(photos by Amy Cumbie)
Located West of Jacksonville just north of US Highway 79, on County road 3221. It is in a very scenic spot next to Earles Chapel Methodist Church, and is well maintained. Elijah Earle (1804©1880) and his second wife, Mary Elizabeth Jarratt Tatum (1824ª1904), set aside land for this graveyard in 1858. Elijah selected his own burial site at the time, marking it by carving his initials on a tree trunk. He was buried here on new year's day 1881. His is the earliest documented grave in the cemetery. W.J. Ragsdale (1811©1884) a veteran of the Texas war for Independence is buried here, as are veterans of the Civil War, World War I, and World War II. Other graves include those of area pioneers and several generations of their descendants, T.J. Skelton and Robert Tatum, who built the Earles Chapel Methodist Church building in 1889, and a number of victims of the 1918 influenza epidemic. The original four acre plot was enlarged in 1889 when Elijah's son Lon Earle donated an additional two acres of land. Three more acres were added in 1972. The Earle's Chapel Cemetery Association founded in 1966 maintains, beautifies, and promotes the cemetery in honor of past, present, and future citizens of the community. As part of Cherokee County's cultural heritage, the Earle's Chapel Cemetery stands as a testament to the area's early pioneer heritage. This cemetery cataloging was completed in August 1996 by Ira Gaylon White and published in 1997 by the Cherokee County Genealogical Society. |
Copyright 2006 to present Kaye Slover