Category Archives: Save Outdoor Sculpture

Cemeteries, Georgia, Save Outdoor Sculpture, Symbolism

Catholic Cemetery-Savannah, Georgia

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Started in 1853, Catholic Cemetery was developed after leaders in the Catholic Diocese asked that there be a Catholic section in Laurel Grove North Cemetery, and their request was denied. After the cemetery opened, many remains were moved from Colonial Park Cemetery to here. Along with the remains, many of the stones were moved, too.

Marker for siblings, John Jasper, aged 11 days, and Mary Frances Rourke, 1874-1880.
Eugene Battle-1901-1912-His epitaph reads “drowned March 14, 1912. A victim of play.”

Sherman’s troops used the cemetery as an encampment area. Many markers were damaged, and the ironwork was used to build fortifications.

Francis Bohan-1871-1900-I love the relief details spell out Frank.

This is an overlooked cemetery when people think of the must-see cemeteries in Savannah. There are several grand Victorian markers. There’s at least one John Walz of “Little Gracie” fame.

Prince-He loved his master. This is a rare marker to a pet in a “human” cemetery.
A Confederate monument dedicated to the service of the “Irish Jasper Greens.”
Rose (1858-1881) and Richard (1855-1882) Roe
Cemeteries, Churches, National Register of Historic Places, Save Outdoor Sculpture, South Carolina

Spann Methodist Church and Cemetery-Ward, South Carolina

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Built in 1873, Spann Methodist Church was built to replace a meeting house on the grounds. It is a prime example of a Greek Revival church in a rural setting.

The cemetery began in the 1840s when the original meeting house was constructed. The earliest marker is dated 1842. It served the congregation and became a a burial ground for the citizens of Ward. It includes several Victorian monuments that are also listed on the Smithsonian’s Save Outdoor Sculpture database.

This deer sits outside of the cemetery. Right below the deer, it says Ward and 1857. It was made by the J. W. Fiske Iron Works.
Josephine Ward, 1851-1857
Captain Clinton Ward, 1828-1905
This marker sits outside of the fenced cemetery. I am guessing this honored the Ward family dog. Oddly, the name of the dog isn’t mentioned.
The back of the inscribed tree doesn’t mention the name of the dog.
This marker sits next to the Victorian dog marker.
Cemeteries, Georgia, National Register of Historic Places, Save Outdoor Sculpture

Mary Glover Thurman at Oakland Cemetery-Atlanta, Georgia

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Fulton County

Mary Glover Thurman (1829-1916) was born in Virginia but moved to Atlanta with her husband, a successful dentist, in the 1850s. She was known for her flower gardens at her lavish home that stood where the Biltmore Hotel is now. She would take her flowers to friends and hospitals and was known as the “Angel of Atlanta.”

When she passed, she left $10,000 in her will to have a monument built on her and her husband’s plot. The executer of the will, nephew Rolfe Glover, had a replica of a Daniel Chester French monument sculpted for his aunt. The James Novelli monument is listed on the Smithsonian’s Save Our Sculpture database.

This is the Daniel Chester French monument in Woodlawn Cemetery. I visited this cemetery before I moved back to Atlanta. Unbeknownst to me, I had captured the original in the background of another photo.
Cemeteries, Georgia, National Register of Historic Places, Save Outdoor Sculpture

The Spirit of Achievement at Westview Cemetery-Atlanta, Georgia

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Fulton County

Known as “The Spirit of Achievement” or, more simply, “Achievement,” the Jesse Parker and Cora Best Taylor Williams memorial in Westview Cemetery illustrates the success of Williamses, who relocated to Atlanta in 1900.

Cora and Jesse Parker Williams as depicted on the memorial

J. P. Williams built and ran the Georgia, Florida, and Alabama railway. Upon his death, Cora took over the management of the railroad. She ran the company until she passed. In her will, she asked that a hospital for women and children be built where their house once stood, at approximately 542 Peachtree Street. The hospital turned over management to Crawford Long Hospital, now Emory Midtown, in 1992. While the building no longer exists, the Jesse Parker Williams Foundation still exists and gives out health-related grants.

The memorial was created by sculptor Daniel Chester French and architect Henry Bacon. It’s listed as part of the Smithsonian’s Save Our Sculpture database.

Cemeteries, Mississippi, Save Outdoor Sculpture

Falkner Monument, Oxford Memorial Cemetery, Mississippi

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Oxford, Lafayette County

Sallie Falkner, William Faulkner’s grandmother, is memorialized in relief in Oxford Memorial Cemetery. Based on photos, the sculptor did a great job capturing her. Apparently, his grandfather is on the other side, but I did not catch that when I was taking this photograph. You can imagine me uttering, “Ugh” since I missed it.

This memorial is listed on the Smithsonian’s Save Our Outdoor Sculpture database.

Black History, Cemeteries, Mississippi, Save Outdoor Sculpture

John Strauther Monument in Live Oaks Cemetery

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John Strauther was the first Black mortician in Greenville, Mississippi. His monument is the only one in Live Oaks Cemetery. His wife had this made after he passed.

It is listed as part of the Smithsonian’s Save Outdoor Sculpture program.