinity Cemetery: A National Treasure

Today, Historic New Trinity Cemetery stands as far more than a local burial ground.

It is a national treasure.

Within its sacred ground rest men and women whose lives helped shape America itself.

Their stories connect the battlefields of Europe and the Pacific, the neighborhoods of Harlem and Chicago, the churches of Texas, and the ballparks of the Negro Leagues.

Their lives represent the courage of Black soldiers who defended democracy abroad while fighting for dignity at home.

As the United States approaches the 250th anniversary of its founding, the nation has an opportunity—and a responsibility—to recognize places like New Trinity Cemetery for what they truly are.

This sacred ground is part of the national story.

It deserves recognition as a National Treasure of Black military service and Black pioneering achievement in America.

Igniting the Fire of Honor

On **July 28, 2025—National Buffalo Soldiers Day—**a new chapter began.

The Friends of New Trinity Cemetery launched a movement to restore honor, visibility, and historical recognition to the pioneers resting in this sacred place.

Families rediscovered the stories of their ancestors.

Historians uncovered forgotten records.

Veterans organizations joined the work.

A new spirit began to rise.

A spirit of honor.

A spirit of remembrance.

A spirit of historical restoration.

Stories once hidden began to reappear.

Lives once overlooked began to shine again.

Digging for Dignity

The work of the Friends of New Trinity Cemetery has come to be known by a powerful phrase:

“Digging for Dignity.”

Volunteers restore graves, repair markers, and research the lives of those buried there.

They are uncovering stories.

They are restoring names.

They are reconnecting families to their ancestors.

They are lifting the halos of history that have too long been hidden beneath the soil.

A Promise Written in Sacred Ground

As America approaches its 250th anniversary, places like New Trinity Cemetery remind us that the story of the nation is richer and deeper than many once realized.

The pioneers buried here helped build communities across the nation, served across the world, and returned home to rest in sacred ground among their people.

Through the work of the Friends of New Trinity Cemetery, their halos are rising again into the light.

Because Halos in Haltom City is more than a title.

It is a testimony to the world.

It tells the story of:

• The Black pioneers of Fort Worth and Tarrant County

• The Buffalo Soldiers and Boy Soldiers

• The heroic women of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion

• Negro League baseball heritage

• The Negro hospital and Black medical leadership

• The sacred ground of New Trinity Cemetery

• And the enduring faith and dignity of the people buried there

The yellow roses, flags, skylight, and trees surrounding their memory symbolize hope, remembrance, and resurrection.

Because the pioneers resting there are not forgotten figures of the past.

They are part of a living story.

A story of service.

A story of resilience.

A story of faith.

And a story of a people who helped build America—and helped defend freedom across the world—while trusting that God would one day ensure their light could never be hidden again.

About the Curator and Publisher

Pastor Kyev P. Tatum, Sr.

Publisher, Black Texans, Inc.

Pastor Kyev P. Tatum, Sr. is a pastor, community historian, civil rights advocate, and publisher dedicated to preserving the stories, struggles, and triumphs of Black Texans whose contributions have too often been overlooked or forgotten.

He serves as the Senior Pastor of New Mount Rose Missionary Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas, where his ministry blends faith, social justice, education, and economic empowerment.

A graduate of the University of North Texas School of Community Service in Denton, Texas, Pastor Tatum has spent more than two decades working at the intersection of ministry, community advocacy, and historical preservation.

Through his publishing platform Black Texans, Inc., Pastor Tatum documents and shares the history of Black communities, veterans, civil rights pioneers, and cultural leaders across Texas.

As curator of “Halos in Haltom City: The Unfeigned Hope of Black Pioneers Resting at New Trinity Cemetery,” Pastor Tatum has helped ignite a movement to research, preserve, and honor the lives of the pioneers buried at Historic New Trinity Cemetery in Haltom City, Texas.

Through the work of the Friends of New Trinity Cemetery, he and a growing coalition of volunteers, historians, veterans, and families are uncovering the stories of more than 500 Black veterans and community pioneers whose lives helped shape America.

His work is guided by a simple but powerful mission:

To restore honor where honor is due, and to ensure that the stories of those who came before us are never buried by history.

Pastor Kyev P. Tatum, Sr.

Publisher, Black Texans, Inc.

Fort Worth, Texas