Old Athens Cemetery Historical Marker

Old Athens Cemetery Historical Marker

Located on Jackson St. between the University of

Georgia Art School and Baldwin Hall, Athens

 

(Text)

 

OLD ATHENS CEMETERY

 

This site is the original burial ground for Athens and contains

the remains of its earliest citizens. It is a part of the original

tract of land purchased for The University of Georgia by Governor

John Milledge in 1801. All people in Athens were allowed to bury

their dead here free of charge. Some markers are uninscribed

local field stones, others are of imported marble. Two Revolu-

tionary soldiers are known to be buried here as well as Dr.

Moses Waddell, president of the University 1819-1829. Because

of overcrowding here, Oconee Hill Cemetery, located nearby

to the southeast, was opened in 1856. A number of graves and

stones were moved to it. The original cemetery was more

than twice as large as now; land was lost as the University

and town grew and encroached from all sides. The last

known burials occurred in the 1880s. Today the Old Athens

Cemetery, with its beautiful park-like setting, serves as a

place of quiet reflection and remembrance of Athens long

ago. The Old Athens Cemetery is maintained by the Old

Athens Cemetery Foundation, Inc.

 

PLACED BY THE THOMAS MILLER CHAPTER

NATIONAL SOCIETY COLONIAL DAMES XVII CENTURY, 1996

 

 

Click here to see a view of the Old Athens Cemetery

 

Photo: Ed Jackson

Go to Georgia Historical Markers website