Columbia, Tenn., also known as the “Dimple of the Universe” and the “Muletown Capital of the World,” is chock full of historic appeal on every inch of the small, Southern town. The historic square with the pristine, white county Courthouse standing tall in the center, has numerous historic buildings and hometown businesses tucked into each corner. The town even has a somewhat tragic history with several fires dilapidating a few of the most majestic buildings in the county and a history embedded with racial tension.
However, the numerous cemeteries dotted along the landscape of Maury county are reminders of the ample history of the town. Although there are hundreds of cemeteries inside the county -- mostly all rural, family cemeteries-- there are a handful of graveyards that are important to understanding the history of the town and the people that lived there.
Greenwood Cemetery was first interred on November 14, 1809, when commissioners in Maury county designated a plot of land atop a bluff in the northern edge of the historic square, overlooking the Duck River. In modern times, the cemetery still sits above the road, lined with a heavy brick wall and black, metal fencing. The trees along the backside of grown and the view of the Duck River is skewed, but the two-hundred-year-old headstones still stand proudly.
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The frontside of Greenwood Cemetery. (Mamie M. Lomax)
Adam Southern, director of the Maury County Public Library and local historian, explains that there are several pioneers of the county that are buried there.
“Major Samuel Polk and his wife, Jane Polk, are buried there. They’re not so much pioneers, but gave birth to one of the most prominent pioneers of our county, James K. Polk.”
Alongside the Polk family there are numerous veterans buried in the cemetery. Southern explains that there are a few that served in the American Revolution, a dozen or so from the War of 1812, a handful from the Mexican-American War and several that served in the Civil War.
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Southern also explains the significance of a badly eroded slab of rock, remnants of a box-tomb, that lie in almost the center of the space. Jane Brown lies there, the mother of one of the founders of Columbia. Although she does not have direct success in founding the small town, her being in the family that started the town is enough to mark her grave memorable.
“She wasn’t at first, for she was buried in a family cemetery, but her husband was one of the leading founders of Columbia, so her remains were excavated and she was buried alongside the pioneers of the city.”
Although the people that are buried in Greenwood have been deceased for over a century now, the reminders of their presence is enough to keep their memories and accomplishment alive.
For over half a century, Greenwood remained the only public cemetery in Columbia, however, that quickly changed when Rose Hill began being designed.
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Rose Hill, situated atop several rolling hills in the south side of downtown Columbia, was founded in 1853. Southern explains that the location of the cemetery was ideal for the time because of the railroad that is adjacent to the property. He also explains the design layout of the expansive, beautiful place. Chuck Byrn, a local historian and teacher in the Maury County Public School system, explains the interesting aspects of design for the cemetery.
“Rose Hill is interesting because it’s a combination of a traditional Southern cemetery and the new Victorian “garden-esque” cemetery that was becoming popular during this time.”
But, not only are the design elements important in understanding the significance of the cemetery, racial elements are present and had been since the beginnings.
“Columbia has always had an interesting history with racial underlyings. For example, the Race Riots in the 40s caused a big stir. But, the design of Rose Hill, with a seperate, African-American cemetery, Rosemont, tells the story of the racial tensions that were present throughout our history.”
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Up until 2014, when the MTSU Center for Historic Preservation along with Dr. Stacey Graham, came up with a plan for heritage development to fuse the separated resting places. According to the published Heritage Plan from MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation website, there were three principal components of the plan: a historical assessment of both cemeteries, an overview of the preservation considerations and recommendations for the heritage development.
“Rose Hill is one of the only places in Maury County where the whole story of its citizens, who are black and what, can be told. The landscapes, how they are arranged and separated definitely reflects the way this town interacted over time.” Graham says.
Rose Hill, like Greenwood, also has several veteran gravesites, including a large plot that includes a mass collection of Civil War veteran markers and a statue of Confederate general. The cemetery is sprawling and, similar to Greenwood, contains remains of many pioneers of the county, including the master builder of Maury County and builder of the Athenaeum, Nathan Vaught.
Columbia’s history is embedded in every aspect of the small, Southern town and specifically through the numerous cemeteries that are dotted along the landscape of the county. Many cemeteries in the county are rural or family burial places, however, the public cemeteries in the town are markers of the interesting history that the town is known for.
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