The Woodland Cemetery Stewardship Committee was established by Clemson President Dr. James F. Barker in 2000 to oversee the maintenance, protection, and preservation of Woodland Cemetery at Clemson University. Committee members were appointed by the president for lifetime appointments, initially comprising seven members: four from the 'Clemson Family', the Campus Master Planner, the Chair of the Naming Committee for University Lands and Facilities, and the Chair of the University's Alumni Distinguished Professors. The committee meets on an ad hoc basis from 2000-present, makes annual reports to the university president, and reports to Clemson University's Board of Trustees as needed. In 2005, all records pertaining to Woodland Cemetery and Cemetery Hill more broadly that were held in the Department of Property Management (Facilities) were transferred to the Secretary of the Board of Trustees.

Woodland Cemetery was established for faculty and staff in 1924 under the direction of Clemson President Dr. Walter M. Riggs and the Board of Trustees. Its space was defined geographically by the Woodland Cemetery Stewardship Committee and approved by the Board of Trustees in 2002 as all grounds contained within the intersections of Williamson Road, the C-3 Commuter Lot, A-Street and Memorial Stadium. Whereas the cemetery designated for faculty and staff is named Woodland Cemetery, the topographic area of the hill upon which the cemetery is situated is traditionally referred to as Cemetery Hill. Use of the hill as a cemetery can be dated as early as 1837 when it was used by the Calhoun family. Oral history accounts and Ground Penetrating Radar analyses indicate that the area was also used as a cemetery by other members of the local community before and during the founding years of Clemson College, probably African and African American enslaved individuals, freed individuals, sharecroppers, and convict laborers.