Mark Davis

Mark Davis was a 13-year-old boy from Baltimore who died in 1885 while held at the House of Reformation and Instruction for Colored Children in Cheltenham, Maryland. He was buried in a burial ground in the woods across from the facility, and researchers with Georgetown University's Center for Youth Justice later identified his headstone there. Chuck Copeland, a cousin of Veronica Spears, stopped to read the headstone aloud during a visit to the site in September.

Cause of death, as reported: Cause not yet determined

News report

• Over 1,000 children are buried at juvenile detention centers nationwide APR | Alabama Public Radio (also kawc.org, Connecticut Public, Delaware Public Media, NPR, Georgia Public Broadcasting, Hawaii Public Radio, NPR Illinois, Iowa Public Radio), October 7, 2026