The Beneficial Society of Laboring Sons of Frederick was established in 1837 to provide a proper burial for free blacks, the city’s tanners, carpenters, blacksmiths, Civil War Veterans and more. The cemetery was established in 1851.

The Laboring Sons Cemetery served as an African American burial ground from the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries. It is known that at least 160 burials survive, although none are presently visible at ground level. City surveyors recorded the locations of the marked burials in the 1950s, which included many young children. It is believed that additional burials are present that were not marked at that time.

A memorial ground was dedicated in 2003 in honor of those buried at the site. Today, Laboring Sons stands as a former cemetery as well as a historic and archaeological site.