Oakland Cemetery is a historic cemetery in

Trenton, Tennessee Trenton is the county seat and fourth largest city of Gibson County, Tennessee, Gibson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 4,264 at the 2010 census, down from 4,683 in 2000. History Trenton was established in 1824 as a county se ...

. Established in the Antebellum era, it includes two Confederate monuments, and a third monument to Trenton Cotton Mills employees. It is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. The smaller Ward cemetery lies at the south-western corner of Oakland cemetery.

History

The cemetery was established in 1825. With In the aftermath of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

of 1861–1865, many local veterans of the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

were buried here. By 1900, the

United Daughters of the Confederacy The United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) is an American neo-Confederate hereditary association for female descendants of Confederate Civil War soldiers engaging in the commemoration of these ancestors, the funding of monuments to them, ...

commissioned the construction of a Confederate monument in their memory, with a Bonnie Blue Flag in the center. There is a second Confederate memorial with the names of CSA veterans in the cemetery: an inscription on the gazebo, enhanced by a metal plaque commissioned by the

Sons of Confederate Veterans The Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) is an American neo-Confederate nonprofit organization of male descendants of Confederate soldiers The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the militar ...

circa 1990. A third monument was erected by the Dyersburg Corporation for their employees at the historic Trenton Cotton Mills circa 1990. Notable burials include Confederate colonels Thomas Jones Freeman and

Munson Rufus Hill Munson Rufus Hill (May 4, 1821 – October 24, 1867) was an American lawyer, politician and Confederate officer. Hill was born in Monroe County, New York. In 1839 he moved to Dyersburg, Tennessee, and then Trenton, Tennessee, ten years later ...

as well as Congressmen

Robert Porter Caldwell Robert Porter Caldwell (December 16, 1821 – March 12, 1885) was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 7th congressional district of Tennessee. Biography Caldwell was born in Adair County, Ken ...

and James C. McDearmon. Other notables include Congressman

Pleasant Moorman Miller Pleasant Moorman Miller, (unknown birth - 1849) was an American politician who represented Tennessee in the United States House of Representatives. Biography Miller was born the son of a tavern owner in Lynchburg, Virginia. Miller studied law u ...

. The cemetery has been listed on the

since March 20, 2007.

Ward African-American cemetery

On 16 January 1940, Sam and Eliza Ward purchased 7 acres of land between 8th and 10th Street, Trenton. Part of the parcel became Ward cemetery; it appears on plat drawings dated 21 April 1942. By 1986, most of the remainder of the original Ward purchase had been bought by the City of Trenton and was used to extend Oakland cemetery.
Today, Oakland forms the northern and eastern boundaries of Ward cemetery. By 2019, Ward cemetery held least 162 burials.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oakland Cemetery 1825 establishments in Tennessee African-American cemeteries in Tennessee Buildings and structures completed in 1825 Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Tennessee Confederate States of America monuments and memorials in Tennessee National Register of Historic Places in Gibson County, Tennessee