The Carrollton City Cemetery Located across two hilltops along what was once the outskirts of town, the Carrollton City Cemetery is a peaceful and stately oasis in the historic heart of Carrollton. It is here that so many of Carroll County’s best stories wrote their final chapters. Some of those stories are well known and some are little read but all played a part in making our area the special place that it is today.
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Markers & Emblems Visiting cemeteries often brings up memories of loved ones lost. It is easy to try and imagine what that person’s life might have been like and how they have come to shape and influence the town and community that we live in but sometimes the most important and significant key tokens of someone’s life are the emblems and markers that remain behind on their gravestone. These emblems and markers give us insight into this person’s former life and their families’ wishes for them in their next life. Below is a list of symbols that you will see while exploring our cemetery and an explanation behind their meanings. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Angel - The messenger of God, spirituality Book - Faith, wisdom Cherub - Divine wisdom or justice Column - Noble life Cross - Faith Crown - Reward and glory Dove - Purity, love and Holy Spirit Hands - A relation or partnership Ivy - Friendship. Lamb - Innocence. Obelisk - Eternal life. Crossed swords - Life lost in battle Sword - A military career Shamrock - Ireland as country of origin Scroll - Symbol of life and time Tree trunk - The beauty of life Urn - Old age, mourning if draped
There are these symbols and more spread through out the cemetery. As you walk along, please take time to enjoy the beauty of these wonderful monuments and to remember the lives that these people have led. 3
Historic Park Street
Historic Park Street can be found on the North side of Alabama Street next to Moore’s Chapel United Methodist Church. This is the oldest section of the Carrollton City Cemetery and contains our town’s settlers and pioneers that relocated here to make Carrollton their home. Distinct markers that you will find in this section include a large angel monument and a northward facing grave. The birthdates noted on the gravestones reach back as far as the 1700s with some of the earliest graves no longer containing markings. If you look around you will notice that tombstones in this section of the cemetery are less ornate than the classical Victorian monuments found in the Magnolia Section due in part to the conservative nature of this time period.
1. Georgia Price
Georgia Price’s gravesite is easily recognized by the beautiful angel statuary which adorns her monument. She was the first freed slave to own and operate a business in Carrollton. She ran a restaurant and hotel on Depot Street (now Bradley Street) in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. When she died in 1917, her former customers pooled their money to buy her the remarkable headstone that now marks her grave. 4
2. Colonel William E. Curtis
Col. William E. Curtis served with 41st GA Infantry. He was captured at the battle of Vicksburg and held prisoner for a short period of time. After his release, he was wounded at Mill Creek Gap and died a month later. He is the highest ranking Confederate soldier to be laid to rest in our cemetery. While all other graves are aligned east to west, Curtis was buried facing north to guard against the oncoming Union troops.
Have you noticed. . .
the large Cedar tree that is growing near William Huckabey’s grave? Evergreens like Cedar and Cypress trees are symbolic of eternal life and have been associated with grief since ancient times. This tree would have been planted there by a loved one in memory of their life.
3. Sanford Kingsberry
Sanford Kingsberry born in Vermont is one of Carrollton’s early settlers. He was a member of the 10th Georgia Calvary and served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Confederate States Army. His original farm, Oak Lawn, is still a private home located on Rome Street. He was known throughout the South for breeding champion racehorses. The streets Kingsbridge Rd. and King St. were both named after him and reflect how great his influence was on our community. 5
Magnolia Section Located on the South side of Alabama Street is the main entrance to the Carrollton City Cemetery. This five acre section was purchased from Mr. Mandeville in 1880 and has been named after the many tall Magnolia trees which now shade the graves of some of our community’s greatest Leaders, Politicians, Entrepreneurs and Educators. These family names can be found memorialized within the community through street signs, hospitals, businesses, libraries and parks. Rich with history, these markers and monuments tell great stories of past lives and love ones lost. 6
4. L. C. Mandeville
L. C. Mandeville owned and operated Mandeville Mills, which was originally built as a cotton mill in 1890 and operated through the 1940s. At its peak it employed more than 1,000 people and was one of the largest cotton mills in Georgia. It produced cotton for 50 years, until it was converted to a factory producing printed fabrics in 1952. L. C. Mandeville was the builder and original owner of the beautiful Queen Ann style Victorian home located on Maple Street.
5. Judge Samuel Boykin
Judge Samuel Boykin presided over many cases in the Coweta Judicial Circuit throughout his long career. Perhaps his most famous case was the John Wallace murder trial of 1948. In this trial John Wallace, a wealthy landowner in Meriwether County Georgia, was accused of murdering Wilson Turner, a sharecropper tenant, attempting to do extra bootlegging work without Wallace’s permission. Wallace’s trial received wide press coverage in the rural community. His case was unusual because he was one of the richest men to ever be given the death penalty and his case was the first in Georgia where a white man was given the death sentence upon the testimony of two black men. This case became known as the “Murder in Coweta County.” The events were the subject of two acclaimed works, both titled Murder in Coweta County: a 1976 book by Margaret Anne Barnes and a 1983 television movie starring Johnny Cash and Andy Griffith.
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6. W. C. Adamson William Charles Adamson, for whom Carrollton’s downtown square was named, was a lawyer, judge and a Congressman. He was born in 1854 in Bowdon, Georgia where he graduated valedictorian of his class at Bowdon College. He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1876 and commenced practice in Carrollton. He served as judge of the city court from 1885-1889 and as Attorney for the City of Carrollton for a number of years. He attended the Democratic National Convention as a delegate in 1892 and was elected to Congress in 1897. During his time in Congress, Adamson was instrumental in the construction of the Panama Canal and was Chairman of the Committee on Labor. He participated in the creation of the United States Labor Department and authored the Adamson Act, which created an eight-hour workday for railroad workers. This benchmark became the standard for the duration of the modern workday. In 1917 President Woodrow Wilson appointed Adamson to a United States Customs judgeship, where he served ten years. Judge William Charles Adamson died while visiting New York City on January 3, 1929. The tall obelisk marking the graves of Adamson and his wife, Minna, can be found in the middle of the Magnolia Section. 8
7. N. A. Horton N.A Horton founded the bookstore that carries his name in 1892. An undertaker by trade, Horton stocked books, china, sewing machines, organs, coffins and caskets. After his sudden death in 1916, his son Hewling (Hap) Horton continued to carry on the business. After more than 100 years Horton’s bookstore, located on Adamson Square, is the oldest bookstore in Georgia and is one of the oldest bookstores in the country.
8. Edwin Sharpe
Edwin Sharpe is most well known for being the founding father of the Carroll County Times in 1871. The Carroll County Times now known as the Times Georgian has remained the official legal organ of Carroll County for over 130 years and now produces more than 223,000 papers annually.
9. Irvine S. Ingram
Dr. Ingram was the last principal of the 4th District Agricultural and Mechanical School and the first president of West Georgia College. He served the schools for 40 years, 30 of them as the WGC president and then retired in 1960. The campus library, built in 1968, was named for Dr. Ingram; and the former Rural Arts Building, built in 1937, was dedicated to his wife, Martha Munro, in 1956. 9
Pearl Street 10. Nettie Talmadge Tyus Nettie Talmadge Tyus was a strong supporter of West Georgia College and a personal friend of Irvine Ingram. Her influence with her brother, Governor Eugene Talmadge, may have helped in the decision to locate West Georgia College in Carrollton rather than in Bowdon. Tyus Hall, built in 1972, was named in her honor.
11. C. M. Tanner In 1898, Tanner brought the Carrollton Grocery Company and renamed it the C. M. Tanner Grocery Company. Under his leadership, it grew to be the largest grocery wholesaler in the state. By 1913, there were ten people employed and three trucks delivering goods to customers in the West Georgia and Eastern Alabama area. A true philanthropist, Tanner provided the seed money of $75,000 for the Tanner Memorial Hospital in 1949. The Tanner family name appears on many streets, buildings and businesses including Tanner Health System Hospitals, John Tanner Park and Tanner Street in the downtown. 10
Notable People 12. John Tanner Sr. John W. Tanner, Sr. became the President of Tanner Grocery after the death of his father in 1953. In addition to continuing the philanthropic work of his father, he gave back to the community with the creation of John Tanner State Park. This West Georgia park is best known for having the largest manmade beach in any of Georgia’s State Parks, and is a recreational haven for outdoor enthusiast.
13. Dr. Claudette Hayes Dr. Hayes was the first woman doctor in Carroll County. The University now has the Dr. Claudette Hayes Scholarship that is awarded annually to a student in the nursing program.
14. Aubrey Mitchell Aubrey Mitchell was one of the first two African-American police officers in Carroll County.
15. Dr. Tracy Stallings A native of Carroll County, Tracy Stallings attended local schools. He was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Georgia in journalism, earned a master’s degree in counseling from the University of West Georgia, and received his Ph.D. in educational leadership from Georgia State University. His political career included six years as a member of the Carrollton Board of Education, nearly 14 years as mayor of the city of Carrollton and he served from 1994 to 2002 as a member of the Georgia House of Representatives. 11
Alabama Street Cemetery
Pearl Street Cemetery
A la ba ma St.
Magn olia Cemetery
Historic Park Street Cemetery US Hw y 27
The Carrollton City Cemetery The Carrollton City Cemetery Walking Guide is brought to you by the following organizations:
For more information please call or visit:
1-800-292-0871 www.visitcarrollton.com www.carrolltonmainstreet.com