Welcome to the online tour of Southern Cemetery: More Tales & Tombstones at Donderos’ in Athens, Ga. I’m delighted that you’re here! This show features photos from my travels to Florida, Georgia, SC, NC and beyond, and runs until the end of April 15th. Hope you enjoy.
So, A Bit About Me aka ‘Artist’ Statement
Hi! I’m Jennifer. She/her.
Let’s squeeze 51 years into a quick blurb! Born and raised in rural Georgia, lucky enough to travel a bit, and now Athens resident for over 15 years. Office manager for Flagpole Magazine, a baker for The Daily Groceries Co-Op, companion to one cool dude and 6 rescue critters, and a huge supporter of literacy, libraries, human/animal rights, historic preservation/education and community engagement. That’s a hell of a lot of stuff for an introvert but when I find something I enjoy then it’s like flipping a switch and I turn into a loud wildly gesticulating chatterbox. You have been warned.
Why cemeteries? Well, thanks to the many visits to rural graveyards during my youth (both my Papa and my Dad were traveling Baptist preachers for a time) for Homecoming and the like, it feels like I’ve loved funerary art for just about forever. The stories of the dead. The stone carvings. The history of the place. The flowers planted around tombstones. All so interesting!
I’ve spent a good deal of time exploring nearby states and documenting my finds, and I’m pretty sure positive that I’ve moved into the realm of full-fledged taphophile. Definition: someone who visits cemeteries because they have a specific interest or hobby that isn’t affiliated with traditional mourning practices. In other words, I will often visit cemeteries and I won’t know a single soul there!
I like to explore these sites for a variety of reasons – funerary art & sculptures, interesting epitaphs, ghost stories & odd history, interesting characters/people, vernacular works, Victorian Era finds, metal graves of cast iron & white bronze, and the list goes on. But that’s just me and there’s a world of other cemetery-centric interests. Folks might go for historical research or to update find-a-grave. Some go the conservation route such as mapping plots to protect these areas from land development, or going bird or critter watching in a quiet and protected area, or finding rare or native plants tucked against headstones. Oh, there any other number of pursuits! As you can see, there’s a lot to be had from exploring your local cemetery.
I’ve been interested in all of the things that are cemetery adjacent for many years before that – regional history, floriography, sculpture/design, green spaces, funerary symbolism, post-mortem photography, spiritualism, ghost stories, etc. There’s so much to dig up when it comes to the history of how humans bury the dead. (Bad pun but this one is in honor of my Dad who never missed a chance to say something silly like that. Miss you Dad.)
Currently, I’m studying gravestone care and I hope to eventually teach about the environmental friendly techniques one can use to clean and restore headstones/gravestones. I’ve also been a guest instructor and guest lecturer on all thing cemetery as well as floral symbolism, roadside attractions, etc. Oh, and meet me at FLUKE 2026 this year! I’ll have stickers, zines and tons of fun buttons.
I like to balance the honoring of those who have passed while also acknowledging just how intriguing and sometimes odd it *gestures to a local cemetery/graveyard* all is. So whatever your interest is regarding funerary finds, I hope you’ll enjoy my work.
I will detail a bit more about the subject of most of the photos I have in the exhibit – the who, the what, the where – and provide direct links to my blog post or other websites (when available). My website and this blog are best viewed on a laptop just FYI. I know, I know, I need an upgrade but I’m working on it.
The photos are currently not for sale but if you’d like to support me in some small way then please feel free to shop my booklets, photos and stickers on ETSY, and read about my southern cemetery travel adventures on the blog! Any $ made from sales goes right back into more materials.
Please give me a follow on the Instagram, eh? Or make a donation benefitting the library system, Historic Athens, Gospel Pilgrim Cemetery, Friends of Brooklyn Cemetery. I couldn’t do what I do without them. AND if you make a donation of $40 or more to any of the above organizations then you can have your pick of a photo in the exhibit.
And now, on with the show!
More Tales & Tombstones
The angel in the moss in Darien, Ga.
Found at St. Andrews Cemetery. The cemetery was established in the mid-1700’s and the land eventually donated to the local Episcopalian church. It sits on the edge of a beautiful marsh and the drive there covers everything from historic homes, fish shacks and dirt roads full of dogs that chase your car for miles.
Sapelo Island is across the way and its history is tied to St. Andrews with sweat and blood and rice and salt water. I recommend reading up on Thomas Spalding, the Igbo Revolt, and Gullah Geechee and Hog Hammock on Sapelo. And I have plans to visit the island within the next few months so I’ll be sure to share more of that/their history when I do.
Thomasville is really giving ya the finger! There is such beauty in simplicity of this piece.
“When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.” Emerson
This stone stands as a gentle reminder that many of those/us grieving loss believe that their departed have gone on to a better place.
This broken piece, etched with a mysterious and haunting (haunted?) face, is propped against an unrelated gravestone in Atlanta’s South-View Cemetery.
South-View was founded in 1886 by formerly enslaved African-Americans and has many notable graves from those involved in the Civil Rights Movement including MLK Jr. (before his body was moved to the National Historic Park) and John Lewis.
A sad angel plays his lyre at Resthaven Cemetery in Washington, Ga.
Did you know that lichen tends to grow on gravestones and sculptures primarily made from marble and sandstone? Marble and sandstone have a very high calcium carbonate contents and these plants find that deeeeelicious. And they’re both very porous stones which means there is more room for roots to grow.
A sad angel plays his lyre at Resthaven Cemetery in Washington, Ga.
Did you know that lichen tends to grow on gravestones and sculptures primarily made from marble and sandstone? Marble and sandstone have a very high calcium carbonate contents and these plants find that deeeeelicious. And they’re both very porous stones which means there is more room for roots to grow.
Rose Hill Cemetery in Winder, Ga.
This grave is one my favorite very early finds from this particular cemetery. These styles are called a shell baby or baby on the half shell, and they are almost always associated with the burial of a child.
The shell symbolizes resurrection and rebirth, and the child is symbolic of the treasure found within aka the pearl.
When Belle Hightower died in 1932 her grave was adorned with a unique and oddly proportioned angel headstone. Some say nah, odd doesn’t cut it and it was downright ugly. Other than that it seemed fairly innocuous and not at all spooky. That is until the ghost stories started to reach the ears of paranormal investigators.
Decades later the October 1999 Ghost Trackers Newsletter featured a story – Lee Holloway’s “Encounters at Evergreen Cemetery.” Holloway, a regular investigator and columnist focused on the paranormal scene in Florida, wrote about hauntings at Evergreen and coined the title ‘ugly angel’ for Belle’s gravestone. Supposedly, there were several mourners visiting the cemetery that were comforted by an apparition of a woman that appeared near the ‘ugly angel.’ No word on whether it was confirmed as Belle Hightower returning from ‘beyond’ but her grave appeared to be the epicenter for the spiritual experiences!
I personally find the angel to be very, very cool looking and not ugly at all! The little angels flitting about are less cherubic and more sprite-like, and definitely give a vibe of mischief.
Other other worldly phenomenon documented in this cemetery include the spirit of a young lady dressed in the color violet who roams the cemetery at all hours and then there’s a ghost who becomes someone’s phantasmic lover and boyfriend. Um, what? Visit Jaxlore to find out more about these stories.
Greenview Cemetery in Jacksonville, Fl.
‘The Spirit of Achievement’ is a memorial for Jesse Parker Williams and Cora Best Taylor Williams. Both Cora and the memorial itself have VERY interesting stories.
Jesse is best known as being a timber and railroad magnet and after his passing in 1913 his wife Cora inherited most everything in his expansive portfolio. That included the Georgia Florida Alabama Railroad which made Cora the first global female railroad president of such a large holding. Cora lived another 11 years after her husband, and during that time she became not only a successful businesswoman but a notable philanthropist to a number of organizations which are still operating to this day.
The memorial monument was created by American sculptor Daniel Chester French and American Beaux-Arts architect Henry Bacon. If those names seem somewhat familiar to you, it might be because in 1920 they were the artistic team behind the creation of the iconic Lincoln Memorial statue.
Westview Cemetery in Atlanta, Ga.
Nancy the Elephant. Moultrie, Ga.
A life-size baby elephant carving marks the resting place of circus creator and owner William Duggan, Sr. who died before he ever witnessed his circus actually come to fruition.
It’s said that Nancy, the real-life baby elephant he purchased for the show and who this piece is modeled after, followed him everywhere including to the hospital where Duggan Sr. died of unknown causes. Nancy’s whereabouts after Duggan’s death have never been confirmed but her stone version still stands at his gravesite.
Please note that the church on the property appears to be closed and that the cemetery is monitored by close neighbors.
The Richard’s mausoleum at Oakland Cemetery. A combination of Gothic and Romanesque architecture, this structure was built in 1889 from blue marble that eventually tinged reddish orange due to the dusty red Georgia clay upon which it sits.
Mausoleums – above ground structures built to house the deceased. In this case, the mausoleum is the final resting place of two people – Robert Richards and his wife Josephine Richards.
The historic Lott Cemetery in Waycross, Ga.
An angel with a finger touching their face is often a sign of silence, reverence and contemplation.
This white marble sculpture stands at the grave of a young woman and it’s obvious that the lovely figure carved in stone is mourning the loss of one so young…
Just look at the eyes here. There is a tiny half moon of stone pupil over the open space the iris. It really gives it a glimmer of life.
The wreath, when carved on gravestones or monoliths, has a lot of meanings. Eternity. Circle of life and death. Rebirth. And to gift one to the deceased is a symbol of peace and respect.
They’re very common funerary art symbols but I find that each one feels unique. This one was especially pretty to me!
Fairview Cemetery in Madison, Ga. I absolutely recommend this as a destination cemetery.
This gravestone looks as if it was crafted from branches as opposed to stone doesn’t it? Most commonly called “tree stump tombstones” they were a part a movement of the mid-19th century that was all about rural garden cemeteries and nature-centric artscapes. These types of stones were popular until the early 1900’s although you can see more modern-styled versions well into the 1950’s and 1960’s.
This lovely gravestone is located in Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta, Ga.
Heavy Metal! Oh, I love Abrams Grave Covers. If you’re an intrepid cemetery explorer, you might luck upon one of these cast iron covers from time-to-time. A design attributed to Joseph Abrams in the mid-1800’s and found predominantly in the South since Abrams was based in Alabama, these structures not only look beautiful but they also protected mounded graves. Sadly, it will be a rare to see one that it is completely intact due to rust.
The toppers here are sleeping children because these graves were for 2 young sisters but you can also find embellished vases or crosses.
Ponder Family Cemetery in Fairplay, Ga. Unincorporated.
In this tiny cemetery there are 13 marked graves and 6 unmarked graves for those buried within. Almost all of them hidden under a decade of undergrowth gone wild (the smilax is everywhere here!) but the 15 foot tall monuments are still visible even from the road.
It’s rather unusual to have such grandiose markers in such a rural area but the Ponder family were very wealthy and they wanted their graves to be visible from the back door of the ancestral home. A home that still stands in the same spot since 1845.
Sadly, I cannot find mention of the slave cemetery that must exist near the property as the Ponder’s were large plantation owners.
Sara Little’s story begins at the old Crawford Depot although during her time folks called it the Lexington Depot. Her father, H.H. “Pony” Little, worked there as the train master and by the time Sara came along, Pony and his wife Jessie had been married many years. Little Sara Little was considered their little miracle so you can imagine how adored she was.
A group of Italian craftsmen were in the area teaching locals how to polish the granite from the Elberton quarries and one of them saw a life-sized portrait the Littles had just had painted of Sara. He offered to take it back to Italy since he knew a sculptor who could turn the painting into a marble statue and the Littles agreed, thinking it would be a beautiful keepsake.
But while the statue was being carved overseas, tragedy struck the family. Sara fell ill with what they called “summer consumption” (which is what is now known as tuberculosis). Her grandfather was a county doctor and did everything in his power to heal her but sadly Sara didn’t recover. She died just shy of what would’ve been her 4th birthday.
When the statue finally arrived from Italy many months later, Pony and his wife were heartbroken. It looked exactly like Sara. From the chubby fingers clasped together right down to the tiny ruffles on her dress and bonnet, it was just so her. For a time the statue was kept at home but Sara’s mother couldn’t bear to look at it anymore since the likeness was just all too real and way too painful to see. Eventually, the statue was placed at Sara’s grave in Crawford Cemetery where it still stands today.
Antioch Baptist has been on the Places in Peril list since 2020. While the descendants usually hold a yearly event on the property, the overall congregation has rapidly dwindled over the last few decades and regular services are no longer held on site. And every time I visit something has become a bit more faded, waterlogged or damaged. But the bible still sits on the pulpit and the piano still plays a tune so there’s still some spirit here…
While the cemetery wasn’t officially established until 1899 the oldest known grave dates to 1898. On findagrave.com there are around 40+ known markers but there are a lot more unmarked graves that have been recently uncovered thanks to modern technology.
As for the gravestone styles, a few Eldren Bailey pieces have weathered some summer storms and a slowly decaying cast iron frying pan sits near a marker. They’re intermingled with newer (1950-90’s) graves in a layout that isn’t orderly but is indicative to family and community groups.
There’s a Historic Rural Churches of the South information box on the property with recordings featuring these topics – The Church, The Cemetery, A Revival and Memories of Antioch. Someone recorded all of them and put them on YouTube as well as video of a tour of the cemetery and the inside of the church. Go here to watch.
Let’s talk ZINKIES!
Zinkies are hollow monuments with a distinctive bluish hue and they were popular from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. These markers, produced by companies like the Monumental Bronze Company, were a cheaper and more durable alternative to traditional stone. Even more unique, they featured customizable panels assembled into various designs. They were eventually discontinued during World War I when their facilities were taken over for munitions production.
Some cemeteries outlawed these monuments since the were deemed ‘vulgar’ by many classists. But there are several instances where old money folks used Zinkies so I guess there’s no accounting for taste?
Legend has it that zinkies were used by bootleggers to hide liquor during Prohibition.
Bartow City Cemetery in Bartow, Ga.
Recommended Reads
There are SO MANY wonderful books and videos out there featuring all of the subjects I’ve touched on with my exhibita. I do have a posts of favorite reads here. Oh, and Goodreads.
Local organizations
Friends of Brooklyn Cemetery – Athens, Ga organization dedicated to the renewal of the Bethlehem/Brooklyn cemetery including research and restoration.
Athens Death Project – Focus on the historic Gospel Pilgrim Cemetery as well as the historic Black / African-American communities in Athens and how racial inequality affects the death, dying and burial process.
Historic Athens – A proactive force in developing community-wide understanding of the value of historic buildings, neighborhoods and heritage.
Athens Welcome Center – Provide tours (Black History, Pride Month, Music & more) and tons of local information via brochures (including mine) and resources. Seasonally they’ll have a tour on funerary practices.
Athens Cemeteries & more!
I created a brochure with some maps to local and regional cemeteries as well as another favorite interest of mine which is roadside attractions & oddities! The South really does weird well, doesn’t it?
Thank you!
Thanks again for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed learning a bit about the world of cemetery tourism. Please feel free to email me via southerncemeteryseries@gmail.com if you have any questions or would like to collaborate!
