to 1886, after which he became an Assistant PostmasterGeneral under President Cleveland. The inscription on his monument reads: HENRY R. HARRIS. Feb. 2, 1828. Oct. 15, 1909. His record is on high. The lot is enclosed by an iron railing, but opens through a gateway into an area of much smaller dimensions, in the center of which stands a fine old marble obelisk, somewhat begrimed with age, on which the following inscription appears: HENRY HARRIS. Born May 15, 1781. Died Dec. 24, 1858. In life he was upright. In death triumphant. Mr. Harris was one of the pioneers of Greenville. He was also the founder of a most distinguished family in this State. His son, Henry R. Harris, as above noted, became a member of Congress and Assistant PostmasterGeneral of the United States; while two of his descendants have become Governors of States: Governor Luther E. Hall, of Louisiana, and Governor John M. Slaton, of Georgia. Oak Hill, Newnan There is not a burial ground of the dead in Georgia more beautifully kept than Oak Hill, at Newnan, nor a sexton more courteous than Mr. W. D. Palmer, under whose supervision the cemetery has grown in attractiveness until today it is one of the beauty spots of the State. It contains a number of costly monuments, not a few of which mark the graves of distinguished Georgians. Just to the right of the main driveway, on entering this beautiful citadel of silence, is the last resting place of Governor William Y. Atkinson, whose death soon after his relinquishment of office brought to a premature close one of the most brilliant of public careers. The grave of Governor Atkinson is ornamented by an unpretentious but handsome stone, with this inscription: WILLIAM YATES ATKINSON. 1854-1899. On the marble grave-cover is carved the following epitaph: As son, brother, husband, father, he was tender and true. A friend to the poor and the weak. In the path of duty he knew no fear. His fellow-citizens recognizing in him a leader among men called him to be Governor of Georgia. A friend of public education, he was the author of the acts establishing the Newnan Public Schools and the Georgia Normal and Industrial College. While still in his young manhood he was called from earth to a more perfect home in Heaven. Underneath a handsome box of marble, to the left of the main driveway, near the entrance, sleeps the mortal dust of a former member of Congress: HON. WILLIAM B. W. DENT. At one time Colonel Dent was the owner of Stone Mountain. He died in the prime of life, on the eve of the Civil War. The inscription on his monument reads as follows: Here lies what is mortal of WM. B. W. DENT, who was born in Bryantown, Md., Sept. 8, 1806, and died at Newnan, Sept. 7, 1855. He came to Georgia in 1826. Served in the Creek War of 1836, as Captain of the Heard County Volunteers. Was in the State Legislature of 1843 as a representative from the County of Heard. Was elected a member of Congress from the 4th. District in 1853. In his death society has lost a valuable member, the church an efficient servant, and the country a warm and devoted patriot. Within a few feet of the Dent lot there stands a handsome monument of marble, the inscription upon which informs us that a noted ex-Congressman and jurist is here buried. On the front of the monument appears this inscription: HUGH BUCHANAN. Born in Argyleshire, Scotland, (Side) As a Confederate soldier, he was brave and true; a Judge of the Superior Court, he was learned and just; a member of the United States Congress, he was wise and patriotic. As husband, father, friend, and citizen, he was all that love could ask, all that loyalty could claim, all that the State could demand. He died as he had lived, a Christian. To the right of the main driveway, near the entrance, there is a boxed tomb, the inscription on which records a fact of much interest. It reads as follows: WM. POTTS NIMMONS. May 2, 1829. August 11, 1909. He was the first male child born in Newnan. He spent his whole life here, loved and respected by all who knew him. Forever asociated with Newnan's local history is the name of PROFESSOR M. P. KELLOGG, a distinguished educator and scholar, who founded the renowned Temple College. The monument over his grave was erected in large part by those who formerly sat at his feet in the class-room. It is a handsome shaft of granite, sur mounted by an urn, and lettered with the following brief inscriptions: Underneath an ornamental headstone of marble, on which the sculptor has chiseled an open Bible, sleeps the mortal dust of DR. JAMES STACY, a distinguished minister of the Gospel, scholar and historian. Dr. Stacy was for more than forty years pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Newnan. He also published a number of books, historical and religious, including a History of the Presbyterian Church in Georgia. The brief inscription on his monument reads as follows: REV. JAMES STACY, D. D. 1830-1912. He was beloved by God and man. Two Revolutionary soldiers, Randall Robinson and William Smith, are buried in the cemetery at Newnan (see Vol. I). Ex-CONGRESSMAN CHARLES L. MOSES sleeps in Oak Hill, but as yet his grave is unmarked. On the Bigby lot there are a number of beautiful monuments to various members of the family, but the noted jurist and former member of Congress, JUDGE JOHN S. BIGBY, is buried in Westview Cemetery, in Atlanta. Included among the many other distinguished Georgians who rest in Oak Hill, most of them under elegant monuments, are: DR. A. B. CALHOUN, GENERAL E. M. STOREY, REV. JAMES HAMILTON HALL, D. D., JUDGE JOHN D. BERRY, ROBERT D. COLE, ROBERT H. HARDAWAY, WM. B. BERRY, THOMAS J. BERRY, JOHN RAY, JOHN MERIWETHER HILL, WM. G. HILL, HENRY WILLIS HILL, JUDGE BENJAMIN WRIGHT, Dr. K. C. DIVINE, and others. |