Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
Red Bank Cemetery in January 2024
photo by John Shearer
It sits on a hill overlooking like a watchful nosy neighbor such busy Red Bank businesses as the Food City off Morrison Springs Road. But many Red Bank residents of today might have never seen or been to the historic Red Bank Cemetery.
In contrast to another Red Bank area cemetery, the very visible Chattanooga Memorial Park by the duck pond farther south, this one is almost hidden, particularly in the warmer seasons when the leaves block views of it from nearby streets.
And you might even have trouble getting to it, even if you are only a few yards away, due to a small and unmarked right of way to it just on the west side of Oakland Terrace near the Red Bank Cumberland Presbyterian Church.
Also hidden is some detailed history of the cemetery, even in this era where an armchair curiosity seeker can find as much information as a professional historian of old simply with the help of an online newspaper website.
With the encouragement of Red Bank city manager Martin Granum and others, an advisory committee of about 10 or 12 under the direction of chairman Sal Arrigo was formed by the city this past spring to help the city better maintain and preserve the cemetery. That is, even though the city of Red Bank’s maintenance staff has been carefully mowing it and caring for it for years.
The volunteer committee has met a few times since last spring and done some cleanup of brush and grave markers with the additional help of students from Red Bank High School.
I became involved somewhat indirectly when I interviewed Red Bank Mayor Hollie Berry last year for a profile story. She was aware I had written a small pamphlet of oral histories of Red Bank about 20 years ago, and the next thing I know, I was being asked to be on this new cemetery committee.
I agreed, even though I often try to run and hide from volunteer work. Besides helping get the cemetery even more presentable with a long-term goal of getting a nice and more accessible entrance area and fence around it, the committee has also talked of other goals. That might even include a small place with a pavilion or benches or tables a short distance away from the graves for visitors to sit and rest and maybe enjoy a parklike feeling.
I with one or two others was also trying to help the group find more history, and I have not been able to find a lot. As a result, I am trying to write this story to hopefully catch the attention of a reader who knows information of some sort.
The cemetery has graves dating back to the 1800s and appears to have a lot of people buried there named Hartman and Plumlee. Others include people with such last names as Ford, Early, Martin, Foust, and Folkner, among many others.
It also has at least one or two Union Civil War veterans buried there, as well as one or two Confederate Civil War veterans. I am not sure how many cemeteries can say that.
It also appears to be about full, although it might have some family plots not fully used.
I also spotted the graves of Luther T. Sliger and his wife, Leafa Lea. I remember my father, Dr. Wayne Shearer, who had been a Red Bank optometrist from the 1950s to the 1990s, telling me about Mr. Sliger and his connection to Red Bank United Methodist Church.
He used to come into my father’s office early on and talk with him about the church where our family also attended. My father also remembers he had cows on his property, which later became the Sliger Circle community of homes just north of Leawood Road and the former Red Bank Middle School property. He also had some commercial buildings in that area, too.
I found a story online that said Mr. Sliger had worked for the main post office from 1916 to 1947 and never missed a single day due to sickness. His extended Sliger family also apparently had a regular reunion in Athens, Tn., about that time.
Among other cemetery history, a 1957 Chattanooga News-Free Press article said that cemetery trustees Bill Shauf, Lon B. Jones and James A. Connor were helping take care of the Red Bank Cemetery.
It might have also been connected at one point with Red Bank Cumberland Presbyterian Church or a Red Bank community church at that site.
If anyone has any information on the cemetery and its history or the people buried there, feel free to email me at the address below.
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