It is hard to miss Sanford Stadium at the University of Georgia. It is next to the student center, residence halls, and academic buildings. If you drive along the backside of the stadium on East Campus Road, you will see Oconee Hill Cemetery.
Seventeen acres were purchased in 1855 for $1,000 to start a public cemetery. By 1896, all lots were sold and the need to expand over the Oconee River. The cemetery trustees worked with Athens city officials to build a bridge over the river. This allowed visitors to access the additional 82 acres.
Like many Southern town cemeteries, there were separate burial grounds for Black and white Athenians. The Historic Burial Grounds for African Americans runs along the back side of the original section, next to the river. More recently, it was used as the site to rebury the bones of enslaved people that were discovered when renovations to Baldwin Hall began. This decision received criticism as many Black community members preferred that the bones were relocated to Gospel Pilgrim Cemetery or Brooklyn Cemetery, two historic Black cemeteries in Athens.
Over the last decade, I have visited Oconee Hill Cemetery several times and always find something new to photograph. Outside of roaming the hills of the front section, people should visit Bulldog Haven, a section for UGA football letterman, and their families.
