
Elmwood Cemetery is the oldest active
cemetery
A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, dead people are burial, buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ...
in
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...
. It was established in 1852 as one of the first
rural cemeteries
A rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of cemetery that became popular in the United States and Europe in the mid-19th century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries, which tended to be churchyards. Rural cemeter ...
in the South.
A funeral scene in
Paramount
Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to:
Entertainment and music companies
* Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS.
**Paramount Picture ...
's 1993 legal thriller ''
The Firm
The FIRM is a brand of exercise videos and equipment currently owned by Gaiam. First released in 1986, the video series is best known for popularizing a hybrid of aerobic exercise and weight training.
History
In 1979, Anna Benson founded th ...
'' was filmed here.
Origins
Elmwood Cemetery was established as part of the
Rural Cemetery
A rural cemetery or garden cemetery is a style of cemetery that became popular in the United States and Europe in the mid-19th century due to the overcrowding and health concerns of urban cemeteries, which tended to be churchyards. Rural cemeter ...
Movement of the early-to-mid-19th century. A classic example of a garden cemetery, it is notable for its park-like setting, sweeping vistas, shady knolls, large stands of ancient trees, and magnificent monuments.
On 28 August 1852, fifty prominent
Memphis citizens each contributed $500 for stock certificates in order to purchase of land for the cemetery; they envisioned that this land would be a park for the living as well as the dead, where family outings, picnics, and social gatherings could occur. It was meant to be a place where beautiful gardens were tended and individual monuments celebrated both life and death. The name for the place was chosen in a drawing: several proposed names were put into a hat and Elmwood was drawn, with the stockholders stating they were "well pleased" with the selection. Ironically, they had to hurriedly order some elms trees from New York to place among the native oaks of Memphis, since there were no elms in the area. After the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, the property was expanded to for another $40,000. In the 1870s, the original corporation controlling the cemetery was dissolved and it became one of the oldest nonprofits in
Tennessee
Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
.
[Elmwood Cemetery, About us: History](_blank)
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The first burial occurred on 15 July 1853, when Mrs. R.B. Berry was laid to rest. Since then, more than 75,000 people have been buried at Elmwood Cemetery, with space still remaining for about 15,000 more. The cemetery's gardens include the Carlisle S. Page Arboretum. Beneath the cemetery's ancient elms, oaks, and magnolias lie some of the city's most honored and revered dead; flowering dogwoods and crepe myrtles are interspersed with Memphis history, those famous and infamous, loved and feared. There are veterans of every American war, from the American Revolution
The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
up to the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, and there are people from every walk of life and culture, including Mayors of Memphis, Governors of Tennessee
The governor of Tennessee is the head of government of the U.S. state of Tennessee.
Tennessee has had 50 governors, including the incumbent, Bill Lee. Seven governors (John Sevier, William Carroll, Andrew Johnson, Robert Love Taylor, Gordon Br ...
, U.S. Senators, madams, blues singers, suffragists, martyrs, generals, civil rights leaders, holy men and women, outlaws and millionaires and ordinary citizens.
Civil War burials
About 1,000 Confederate
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
soldiers and veterans are buried in Confederate Soldiers Rest, located in the cemetery's Fowler Section. Many other Confederates are buried elsewhere in the cemetery. The first burial in Confederate Soldiers Rest was William (Thomas) Gallagher on June 17, 1861, and the last interment was John Frank Gunter on April 1, 1940. Among the Confederate generals buried there are James Patton Anderson, a former U.S. Congressman who commanded the Army of Tennessee
The Army of Tennessee was a Field army, field army of the Confederate States Army in the Western theater of the American Civil War, Western Theater of the American Civil War. Named for the Confederate States of America, Confederate state of Tenn ...
in 1862, Colton Greene
Colton Greene (July 7, 1833September 23, 1900) was an officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded cavalry in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War. After the Civil War Greene pursued several successful civic projects a ...
, Preston Smith and William Henry Carroll.[Cothern, John W. ''Confederates of Elmwood.'' Publisher: Heritage Books, Inc., Bowie, Md. 2001.] Other burials include Isham G. Harris, Tennessee's Confederate-era governor, Thomas Battle Turley, CSA private and U.S. Senator from Tennessee, and William Graham Swan, a Confederate congressman and mayor of Knoxville
Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...
.
Union soldiers also were buried at Elmwood in the 1860s, but almost all were removed in 1868 and reinterred in Memphis National Cemetery.[ Two Union generals, William Jay Smith and Milton T. Williamson, remain at Elmwood.
Also interred at Elmwood is renowned Civil War author ]Shelby Foote
Shelby Dade Foote Jr. (November 17, 1916 – June 27, 2005) was an American writer, historian and journalist. Although he primarily viewed himself as a novelist, he is now best known for his authorship of ''The Civil War: A Narrative'', a three- ...
, famous for his comprehensive three volume, 3000-page history of the war The Civil War: A Narrative. He is buried beside the family plot of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest
Nathan Bedford Forrest (July 13, 1821October 29, 1877) was an List of slave traders of the United States, American slave trader, active in the lower Mississippi River valley, who served as a General officers in the Confederate States Army, Con ...
. Forrest himself was also originally buried at Elmwood, but in 1904 the remains of Forrest and his wife Mary were disinterred and moved to a Memphis city park originally named Forrest Park in his honor, that has since been renamed Health Sciences Park.
Yellow Fever burials
There were several outbreaks of yellow fever in Memphis during the 1870s, the worst outbreak occurring in 1878, with over 5,000 fatalities in the city itself and 20,000 along the whole of the Mississippi River Valley.[Crosby, MC. 2006. The American Plague: The Untold Story of Yellow Fever, the Epidemic That Shaped Our History. ]Berkley Books
Berkley Books is an American imprint founded in 1955 by Charles Byrne and Frederic Klein owned by the Penguin Group unit of Penguin Random House.
History
Berkley Books began as an independent company in 1955. It was founded as "Chic News Compa ...
. Some 2,500 of the Memphis victims are buried in four public lots at Elmwood; among them are doctors, ministers, nuns, travelers, and even sex workers who died while tending to the sick.
Notable people buried at Elmwood
* Finis L. Bates, Author
* Thea Bowman, Roman Catholic religious leader
* Robert Reed Church, businessman
* E. H. Crump, politician
* Shelby Foote
Shelby Dade Foote Jr. (November 17, 1916 – June 27, 2005) was an American writer, historian and journalist. Although he primarily viewed himself as a novelist, he is now best known for his authorship of ''The Civil War: A Narrative'', a three- ...
, novelist, historian
* George Gordon, Confederate Army General
* Napoleon Hill
Oliver Napoleon Hill (October 26, 1883 – November 8, 1970) was an American self-help author. He is best known for his book ''Think and Grow Rich'' (1937), which is among the best-selling self-help books of all time. Hill's works insisted tha ...
, businessman
* Benjamin Hooks
Benjamin Lawson Hooks (January 31, 1925 – April 15, 2010) was an American civil rights leader and government official. A Baptist minister and practicing attorney, he served as executive director of the National Association for the Advancement ...
, American civil rights leader
* Wayne Jackson, musician
* James C. Jones, 10th TN Governor & TN Senator
* Estes W. Mann, prominent Memphis architect
* Maxine Smith, civil rights leader and academic
* William Jay Smith, Union General, Tennessee politician
* Thomas B. Turley, US Senator
* Alfred Jefferson Vaughan Jr., Confederate army general
* Gideon Pillow
Gideon Johnson Pillow (June 8, 1806October 8, 1878) was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, having previously served as a general of United States Volunteers during the Mexican–Ame ...
, Confederate General
* Isham G. Harris,Tennessee Gov. at the beginning of the Civil War
Visiting Elmwood
Elmwood Cemetery is located at 824 South Dudley Street, south of Crump Boulevard. The cemetery grounds are open from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm CST, seven days a week, including holidays. The cemetery office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm CST, Saturday from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm CST, and is closed on Sundays and holidays.[Elmwood Cemetery Website]
References
External links
*
Photo Tour of Elmwood Cemetery
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elmwood Cemetery
1852 establishments in Tennessee
Cemeteries established in the 1850s
Cemeteries in Memphis, Tennessee
Cemeteries on the National Register of Historic Places in Tennessee
Tourist attractions in Memphis, Tennessee
Protected areas of Shelby County, Tennessee
National Register of Historic Places in Memphis, Tennessee
Rural cemeteries
Yellow fever monuments and memorials