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Narrative Description
Old Gray
Cemetery is a 13.47 acre site bounded by Broadway, Tyson and Cooper
streets, with Broadway it's primary access. The Knoxville National
Cemetery is adjacent to Old Gray Cemetery on its northern boundary.
Gray Cemetery (as it was known before New Gray Cemetery was
established in 1892) was incorporated by the Tennessee Legislature on
February 9, 1850, with a board of seven trustees. The original board
of trustees were William B. Reese (president), Marcus
D. Bearden (treasurer), Joseph L. King (secretary), James
C. Moses, James M. Welcker, John H. Crozier and Perez
Dickinson. The first purchase of land for Gray Cemetery was made
on December 3, 1849, two months before the cemetery was incorporated
by John H. Crozier, Joseph L. King and James M. Welcker, who would
become three of the original trustees. They bought eight acres about
a mile northwest of the city's central business district for $500
from John Dameron . On November 21, 1850, after incorporation,
Crozier, King and Welcker deeded the eight acres to the trustees of
Gray Cemetery.
Although
the land was purchased in 1850, the cemetery was not dedicated until
June 1, 1852, when the first 40 lots were sold at public auction. It
was not until August 11, 1853, that the plan submitted by Frederick
Douglass for laying off the grounds was adopted subject to a
detailed description of the plan being attached. He was paid $80.
Over the
years the Cemetery has made four more purchases: Lots 33, 34, and 35
on Broadway on October 8, 1864; 3/4 acre where the sexton's house
stood on Broadway on June 8, 1868 for $300; four and 3/4 acres
between Gray Cemetery and the National Cemetery on December 5, 1879
for $1500; and half of lot 31 on Broadway on February 16, 1909 for $1911.23
Old Gray
Cemetery now supports a wide variety of trees and natural vegetation.
Although originally sparsely populated with trees, the cemetery now
contains many stately oaks, dogwoods, and maples. This has changed
the cemetery landscape from an open pasture to a wooded garden over
the years. The design of the cemetery follows the natural topography
of the landscape and the roads leading through the cemetery follow
the natural slopes and rises of the terrain. An avenue runs from the
entrance on Broadway (originally Broad Street) to the fence running
along Cooper Street (originally Jacksboro Road). Connected to this
avenue are smaller curved roads. The cemetery roads were first laid
out so that each grave site was located on a carriage path or
walkway; the cemetery board eventually elected to remove many of the
carriage paths and walkways in order to provide additional plots for
the cemetery. Cemetery roads are now surfaced.
The
"Receiving Vault" was built in 1885 and the same year water
from the city water works was brought to the cemetery. In 1889 it was
decided that the Circle in the cemetery be laid off into lots
reserving, however, a small plot of the center of the Circle. In 1890 A.
J. Albers had a large bronzed iron fountain twenty feet high and
weighing four tons erected in the center of the Circle in memory of
his wife. It was called the "Ella Albers Memorial Fountain".
This early focal point in the cemetery has since been removed due to
rust and maintenance repairs.
Two
significant monuments are the Horne and Shepard monuments. The Horne
monument (Lot 902) with its almost life-sized sculpture of a
Confederate soldier marks the graves of two Confederate veterans, William
Asbury Horne (1845-1891), an assistant quartermaster with the
42nd Georgia Infantry, and John Fletcher Horne (1843-1906),
who was a sergeant with the Kain's Battery Tennessee Light Artillery. The
Shepard monument (Lot 255) is the only white bronze monument in Old
Gray. It marks the graves of Lazarus C. Shepard (1816-1902)
and his wife Emily T. Shepard (1814-1882). L. C. Shepard was
Knoxville's first embalmer and many local residents report that this
hollow monument served as a drop-off point for bootleg liquor.
In 1897 the
"Porter's Lodge", a modern marble lodge of most attractive
appearance, was built from plans obtained from an architect of this
city. It is constructed of Tennessee marble and is a one story
building, rectangular in plan. The roof is a bell cast hip roof
covered with slate shingles of blue and green.
The
entrance posts, constructed in 1902 following plans and
specifications of Producers Marble Company of Knoxville for $650, are
square and made of smooth faced marble in a dressed faced ashlar
design. The main gate is made of wrought iron and has a diagonal
bracing for support.
The current
fencing protecting the eastern part of the cemetery from traffic on
Broadway is constructed of iron. The north and south walls are made
of stone. The west wall of five foot high concrete was built in 1907.
The oldest fence in the cemetery is on the east side along Tyson
Street (originally Holston street). It was built in April 1890 by F.
M Arthur and Co. for 94 cents per foot.
The
monuments in Old Gray Cemetery reflect the Victorian era during which
they were installed. Although there are some rectangular stone
markers, the first impression of the cemetery is of the elaborately
shaped and carved monuments. Burial records indicate that
approximately 5,700 burials have been made in Old Gray Cemetery since
it was founded.
Statement of Significance
The
cemetery is named in honor of Thomas Gray (1716-1771), the English
poet who wrote "Elegy Written in a Country Church Yard".
After considering a great number of names ending in "vale",
"dale" or "wood" or commencing with
"mount", the name Gray was suggested by Mrs. Henrietta
Brown Reese, wife of Judge William B. Reese, the first
president of the cemetery board of trustees.
The
dedication of the cemetery took place on June 1, 1852. The Masons,
Odd Fellows, Sons of Temperance and citizens walked in procession to
the cemetery, where the corner stone prepared by John Niblo was laid
by W. Claiborne Kain, worshipful master of Mt. Libanus Lodge No. 59.
A prayer by Reverend R. B. McMullen, pastor of First Presbyterian
Church was followed by the opening address by Honorable W. B. Reese,
president of the cemetery and president of East Tennessee University.
A beautiful and appropriate address was given by Reverend Thomas W.
Humes, rector of St. John's Episcopal Church, Knoxville. Music and a
concluding prayer by Reverend Samuel Patton, pastor of East Hill
Avenue Methodist Church, concluded the ceremony (OGM, p. 12). This
was followed by the sale of 40 lots.
Old Gray is
one of the oldest organized cemeteries in Knoxville, and the first in
the city to be planned following the "rural-cemetery
movement". Its curvilinear streets, landscaping and monuments
and markers all contribute to the design characteristics of the
cemetery. In its early history, Old Gray Cemetery was used as a
recreational park for many residents of the surrounding
neighborhoods. At one time, the cemetery was a popular destination
for social get-together's after church services on Sunday. As there
were many influential members of the local society buried in Old
Gray, the cemetery grounds attracted a number of family members and
visitors from Knoxville's elite. Additionally, many courting couples
used the cemetery for "sparking" and an old beech tree
still remaining in the cemetery serves as a symbol of many loves now
lost and forgotten. This tree, carved with many hearts and initials,
is a beautiful reminder of the importance of preservation. Many
locals also recount the "good ol' days" when the cemetery
was a favorite spot for sledding and playing tag. Even today, local
residents can be found using the roads of the cemetery for
recreational uses such as walking and running.
In 1854 the
board of mayor and aldermen and the different churches of Knoxville
were asked by the board of trustees of Gray Cemetery to procure
grounds for the burial of their poor. This section is located near
the south wall.
In 1856 a
portion of the grounds was set apart for those not wishing to buy a
lot but only to make a single interment. That section in the
northwest corner is often referred to as "Little Ireland",
since many of the Irish Catholics who came to Knoxville for the
building of the railroads are buried there. In 1856 a piece of ground
was also set apart for the burial of "People of color",
where their owners or friends were willing to pay for the ground
together with the sexton's fee.
The first
sexton of the cemetery was Edmond Lavin (1797-1863), a native
of Ireland. It was his responsibility to superintend the digging of
all graves for which he was paid $2.00 each. If he was required to
dig the grave himself or have it done he was to receive $5.00 from
the person having the internment made. Both Mr. Lavin and his son, John
Lavin (1841-1903), who became the second sexton, are buried at
Old Gray (Lot 177).
The problem
of maintaining the grounds and monuments, which Old Gray sometimes
experiences today, is not a new one. As early as 1854, the cemetery
board resolved that carriages and horses entering the cemetery should
no be permitted to turn out of the avenue or be hitched on the grounds.
The Civil
War brought other maintenance problems. In September, 1864, after
having failed to obtain any aid in erecting a fence around the
cemetery from the military authorities it was deemed advisable to
build a temporary wooden fence to prevent horses, mules, cattle, etc.
from running over the grounds. However, by December, 1864, the
committee appointed to contract with someone to build the fence
reported that they had come to the conclusion "that it should be
only a waste of money to erect such a fence as the troops were
occasionally camping near said grounds". (OGM, p. 54). This
report was made after looking at the grounds and maturely considering
the chances of the fence being permitted to remain. The president of
the board of trustees was authorized to call upon the military
authorities and obtain if possible protection for the cemetery.
Old Gray
Cemetery's history reflects Knoxville's Civil War History. The War
was traumatic in Knoxville, and its impact was felt by the Old Gray
Cemetery board members. There was a good deal of consternation among
the board of trustees over the purchase of lots with Confederate
money. In 1864 the secretary reported that he had on hand $1,765.00
in Confederate money but since the occupation by the Federal troops
at Knoxville on September 1, 1863, the money was deemed by the board
members as worthless.
In 1870, Dr.
John Fouche, president of the board of trustees, offered 13
by-laws which were adopted. By-law number one was: "All persons
visiting the cemetery shall conduct themselves soberly and
gravely." It was also resolved that the Mayor and Aldermen send
a policeman to the cemetery every Sabbath to preserve order.
After the
purchase of four and 3/4 acres lying between Old Gray and Knoxville
National Cemetery in 1879, over one hundred graves made during the
Civil War had to be removed, the grounds and carriage paths laid out
and tree and shrubs planted.
On October
8, 1892, seventy-eight acres were bought from John C. Flanders
and New Gray Cemetery on Western Avenue was established. Gray
Cemetery on Broadway then became known as "Old" Gray Cemetery.
In 1896,
notice was made of the crowds that sometimes gathered to observe
interments out of curiosity. The sexton was to be provided with iron
stakes and connecting chains or cords in order to erect a temporary
fence that would assure those attending the funerals a place at the
grave site.
Many
noteworthy people are buried at Old Gray Cemetery. Among them, Lloyd
Branson (1853-1925), Knoxville artist, and founder of the
Nicholson Art League; William Gannaway Brownlow (1805-1877),
minister, editor, author, Governor of Tennessee, and United States
Senator; Perez Dickinson (1813-1901), merchant, banker and
owner of Island Home Farm; Lizzie Crozier French (1851-1926),
educator, civic leader, and advocate of women's suffrage; Eliza
Boond Hodgson (1810-1870), mother of the writer Frances Hodgson
Burnett, author of The Secret Garden; Thomas William Humes
(1815-1892), Episcopalian minister, President of East Tennessee
University , and first librarian at Lawson McGhee Library; Calvin
Morgan McClung (185501919), merchant, collector or local
historical materials; Charles McClung (1761-1835), surveyor who laid
out the city of Knoxville, 1791, merchant and lawyer. His remains
were moved to Old Gray in 1904 from Harrodsburgh Springs, Kentucky. Charles
McClung McGhee (1828-1907), railroad entrepreneur, and founder
of Lawson McGhee Library; Joseph Alexander Mabry, Jr.
(1826-1882), railroad entrepreneur, and landowner. He, his son, Joseph
Alexander Mabry III and Thomas O'Conner all died in a
shooting incident on Gay Street, Knoxville which was recounted in
Mark Twain's Life on the Mississippi; Mary Utopia Rothrock
(1890-1976), librarian, author, historian; Mary Boyce Temple
(1856-1929), author, preservationist, first president of Ossoli
Circle (the oldest federated women's club in the south), organizing
regent of the Bonny Kate chapter of the Daughters of the American
Revolution; Lawrence Davis Tyson (1861-1929), U. S.
Brigadier-general, Senator; Anna Catherine Wiley (1879-1958),
Knoxville artist whose work has recently been recognized as having
significant regional importance. |
In the beginning a "Country Churchyard"
