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Confederate Cemetery at Gainesville, AL

Civil War | Gainesville in Sumter County  

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The town of Gainesville was laid out in 1832 by Moses Lewis. By 1840 Gainesville had become the third largest town in the state of Alabama, with a population of over 4,000. Confederate Cemetery has the graves of Gainesville’s earliest settlers, including founder Moses Lewis.  There are also graves of over 200 unknown Confederate and Union soldiers who were brought to Gainesville from battlefields to be nursed in hospitals housed in the hotel, school house, and homes.  Located in the cemetery is a cannon that was one of four cast in Selma toward the end of the war. It was shipped to Mobile, but Mobile had already fallen. It was then shipped to Gainesville, which was also on the point of surrender. The cannon was thrown into the river to keep it out of Northern hands.  Years after the war, it was removed from the river by the town’s citizens and placed in the cemetery as a monument to the fallen soldiers.

This cemetery is located on the east side of Gainesville on Cemetery Road (GPS coordinates 32.814111,-88.149194).

Source: Gainesville Tour Guide.

Pictures courtesy of RuralSWAlabama.

 

Tags: alabama, black belt, cemetery, civil war, confederate, gainesville, sumter county

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About This Website

Welcome to rural southwest Alabama. This website is dedicated to twelve counties located in rural southwest Alabama which includes a large portion of Alabama’s Black Belt area. This region is known for its rich and diverse heritage, historic homes and churches, and natural beauty. This website contains details about historic and interesting places that you will find in this area of Alabama.

PLEASE NOTE THAT MOST OF THE HOMES INCLUDED ARE PRIVATE RESIDENCES AND, UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED, ARE DRIVE BY ONLY.

We hope that you enjoy this website.

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Dedicated to the memory of Stacy Milstead Henson (1978-2008) & Inez “Sis” Watts (1924-2007).

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