Decoration Day

You don't hear the phrase Decoration Day much anymore, even in the South, but it was the original name for Memorial Day. Still, there is a long and ongoing tradition in the South to tend and decorate the graves of Civil War casualties and veterans. Does that mean there are those who think the Civil War was a just and noble cause? There are still some that do, but for many this is simply about paying respect to one's ancestors and honoring those that died in a war unlike any ever fought by the USA, one that took place in our own back yard. I don't romanticize those times, and no one can ignore the horrendous injustice of slavery, but there is a pull we all have to pay our respects to the dead, especially those who died in combat. We all hope that years form now there will be those that honor us, trying to remember what was good about us and forgiving what was not.

Cassville Cemetery - Cassville Georgia

Myrtle Hill Cemetery - Rome, Georgia

One of my favorite cemeteries in Georgia. Any time I visit Rome I make time for a visit.

Zion Cemetery - White, Georgia

Zion Cemetery is off the beaten path, but may be familiar to the many cyclists that ride these roads in North Georgia.

Sardis Cemetery - Atlanta

The historic Sardis Cemetery in the Buckhead neighborhood of Atlanta. Soon to be on the National Register of Historic Places.

Reverend Bill Allison Memorial Cemetery - Atlanta

 

 

I stumbled on the Rev. Bill Allison Memorial Cemetery squeezed in between a warehouse and a trucking depot on Fulton Industrial Boulevard in Southwest Atlanta. I haven't been able to find much about this place, except for a few unconfirmed references to it as Potter's Field.

St. Johns In the Wilderness Episcopal Cemetery - Paul Smiths, NY

In the heart of the Adirondacks.

Sardis UMC Cemetery - Atlanta

From Sardis Cemetery at Sardis United Methodist Church in the Buckhead neighborhood of Atlanta.

Oakdale Cemetery - Wilmington, North Carolina

A great example of a rural cemetery in, Oakdale was founded in 1852 when room was running out in the churchyards in town.

Oakdale Cemetery - Wilmington, NC

Resaca Confederate Cemetery - Resaca, Georgia

Legend has it that this cemetery, resting place for 450 casualties from the battle of Resaca, was one of the first Confederate Cemeteries in the nation, the other being one in Winchester, Virginia. Both were dedicated on October 25, 1866.

Last Train Home

Destination or point of departure?

Oakland Cemetery, Atlanta, Georgia

Old Madison Cemetery, Madison, Georgia

Rose Hill Cemetery, Macon, Georgia