Memphis Part 2

I felt like my last blog post was getting entirely to long. It needed a part two. I hope I didn't loose to many people. Thank you for those of you who are continuing to read!

Back to Forest Hill where we left off....

This was the very last picture I took at Forest Hill. I wanted the history of this building. Someone used to love this place. It was GORGEOUS! Who allows a gem like this to rot and fall to shambles? Even the place where Elvis's shrine was, it was in desperate need of a good moping and restoring.

We didn't stay at Forest Hill very long. I was a little disappointed at the condition the entire cemetery was in. Considering the history I have in keeping up a very large, very old cemetery (which is none lets be honest) I decided to leave before I got to upset.

Back to Elmwood.



Did  you get that angelic music? Did you?? I did!

This time we got there about 11ish. Told Adam we could leave at 12:30. Men like to know how long they are going to be stuck in a place they don't want to be in. Since we got there on a Sunday they weren't doing tours. Yes. I said TOURS! They have a CD that guides you through the park and gives you the history! I really would love to go back.

This is just a small gathering of information for this place. Not sure you could ever have enough written about the people in this cemetery.

I think this was the first time I have ever seen a cemetery have "hallways" separating their plots. Do you see the thresholds? Very interesting.

This is the entrance into some from the road. They have their own staircase with their own numbers. Fascinating.

This one gave me chills. I think some of us forget what selfless service it really is being a member of the military. "All gave some and some gave all."  This brave young man was laid to rest along side his parents. His last words were "Help the others first". Still gives me chills.

I blew this up so hopefully you could read it. I had no idea the yellow fever killed so many people back in the 1870's. Did you? They were dying at a rate of 200 a day! That was astronomical in the 1870's...Heck that is a lot today! The city lost 8,500 residents. Grave diggers had no time to dig individual plots so they dug mass trenches to place the 1,400 of the 2,500 bodies laid to rest here just to keep them off the streets. The other 1,100 have their own graves. I would imagine it was families that had the means to pay someone to have their loved ones buried privately. Just makes me sad for the families that lost so many loved ones.

"Life, Death-Then Life and Love Eternal." Little did they know how true this statement really is.

This was probably one of the first mausoleums I photographed and read. I had no idea who he or his family was until we got back to our hotel the second night and I started researching the graves I pictured and was taken aback by who he was. In the late 1800's it was a different world for anyone of color, yet, he never gave up or gave in. Surviving a steamboat accident as a young boy and then being beaten and left for dead he never gave up and became one of the South's first black millionaires. What a legacy he left. His daughter left one also fighting for civil rights and the rights of women.

The history in this place is without a doubt fascinating. Dare I say Romantic? From the story of a husband who out lived his wife and loved her so much he built a monument to her so he could return daily and sit just and be with her. To parents that lost their only child and spent their life savings on a realistic statue of their son who died at 20 so he would never be forgotten. To all the soldiers who fought and lost their lives during a war to defend the freedoms we take for granted on a daily basis. It has all together sparked something inside of me to seek out my family heritage.

I really hope you have enjoyed our trip as much as I did. Thank you for visiting!!