Tennessee Archives - The Cemetery Detective™

McNabb Cemetery – Marion County Tennessee

A polished metal sign marks the entrance to McNabb Cemetery in Marion County, Tennessee.
Handmade. Unassuming.
Like the place it protects.

Up this gravel drive sits McNabb Cemetery. The cemetery is older than Nickajack Dam, older than the power lines streaming down the mountain’s slopes, older than the idea that this valley would ever be engineered to harness electric power for the burgeoning population of nearby Chattanooga, Tennessee.

The earliest graves date back to a time when mines operated nearby,
when families lived close to the land,
and life followed simpler rhythms.

McNabb Cemetery follows design elements of other, nearby cemeteries like the one I have explored on Aetna Mountain, known as Aetna Mountain Cemetery.

Nestled between the Tennessee River and the TVA Raccoon Mountain Pumped Storage Facility, McNabb Cemetery quietly watches two worlds pass by;
one shaped by hand tools and hard labor, the other by turbines, storage tanks, and megawatts.

Here, time moves differently.

If you never owned a calendar, you could still tell the seasons by walking these rows.
Spring brings flowers, freshly placed.
Summer brings small flags and sun-faded ribbons.
Autumn leaves collect around stones worn smooth by weather and years.
And winter brings holiday decorations and the sound of cold rain falling onto the fallen leaves.

But time doesn’t stand still and progress moves ever forward. The burgeoning population of Chattanooga is spilling over, populating the nearby mountains and altering the natural scenery.

McNabb Cemetery lies on ground surrounded by TVA property which will act as a buffer zone to protect the encroachment seen by other cemeteries in the area.

According to TVA: “The area around Raccoon Mountain is a state-designated Wildlife Observation Area. The mountaintop is home to whitetail deer, woodchucks, gray foxes and, of course, raccoons. The most compelling wildlife attraction of the area is a large wintering population of bald eagles, which can be sighted from the overlook as they hunt in the woods and waters.”

Pretty Pink Christmas Tree Grave Decoration in McNabb Cemetery

Cemeteries like this aren’t frozen in the past; they’re living records maintained not by institutions, but by families who keep showing up.

Places like McNabb remind us that you don’t need marble to mark a meaningful life, and you don’t need a calendar to know when remembrance still matters.

Chattanooga Memorial Park Cemetery: Red Bank/Chattanooga, Tennessee

by: Keith (The Cemetery Detective)

Introduction

Located in Red Bank, immediately adjacent to the city of Chattanooga, the Chattanooga Memorial Park Cemetery (originally known as White Oak Cemetery) sits atop rolling terrain that once served both agrarian land and Civil War strategic positioning. According to its publication, the cemetery “has been an important part of the community for more than 125 years.” Dignity Memorial+1 During my recent documentation trip I mounted a high‐resolution camera to my vehicle roof and captured a full drive‐through of the internal roadways while simultaneously logging GPS track data. This combined approach enables a temporal and geospatial documentation of the site, preserving how the landscape, stones, and pathways looked in 2025 for future researchers.

Historical Context: Community, Industry, and Landscape

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the Red Bank and Chattanooga region grew rapidly due to railroads, wrought‐iron and steel manufacturing, coal and ore transport, and the expansion of urban Chattanooga as a regional hub. Many of the people laid to rest in this cemetery would have worked in the mills, on the railroads (including the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway), or in the supporting industries of the Tennessee Valley. At the same time, the location of the cemetery on higher ground above the river valley gave it both scenic appeal and symbolic permanence.

Originally designated as White Oak Cemetery, the property was described in local history thus:

“West of Hill City across Stringer’s Ridge … the Sawyer farm was acquired, and converted into a cemetery typical of those of the era.” Chattanoogan+2Dignity Memorial+2
In 1925 the name changed to Chattanooga Memorial Park after additional property was acquired. Dignity Memorial
The grounds are described as being transformed into more of a park‐like setting (particularly after landscaping efforts by long‐tenured caretakers) with features such as a duck pond and mature trees, making the site more than simply a burial ground but also a place of community memory and quiet reflection. Dignity Memorial+1

Geology, Topography and Site Layout

The topography of the cemetery reflects the region’s geological and landscape context: elevated ridges, slopes down toward the valley, and underlying limestone or sedimentary bedrock typical of east Tennessee. While specific stone‐quarry sources for monuments may vary, the choice of stone material in many of the monuments corresponds with regional availability and economic status of the families buried there.

As the site moved from farm land (the Sawyer farm and White Oak Spring area) into a landscaped burial park, the internal roadways were laid out to follow natural contours rather than rigid grids. This “park cemetery” style meant that drives are winding, uphill and downhill, allowing views over the surrounding landscape and placing monuments on terraces or gentle slopes. This design approach enhances both aesthetics and circulation.

The inclusion of the duck pond and landscaping was an early 20th‐century enhancement. The water feature further demonstrates the blending of utility and beauty: gravesites tied into a park‐like environment rather than strictly a cemetery yard. ‎Chattanoogan+1

My Temporal + Geospatial Documentation Effort

In line with the mission of The Cemetery Detective, my work at Chattanooga Memorial Park Cemetery followed a structured methodology:

Video Capture: Using a roof‐mounted high-resolution camera on my vehicle, I recorded a full drive‐through of all accessible internal roadways. This footage provides a continuous visual record of monuments, road surfaces, vegetation, signage, and overall condition of the cemetery at the date of recording (October 2025).
GPS Logging: Simultaneously I ran a dedicated GPS datalogger, logging positional data at high frequency (1-5 second interval). This produces a GPX track representing the exact route taken around the cemetery.
GIS Integration: After fieldwork, I imported the GPX track into QGIS (or ArcGIS) and with the future availability to overlay it with additional layers, such as:
- Roadway polylines derived from the GPX track
- Monument point layers (with attributes: material type, erection date, condition, inscriptions)
- Special feature layers (duck pond, elevated ridges, park landscaping zones)
- Temporal metadata linking frames of the video (via start time) to GPS coordinates.
  This allows for queries like “show all granite monuments erected before 1950,” or “highlight sections of the cemetery where road surface appears recently repaved or vegetation encroaching.”
Shareability & Future Use: By making these layers (GPX track, CSV/GeoPackage of monuments, and the video) available for download and archival, future preservationists, genealogists, and local historians can reference exactly how the cemetery looked in 2025, even as time (and weather, vegetation, development) inevitably changes the site.

Preserving Memory, Managing Change

Cemeteries like Chattanooga Memorial Park serve dual roles: resting places for individuals and collective memory landscapes for the community. The Red Bank/Chattanooga region continues to evolve with residential growth, infrastructure changes, and shifting maintenance regimes all affecting the condition and appearance of the cemetery. By providing a base-year documentation (2025) that is both visual and spatially precise, we create a benchmark against which future change can be measured.

For example: if in five years a major tree falls and damages monuments in a section; or if resurfacing alters the alignment of a road; or a cluster of older marble headstones begin to tilt, having a linked video + GPS + GIS dataset allows one to show exactly where and when change occurred.

Conclusion

My work at Chattanooga Memorial Park Cemetery in Red Bank/Chattanooga, Tennessee, is grounded in the belief that historic cemeteries merit the same precision of documentation as any heritage site. Through mounted video, synchronized GPS logging, and GIS layering, I am capturing a snapshot of this landscape as it stands in 2025. By doing so, we are able to honor not only the individuals interred here but the communities, industrial heritage, and topographic character that shaped the burial ground. Through these efforts conducted by myself and other cemetery enthusiasts, we equip future generations with a tool to monitor, research, and preserve this important piece of Chattanooga’s past.

Grave House and Barrel-Vaulted Gravesite in Madisonville, Tennessee

Exploring Unique Burial Traditions in Southeastern Tennessee

On a recent cemetery exploration in Madisonville, Tennessee, I discovered two fascinating grave features: a Grave House and a Barrel-Vaulted gravesite. As part of my journey as The Cemetery Detective, I documented these rare burial structures, which offer insights into local traditions, historical preservation, and unique forms of grave architecture in Southeastern Tennessee.

The Grave House: A Structure of Protection and Respect

The Grave House, found in select cemeteries across the southern United States, was likely built to protect the deceased from the elements and animals. Built directly over two gravesites, this small structure resembles a miniature house, complete with a sloped roof and open sides surrounded by braided-wire fencing. Historians believe grave houses may have served as protective shelters, preserving the grave from weather-related erosion and wildlife interference. The symbolic significance of this structure may also act as protection to the gravesites, a continuation of the protection the house gave while they were alive on earth.

Although mostly found in Upland South cemeteries within Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi, I have found structures resembling Grave House in other parts of the country and the world. However, their designs vary with the regions within which they are found.

In Madisonville, this Grave House was well-preserved, displaying painted woodwork as evidence of care by descendants or the local community. As I captured this on video, I couldn’t help but reflect on how this regional tradition may provide grieving families a unique way to memorialize their loved ones. The structure itself and the maintenance of the structure both physical protection of the gravesites and a lasting tribute to the memory of the deceased.

The Barrel-Vaulted Grave Covering: A Unique Architectural Style

Immediately adjacent to the Grave House, I discovered a rare Barrel-Vaulted gravesite. Unlike traditional flat or angled grave covers, this barrel vault is a rounded arch structure, crafted from red bricks covering the entire length of the grave. This distinctive mounded design may be inspired by European grave architecture. I have seen similar structures in my travels in Spain and Italy

Barrel-vaulted graves reflect an era when grave-building involved extensive masonry work, often at a significant cost of money and time to the family. In addition to its structural integrity, this vault shape may also signify a spiritual “vaulting” over the deceased, a notion possibly rooted in religious or cultural practices. It’s rare to find such an intact example of this barrel-vaulted grave covering design.

Preserving Historical Grave Sites

As I document unique gravesites and burial practices, it’s essential to recognize the importance of preserving these structures as well as the lives and the memories of the people they protect. Grave Houses and Barrel Vaults represent a tangible connection to past burial traditions and offer valuable insights into the customs, religious beliefs, and aesthetic preferences of earlier communities. By sharing these discoveries on The Cemetery Detective, I aim to raise awareness of these historical markers and the stories they hold.

Uncovering the History of Tent Graves: WKRN – Hidden Tennessee

Recently, I had the incredible opportunity to be interviewed by WKRN – Hidden Tennessee about my ongoing cemetery research, particularly my work with tent graves at Mt. Gillead Cemetery near Sparta, Tennessee. Tent graves, a unique burial tradition found in a few locations across the American South, have long fascinated historians, archaeologists, and cemetery enthusiasts alike.

What Are Tent Graves?

Tent graves, sometimes called ‘comb graves,’ are characterized by stone slabs laid in an A-frame over the burial site, resembling the shape of a tent. This practice was most common in the 19th century, and while there are varying theories about their purpose—ranging from protecting the grave to marking the status of the deceased—the exact origins remain somewhat mysterious. Mt. Gillead Cemetery, home to a significant number of these graves, serves as a key site for uncovering their historical significance.

Why Mt. Gillead Cemetery?

Mt. Gillead Cemetery, nestled in the hills near Sparta, Tennessee, offers a unique window into this burial practice. My research focuses on documenting the remaining tent graves and piecing together the stories of the individuals interred beneath them. Each stone, weathered by time and nature, holds a fragment of a story waiting to be told.

During my interview with WKRN, I shared the importance of preserving these sites and understanding their cultural significance. I explained how the tent grave tradition is a symbol of the connection between past generations and their final resting places—a practice that ties us to the people and times that shaped the region.

The Future of Cemetery Research

This interview was a wonderful opportunity to raise awareness about cemetery preservation, a cause close to my heart. By continuing to study unique burial practices like tent graves, we can gain insight into how people of the past approached death, memorialization, and community.

If you’re interested in learning more about my research, feel free to explore other posts on my blog or reach out directly. Together, we can work toward preserving the history that lies in our cemeteries, waiting to be rediscovered.

What Is This Gravestone? – A Zinc Grave Marker!

Zinc Grave Markers are very common. I found this Zinc (White Bronze) grave marker in Old Grey Cemetery, Knoxville Tennessee.

Have you ever visited a cemetery and noticed 1 gravestone that appears different than all the others?

If you are in a cemetery, you will see all different types of stone used in the creation of gravestones and monuments and headstones. Some grave markers will be made from marble. Marble is an interesting rock type that has been used for centuries in cemeteries as memorials and gravestones. Marble is a metamorphic rock which lends itself to beautiful carvings as gravestones.

Limestone Gravestones

Limestone is also used quite regularly in cemeteries. There are different varieties of limestone. Much of this particular type of rock is used in cemeteries due to its economic cost and ease of transport. Some limestones are different than others.

Sandstone Gravestones

Some cemeteries have sandstone grave markers. Sandstone is beautiful. Color and texture of sandstone depends on the specific geographic location and depth of the original stone.

Granite Gravestones

Granite gravestones are certainly in wide use in cemeteries today. Granite grave markers are easy to come by. Our advances in quarrying methods, inscription tools, and transportation make granite an affordable grave marker.

As easily recognizable as these gravestone materials are, keep your eyes out for headstones that look different from all these other stones. I recently visited Old Grey Cemetery in Knoxville, Tennessee. Within this cemetery I found a most unusual looking marker.

Zinc (White Bronze) Grave Marker

It is an obelisk with panels. I heard a hollow ring when I rapped it with my knuckles. This is a Zinc Grave Marker. Zinc grave markers are also known as White Bronze. Many of these grave markers were produced by the Monumental Bronze Company.

This particular “zinky” was manufactured by the Detroit Bronze Company in Detroit Michigan. Detroit Bronze Company was a manufacturer (subsidiary) of the Monumental Bronze Company out of Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Detroit Bronze Co. operated from 1881 – 1886.

Zinc Grave Markers are very common. I find them in many cemeteries I visit. I even found a zinc grave marker in a cemetery in Bermuda.

Have you ever found a zinc grave marker? Please tell me about it in the comment section below.

Gravestone Depicts Snowy Cemetery Scene

Gravestones Tell a Story

Gravestones signify a person’s passing, a life lived.
Gravestones present opportunities for loved-ones to reminisce.
Gravestones allow those who never knew the deceased to imagine what their lives were like in the time they lived.
Gravestones can be as simple as uninscripted fieldstones; without names or dates, they simply mark places of burial.
Or, gravestones can give detailed information about the people’s lives, causes of death, and family connections.

I found a gravestone recently during my study of cemeteries in Polk County, Tennessee. With a laser-etched image and a few simple words, this gravestone might very well do the best job explaining a couple’s life and lifestyle of any gravestone I have ever seen.

The context of the gravestone lies in the surroundings of the cemetery. As I view the stone, behind me the hills of Chilhowie Mountain are ablaze in autumn’s colors. In front of me, the valley stretches into fertile flatlands. And all around me, Polk County slowly trudges through time as it has for two centuries.

The gravestone perfectly captures this couple’s life and the time in which they lived. He, in his overalls, is strapped behind a plow horse. She, in her apron, expertly wields a hoe. Together, they tend their garden. Beside the garden patch is a row of bee hives. Obviously, the couple made their own honey.

A small farmhouse sits just beyond a clothesline where the couple’s laundry was dried on warm summer days. I imagine the image is captured during a season change because the hilltops are lightly dusted with white frost. I’ve seen this frost many times but most recently when I began an early morning March paddle of the Hiwassee River not far from here.

This Gravestone Reflects an Image

The smoothness of the gravestone perfectly reflects Chilhowie Mountain behind me. I want to visit this cemetery one winter morning when there is frost atop the hills so I can see them reflected just as they are depicted on the gravestone. The crux of the scene is captured in words written on the tailgate of an old pickup truck parked in a wooden barn where the plow horse spends its nights.

The words allude to the changes that Polk County is experiencing and not only of the death of the couple buried here but the passing of a lifestyle and the fading of their home. The words are small. I have to get close to see what they actually say but when I read them, I almost tear up. “About all that’s left of the old homeplace is a lot of memories.”

The Importance of Maintaining Cemeteries

Whether a grave marker is a simple field stone or a detailed description of a person’s life, gravestones help us hold onto the memories, and that is important.

Snowy Hilltops — Snowy Hills Polk County Cemetery

Exploring Reelfoot Lake

A mid-summer road trip to explore cemeteries of Western Tennessee turns into an adventure on Reelfoot Lake.

Reelfoot Lake – Western Tennessee.

For a couple days during the July 4th week, I took my kayak to Lake County, Tennessee in the extreme North West reaches of the state. I was in the area to explore cemeteries near the shoreline of Reelfoot Lake. Reelfoot Lake was formed during a succession of earthquakes from late 1811 to the big quake that occurred February 7, 1812.

The Natural Beauty of Reelfoot Lake

Many areas of Reelfoot Lake are swamp-like. Bald Cypress pierce the surface growing skyward 100 feet. I kayaked shallow water beneath the cypress’ darkening canopy. Searching for Water Moccasins and Broad-banded Water Snakes, I felt uneasy fantasizing of my reaction should a snake drop from a tree and hitch a ride in my kayak. I love wildlife in areas like this; Osprey, Eagle, Egret, Turtle, and Dragonfly by the hundreds. My favorite wildlife encounters on this day were the two large beaver dam I found in a far removed remote section of the swamp. As I paddled right up to the 2nd beaver dam, I heard beaver grunting and working and gnawing tree branches inside their den.

After 3 hours paddling alone and without seeing another human soul in the swamp, I decided to turn back in advance of a threatening afternoon thunderstorm. I like to think I have a pretty good sense of direction but the myriad bayous and narrow reedy marshy paths I had explored mishmashed in my memory.

Lost In A Swamp

“Oh no! I’m lost!” As I paddled furiously searching for the boggy opening in the treeline where I launched my kayak early that morning, I heard cracks of thunder immediately behind me. “Where is that opening? Where is my van? I think I recognize that osprey nest. That tree looks familiar. Is that turtle the same turtle I saw this morning? WHERE IS THAT OPENING?“

I paddled for a good 45 minutes toward the direction where I thought I had left my van hours before. Each inlet looked the same as the last inlet. Midsummer heat and sunshine caused algae blooms to fully cover the swamp’s surface. Distinguishing features softened into a continual undulation of never-ending shoreline.

“I’m never going to make it out of this swamp. They’ll have to send a search party but they’ll never find me. I’ll be consumed by the swamp. Devoured by turtles and osprey and water moccasins. I wonder who will play the lead character in the movie they’ll make about this. WHERE IS THAT OPENING?“

With enormous black clouds overhead and raindrops beginning to fall, I had to admit I was lost. My personal stark realization of my inability to find my way out of this endless swamp consumed me with each stroke of my paddle. Heavy in my hands, I laid my paddle across my lap to rest my weary arms. My kayak ground to a halt from friction of the thick…thick surrounding vegetation.

Finding My Way Out

I dipped my hand through the vegetation to make contact with the water below. Expecting refreshing cool, I was met, instead, with emanating heat from the lake’s surface. I didn’t even think what might lie beneath. A giant Alligator Snapping Turtle? A Muskrat with gnarled, sharpened teeth? The Water Moccasin I’d been seeking for hours? Pulling my hand back into my kayak, I reached for my water bottle. I had plenty of fluids left but any ice I had brought with me had long since melted in this blistering July heat.

With reluctance and a final admittance that I could not find my own way out of the swamp, I reached into my dry-sack for my trusty GPS. Luckily, I had set a waypoint of my launch point when I first set out early in the morning. According to the graphic on the electronic map, I was less than 1/2 mile away. A quick paddle through thick mats of aquatic lilies had me back at my launch point in a matter of minutes. “Ah, there’s my van….cool.”

I never did find any Water Moccasins but I sure was happy to be back on dry land.

Off I set out to explore the nearby cemeteries.

All Gravestones Matter

All gravestones are important.

I believe all gravestones are important.

No matter how small. How old. In what condition they’re in.
No matter if they are in well maintained cemeteries.
Or ones that have been neglected.
No matter if the grave is of someone with whom we identify.
Or someone of a differing cultural belief.

All gravestones represent a life once lived.
And, as such, all gravestones matter.

Cemeteries and Thunderstorms

Cumulonimbus and Cemetery — Thunderstorm In A Cemetery

I Love Thunderstorms

As we roll into August, the afternoon thunderstorm cycle is intense.

Mid-day blazing hot sunshine warms the surface of the earth bringing moisture out of lakes and ponds and the ground itself. Since hot air is less dense than cold air, physics dictates warm moist columns of air rise high into the atmosphere. The sweltering summer’s day drags on. A bead of sweat forms on my forehead rolling down my face narrowly missing dripping into my eye. Surface air currents seem non-existent but high in the troposphere an enormous puffy white cloud billows to 40,000 feet.

There is a tremendous transfer of energy from sunshine to ground layer to the column of moisture rising above me. As I stare at the cloud, I can actually see it billowing, forging skyward. But, the energy that originally came from the sun cannot be contained within the cloud. All that moisture, eventually, condenses. Each drop condensates around a nearly-microscopic dust particle…trillions of them.

Two Crosses with Clouds — Thunderstorm In A Cemetery

The rising column of moist air causes friction as it rises through a surrounding, stable, air mass. These two air masses, rubbing against each other, affect the molecular structure of the air contained within each air mass. Molecular electrons are shed and a disparity of electrical charge presents itself within the cloud layer. When a big enough disparity of electrical charge occurs, lightning unleashes tremendous energy. Each lightning strike, 5 time hotter than the surface of the sun, regulates the electrical disparity.

And the rains begin. When enough droplets condense within the cloud, updrafts are no longer capable of keeping the larger moisture droplets aloft. Rain fall intensifies. With so much energy now released, torrential downpours bring all that moisture falling, violently, back to earth.

At the mature stage of a thunderstorm, cumulonimbus clouds present anvil formations as their tops are blown off by upper-level winds. As the storm cell moves away, the sun, which caused the formation of the storm cloud to begin with, lights the 40,000 foot tall column of dissipating cloud. The air is, once again, still.

I love watching late summer sunsets after intense thunderstorms. Yesterday was such a day. I took these photos to share with you.

Gravestones and Thunder Clouds — Thunderstorm In A Cemetery

Cemeteries and Water Towers

A water tower overlooking a cemetery adds a whole new dimension.

I’m pretty sure I have a new fascination…water towers over cemeteries. I’ve seen quite a few, recently. I found this one while researching cemeteries around the “world’s largest tree house” also known as “The Minister’s Treehouse.” (link below).

I cannot see a water tower without thinking back to a version of the War Of The Worlds movie I saw on TV when I was a kid (maybe it was a rebroadcast of the 1953 film?) where a farmer shoots a water tower mistaking it for a martian.

Now, seeing water towers over cemeteries adds a whole new dimension.