Members List:

Webguy:
Jerry Semprevio

Links Section

	SYLVESTER CEMETERY PIX
	GA CEMETERY PRESERVATION
	OAKLAND CEMETERY
	DECATUR CEMETERY
	DEKALB COUNTY, GA
	EAST ATLANTA CIVIC ASSOCIATION
	HANDS ON ATLANTA
	KIRKWOOD CIVIC ASSOCIATION
	HILLCREST CEMETERY
	EAST VIEW CEMETERY

The Sylvester Cemetery is one of the oldest cemeteries in DeKalb County, Georgia. The cemetery was originally a family burial plot for the Terry family who owned and operated a sawmill and a flour mill in what is now East Atlanta. Later, a burial plot was established for the McWilliams family, who were relatives of the Terrys, adjacent to the Terry plot. In 1872, Sylvester Terry, the sixteen year old son of Mary Thurman Terry, died and was buried near the Terry home. His mother had the body moved to the family plot a few years later and in early 1874, Mrs. Terry deeded a parcel of land near the family burial plot for the establishment of a church to be named in honor of her deceased son. The original Sylvester Church was attended by the Terrys and their friends and relatives (the Browns, the McWilliams, etc.) and operated as a Methodist church. That church eventually failed and was rededicated in 1883 as the Sylvester Baptist Church in the old Methodist Meeting House. In 1887 the congregation dedicated a new church building on land across Braeburn Circle donated by Mr. Edward A. Werner. The Sylvester Church Cemetery was established west of the "new" church building (south of the Terry Family Cemetery and the McWilliams Family Cemetery). The Sylvester Baptist Church built and dedicated a second "new" church sanctuary in 1955 because of the rapidly growing congregation and a school building was built adjoining the east side of the church in 1959. The church and school thrived for many years located in the large buildings at 2040 Braeburn Circle. The congregation disbanded and closed the church in 1972.

The efforts to cleanup the old cemetery began in 2002 after many years of neglect and misuse. The reasons for the cemetery’s decline are many including the loss of church members and the subsequent fire at the Sylvester Baptist Church, illegal dumping and drug-dealing in the cemetery, families dying out or relocating outside the Atlanta area and years of racial tension in East Atlanta. The foundation was formed by neighbors of the cemetery, the families of those buried there and those persons concerned with reclaiming an important part of Atlanta history. We hope that you visit our website often to keep abreast of what is going on with the effort to cleanup the cemetery and that more people will join us by donating their time, talent and money to make this valuable community asset a centerpiece in the revitalization of East Atlanta.

Rev. Collins from the Martha Brown UMC in East Atlanta will conduct a Sunrise Easter Service at 6:30am in the meadow at the Upper Gate on Braeburn Circle across from the Sylvester Cemetery parking lot on Sunday, March 23, 2008. Hymns will be sung accompanied by two guitar players from East Atanta. This event was well received last year. Those people wishing to place Easter flowers or decorations on their family graves can visit the cemetery on Saturday or after the Sunrise Service.

Cemetery Foundation meetings are held semi-annually in the Sanctuary of Martha Brown United Methodist Church, 468 Moreland Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30316 – located at the corner of Moreland and Metropolitan Avenues. Please refer to the Events Calendar and click on the Google-Earth link for a map to the meeting location.

Saturday, April 19, 2008 -
9:30am till 1:30pm

Saturday, May 17, 2008 -
9:30am till 1:30pm

From Downtown Atlanta:

Take I-20 eastbound and exit at Flat Shoals Road. Turn right at the top of the ramp onto Flat Shoals Road. Take the third right turn onto Clifton Road. Follow Clifton for two blocks and turn right onto Braeburn Circle. The cemetery is on both sides of Braeburn between Clifton Road and Josephine Ave.

From Conyers:

Take I-20 westbound and exit at Gresham Road/Flat Shoals Road. Turn right at the top of the ramp onto Flat Shoals Road. Follow Flat Shoals Road for about two miles and turn right onto Clifton Road. Follow Clifton Road for two blocks and turn right onto Braeburn Circle. The cemetery is on both sides of Braeburn between Clifton Road and Josephine Ave.

From Little Five Points:

Take Moreland Avenue southbound to I-20. Take the ramp onto I-20 eastbound and follow the directions above “From Downtown Atlanta”.

Sylvester Cemetery Foundation
P.O. Box 17555
Atlanta, GA 30316

Tree Works, Inc.
Jon Frederiksen, ACRT
Certified Urban Forester
Ph: 404-379-1700
www.treeworksinc@yahoo.com

Jon and his partners are very aware of the fragile state of the gravesites at the cemetery and will protect the headstones and walls during trimming and/or removal of trees.