Bullock County AlArchives Cemeteries.....Greater Pleasant Grove Cemetery - Description & Directions ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/al/alfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Dara Tolbert darafamily@aol.com January 30, 2010, 8:03 pm GREATER PLEASANT GROVE CEMETERY (First documented 11 May 2002 and then again 11 Apr 2009) by Dara Tolbert Greater Pleasant Grove Church Cemetery is located in Bullock County, Alabama and is the final resting place for many of my extended family, hence the initial reason for the documentation. Follow Highway 82E to County Road 40, also known as Peachburg Road. There you will see a gas station on the southwest corner. The gas station is a popular hangout for the locals and is called the Beeline. Turn left onto Peachburg Road. The road meanders and bends past Grove Circle on the right where some of my Pruett family relatives live. On the left is the pecan company. As you move more into the treed residential area you will pass The Braswell Company which sits next to a small house once owned by my great- grandfather Monroe Tolbert. He soon moved down the road when he found out the Braswell Company would be doing business next to him. He purchased several acres just up Peachburg Road and it was called Tolbert Place for many years then renamed Apricot Lane. Shortly after passing Pecan Lane on the right you will come to County Road 49 where you will turn left. Follow that road until you reach County Road 142 and turn left again. The church and cemetery will be easy to spot on the left because there is a sign at the entrance to the driveway. I have divided the cemetery into sections to best document the gravesites. A section approach was used because the burials were somewhat random and the rows less than straight. Many are older and in poor condition, uprooted by the maturation of trees and their root systems. Others have been altered by the erosion of soil causing the shifting of graves and in some cases the breaking of the concrete slabs exasperated by years and years of weather. The documentation of the cemetery is naturally sectioned off based on the location and the arrangement of the headstones and graves. That is why I am calling them sections. The graves are listed in order of placement starting next to the road and entrance of the driveway and working along the driveway. During my initial 11May2002 documentation I noted the presence of a long abandoned outhouse positioned off the driveway and in line with a large tree and roots situated near the grave of Floxie Lee Macon and an unmarked grave. Upon my return on 11Apr2009 to update the documentation I noted that the out house had been removed and there was a large stump where the tree and roots once sat. There is another large tree and a mature root system situated near an unmarked grave and the grave of Robert Pendleton. I also noted that a number of old grave markers lay in a pile not very far from the outer edge of section one. Most were broken and they appear to have been discarded. Section One In describing section one it is located closest to the entrance and parallels the road and entrance along the fence line. There are not a lot of graves in the area so it seems light and there is plenty of grass in the area. Most of the graves are clumped close together but there are some that seem to be randomly placed away from the grouping for no apparent reason. Eighteen graves have been identified, some with markers and some without. The family names in this section include Tolbert, Weaver, Jones and Seats who are all related through the same mother or marriage. I know this to be true because this is my family. The other names may have some blood or marital relationships but I am not aware of these factors. These names include Tatum, Tarver, Oliver, Cooper and Milbry. The remaining graves are unmarked. One concrete slab is small which may or may not indicate the burial of a child. Section Two Located next to section one it is across from the church of the same name and along the edge of the driveway and parking lot. I have located thirty-nine graves, some marked and others unmarked. There is one site where there are two small concrete slabs abutting one another. One could say that this was the grave of two infants but we must be careful not to jump to conclusions. Having no marker I counted it as one grave and will do so until further evidence points in another direction. This section is made up greatly of the Macon family and their related familial surnames. I know this to be true because my bloodline is intertwined with the Macon and Turner bloodlines through my grandfather's half sister and the early marriage of his mother. I have documented this through interviews and research. I noted that a number of graves received new markers between my 2002 initial documentation and my 2009 documentation. In looking through the pile of old markers near the beginning of section one I noted some of the original Macon family markers. There is also a grave here that references "Surrender" and is unique in its size and design. The family names that make up this section are Macon, Cargill, O'Neill, Miller, Fort, Thorpe, Turner, Jungon, Hollinhead, Woodfolk, Patterson, Weems, Smith, Hill, Fitzpatrick, Whitaker, Ruither and McDonald. Section Three Located past and next to section two, section three is also across from the church of the same name and the burial row parallels the parking lot. This section is at the end of the parking lot and has a view of the side as well as the end or partial back of the church structure. Beyond section three is a wooded area. This section also seems to be exclusive to a family grouping. Some of its residents were also members of said church based on my first hand observation while visiting the church over the years and family history gathered from church goers as well as the pastor and community residents. There are seventeen graves in this section and they are all part of the same family. I know this because I have met some first hand, interviewed family members about the others and done historical research and gathered documentation. In this case we are looking at parents, children and ex-spouses. The names in this section are Gary, Mays, Chambliss and Woodfolk. There is also an abandoned well at the bottom of this burial section and close to the wooded area. The grave of Camilla Mays has an interesting inscription on it that I thought might be that of the Eastern Star. Two initial attempts to identify the symbol have been unsuccessful. Anyone having any knowledge or information that could be helpful in identifying this insignia and inscription are invited to contact me to help pursue the research on this individual. Section Four Located below section two it is headed by a large, mature tree. My own grandmother spoke of the burial of her older sister Mary Lizzie Pruett McSwain (May 25, 1910 - March 28, 1930) and her own son Forest Dean Tolbert (August 1937 - January 1938) around this tree. She described that if you stand at the base of the tree facing in the direction of the driveway and the church with your right shoulder closest to the main road then you are standing on Mary Lizzie's grave. She also said when her second oldest child Forest Dean died; he was placed at the three o'clock position of the tree with Mary Lizzie being six o'clock. She also confirmed that in both cases there was no money for a separate marker so the tree serves that purpose. I traveled with my grandmother on one occasion to visit the site of this tree and pay our respects to these two individuals as well as other family members in the 1990s. On another note, I wonder how many other graves exist in this cemetery with no known marker. This portion of the cemetery is filled with family members and ancestors on my grandmother's side. She was born a Pruett but her mother was born a Hicks. These two families make up the lions share of this section. Beginning with the two unmarked graves using the tree as the marker there are twenty-two additional graves here. The family names are Pruett (Pruitt), Hicks (Hieks), McSwain, Smith, Thrash, Price, Jones, Pendleton and Eaves. Section Five This section is located in the farthest corner of the cemetery shaded by the wooded area and is by far the smallest section with only six graves. End Note This is an active cemetery and graves continue to be buried here. I hope to have another opportunity to update it in the future. File located at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/al/bullock/cemeteries/greater-pleasant-description.txt