Texas churches discover pioneering Black Episcopal priest's unmarked grave

For decades members of the three Episcopal churches in Galveston, Texas–Trinity, Grace and St. Augustine of Hippo–have wondered about the location of Thomas White Cain’s grave. Cain, who is recalled as much for his life and ministry as for his death, was priest-in-charge of St. Augustine’s when he died on September 8, 1900, in the Great Galveston Flood. Earlier this month, they found it.

The hurricane killed at least 6,000 people and destroyed or damaged almost every structure in town. After the waters receded, Cain’s body was found on the beach and hastily buried. Later that year his remains were moved to Galveston’s Lakeview Cemetery, where then-Texas Bishop George Kinsolving officiated at the burial. His wife Elizabeth’s remains were never found. But the location of Cain’s grave was lost to memory over the decades, and a headstone, like others from that era, was likely destroyed or crumbled over time.

 In mid-February, a combination of longtime close ties between the three churches and a bit of luck turned up Cain’s final resting place, said Jimmy Abbott, Trinity’s rector. The three churches raised enough money in one day through a social media campaign to pay for a stone grave marker, which St. Augustine’s is designing.