Inglewood Park Cemetery. Image Credit: CBS
Their brother, Alexander, however, lived until 1993, carrying the Raker family line forward. Because maytie was not the only young child in the family to die, the story also carries a deeper sadness. A review of historical records later revealed that no permanent marker had been placed at the site for generations.
Her younger sister, Hattie, also died in infancy the following year. For decades, Maytie’s story remained largely absent from the visible landscape of the cemetery. there was nothing above it to tell visitors her name or explain why she held such a unique place in its history While her grave existed.
In 1906, a 4-month-old baby named ‘Maytie Raker’ became the first person to be buried at Inglewood Park Cemetery in California. Her death came at the beginning of the cemetery’s long history, yet for the next 120 years, there was no marker to identify where she lay. The new headstone therefore became more than a memorial to one child.
PEOPLE also reported that the effort was intended to correct history and celebrate Maytie’s memory. CBS reported that the headstone is decorated with butterflies and a flower, while the words ‘Forever in our hearts’ appear alongside Maytie Raker’s name. PEOPLE reported that placing Maytie’s marker beside her sister’s headstone gave the site an added sense of family remembrance.
The new marker was installed to correct a long-overlooked part of the cemetery’s history, according to CBS. Cemetery leadership commissioned a permanent marker to ensure that her place in the cemetery’s history would finally be recognised, according to CBS. Brendt Stallings, the cemetery’s chief executive, said the institution had existed even before Inglewood officially became a city, according to PEOPLE.
Generations passed without a permanent tribute to the infant, whose short life had almost disappeared from public view. A review of historical records eventually brought her story back into the light, prompting cemetery and city leaders to honour her with a headstone. The ceremony did more than identify a grave. It also restored Maytie’s place in the story of a community and ensured that the baby who had been forgotten for more than a century would finally be remembered. More than a century after Maytie’s burial, historical records helped bring attention to her unmarked grave. The decision was supported by city and park leaders, who gathered to honour the child and acknowledge the long delay in marking her burial site. Inglewood City Councilmember Alex Padilla described the occasion as an opportunity to do justice to the Raker family. The child had been buried at the very beginning of Inglewood Park Cemetery’s existence, making her story closely connected to the history of the institution itself. It was also an acknowledgement that even the earliest chapters of a community’s history deserve to be remembered. Maytie is buried next to her sister Hattie, whose grave marker carries similar imagery. Hattie’s stone includes the words ‘Resting in Heaven’s Garden,’ creating a visual connection between the two sisters who both died in infancy. For more than a century, visitors could have passed the burial site without knowing who rested there. The new marker changes that, making her name and story part of the cemetery’s visible history. Inglewood Park Cemetery has a particularly long connection to the surrounding community. That history made Maytie’s story especially meaningful. She was not simply another person buried there; she was the first. Her unmarked grave represented a missing piece of the cemetery’s own story. Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts stressed on the lasting role of the cemetery, noting that while other major structures may eventually wear out, the cemetery will continue to preserve the memories of those buried there.
