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,l
West TN Trip 18 June 2001 Madison County
MOUNT OLIVET CEMETERY
Contact person: Mrs. Mattie Miliken, 1245 Hwy. 18, Medon, TN 38356 731-427-0344
Library employees: Jack Woods, Robert Taylor (portrays Isaac Lane)
Directions: I 40 to Jackson; Hwy. 45/Hwy. 5 exit; East (L) onto North Parkway/Hwy. 20; L
onto Campbell St.; R onto Forest Ave. [directions not exact as map in newspaper article and
road map do not correspond] [Library-go to Royal, R on college and < block on L]
Founded: Per deed, 11 March 1885. Per discussion with Mrs. Miliken, some people were
moved here from Riverside Cemetery when this one opened; back, unmowed portion had been
used as "Potters Field" for black and white in early days of settlement.
Oldest burial: c 1885; oldest identified 1886 although many stones illegible
Number burials: est. 1500 (counted 60 stones in NE quadrant back row and multiplied by 7
rows = 420; west quadrants smaller than east ones due to intervening ditch) including unmarked
est. 300 +"potters' field" unknown#
In current use? Yes
Church adjacent or near? _No__ Ever? None known
Mother Liberty and St. Paul organized after the cemetery
School adjacent or near? _No_ Ever? None known
Oral History: Per discussion with Mrs. Jimmie Sue Johnson and Mrs. Mattie Miliken, five
women started Mt.Olivet Cemetery Association. Mrs. Johnson recalls that as a barefoot child,
she helped dig graves there, getting very muddy. She also told of picking strawberries near the
cemetery and that the man who owned the crop "fired you if your mouth was red [from eating
berries]." Plots are still available but all available land has been sold to families . [I am not
certain I understood this correctly.] The majority of the legible tombstones have been recorded
in a "red book" in the county library. Stones were carved by a variety of people; Mr. Shellis
Lane may have been one carver. Some people buried here were affiliated with Lane College.
Mrs. Merry was one of the association organizers. According to The Jackson Sun 18 February
1994 article, Mrs. Merry's husband was "Professor A.R. Merry, the first principal of the AfricanAmerican
high school."
A "welcoming committee" including representative of the mayor's office; Co\fficilman
Jessie Jaycox [sp?]; funeral director; Rev. Mercer; Jack Woods [white] and Robert Taylor
[black] from the library; and others met us. Information following came from various people in
the crowd. (Taylor says a local lady is on the state committee overseeing decisions on NR and
supports this cemetery's placement.)
1
Object Description
Description
| Title | MtOlivetCemetery031 1 |
| Transcript | ,l West TN Trip 18 June 2001 Madison County MOUNT OLIVET CEMETERY Contact person: Mrs. Mattie Miliken, 1245 Hwy. 18, Medon, TN 38356 731-427-0344 Library employees: Jack Woods, Robert Taylor (portrays Isaac Lane) Directions: I 40 to Jackson; Hwy. 45/Hwy. 5 exit; East (L) onto North Parkway/Hwy. 20; L onto Campbell St.; R onto Forest Ave. [directions not exact as map in newspaper article and road map do not correspond] [Library-go to Royal, R on college and < block on L] Founded: Per deed, 11 March 1885. Per discussion with Mrs. Miliken, some people were moved here from Riverside Cemetery when this one opened; back, unmowed portion had been used as "Potters Field" for black and white in early days of settlement. Oldest burial: c 1885; oldest identified 1886 although many stones illegible Number burials: est. 1500 (counted 60 stones in NE quadrant back row and multiplied by 7 rows = 420; west quadrants smaller than east ones due to intervening ditch) including unmarked est. 300 +"potters' field" unknown# In current use? Yes Church adjacent or near? _No__ Ever? None known Mother Liberty and St. Paul organized after the cemetery School adjacent or near? _No_ Ever? None known Oral History: Per discussion with Mrs. Jimmie Sue Johnson and Mrs. Mattie Miliken, five women started Mt.Olivet Cemetery Association. Mrs. Johnson recalls that as a barefoot child, she helped dig graves there, getting very muddy. She also told of picking strawberries near the cemetery and that the man who owned the crop "fired you if your mouth was red [from eating berries]." Plots are still available but all available land has been sold to families . [I am not certain I understood this correctly.] The majority of the legible tombstones have been recorded in a "red book" in the county library. Stones were carved by a variety of people; Mr. Shellis Lane may have been one carver. Some people buried here were affiliated with Lane College. Mrs. Merry was one of the association organizers. According to The Jackson Sun 18 February 1994 article, Mrs. Merry's husband was "Professor A.R. Merry, the first principal of the AfricanAmerican high school." A "welcoming committee" including representative of the mayor's office; Co\fficilman Jessie Jaycox [sp?]; funeral director; Rev. Mercer; Jack Woods [white] and Robert Taylor [black] from the library; and others met us. Information following came from various people in the crowd. (Taylor says a local lady is on the state committee overseeing decisions on NR and supports this cemetery's placement.) 1 |
