Back in July I did a long and windy and rambling travel day to a number of cemeteries including one where I ran into some unfriendly locals. Now, I’m going to keep this story light and positive so let’s just say that by the time I made it to the High Shoals Baptist Cemetery I was a wee bit frazzled and shaken but ready to keep going. And when Lee pulled up in his pickup and jumped out, well, I was prepared for another un-fun conversation about exactly wtf was I doing there? Thank goodness that is the opposite of what happened.
Turns out that Lee and his partner Amy bought the old home up the way as well as the two churches that are across the street from each other. Cemeteries too. High Shoals included! And they’ve created a unique space with all of it, and the amount of care shines clearly.
This is not a sponsored post nor do Lee/Amy even know that I’m sharing all this. I just had to write about how they’ve turned the structures they acquired decades ago into study and event spaces all while maintaining the cemetery grounds and celebrating/sharing that history. It’s a unique slice into how cemetery tourism and the changing landscape of churches and historic properties are emerging with new lease on life.
When I first arrived on the property immediately hightailed it to what I thought was the church on the main property since it had some lovely summer blooms. Then I was like waitttt, what?
The church had expanded their baptismal area many years ago and so now the cemetery is rightttt up on the edge of the building. But it also had some tables and chairs on the porch which gave it a very ‘someone is around’ vibe. And I was right!
Turns out it’s The Portico event space and it’s just lovely. They host book groups, holiday markets, weddings and more. There’s even a full library wing with ohmygosh so many books on Georgia history.
Across the street is the other restored church, which my memory is hazy about the history of, as well as another cemetery that’s an extension of this one. Most of the graves are dated in the 1920’s but there are much older burials as well as recent ones from the 1970’s to 1990’s.
After seeing so many churches fall into disrepair or even destroyed (RIP Hopewell) I’m glad to see that these have been lovingly restored and revitalized for public use. I’d love to see more of it as long as the structural integrity of the building reflects its storied past. As an agnostic-y atheist-y person with a grandfather & dad that served as Baptist preachers and another set of family that were strict Catholics, I like to the think that my views are both realistic and understanding to traditions. But you may agree to disagree.
I’d personally like the adapted churches I saw during my visit to the Netherlands! This is a fun read about adaptive reuse here. I’d probably go to the gym more if it was in an old church with sweeping buttresses!
