Powell Cemetery

Videos from King Cemetery!

Ryan explains what he is doing with his artistic abilities.

Dr. Winemiller explains how he is using his GPS.

Courtney tell us what she enjoys most about this project. 

This tombstone reads "Here lies the remains of Mrs. Susan D. King/second wife of Edmund King and daughter of Joshua E. Sylvie Ward/was born Barlie County N. Carolina, and died June 22nd 1850 in the 34th year of life

This tombstone reads "Nathaniel Ragan King 1831-1863/He was a reliable man"

The drawing represents the four sided headstone which is pictured below. The four people buried around it are George D. Shortridge, Eli Shortridge, Elizabeth King (wife of George D. Shortridge), and Frank Forrester Shortridge. There is decorative symbols at the top of the stone as seen below as well.

Overview of King Cemetery / Alabama Historical Commission Forms

Helen O’Leavy filled out this form on 20 March 2014.

               

The Historical name of the cemetery located in Shelby Co., behind Hill House at the University of Montevallo is called the King Cemetery. It is located within the small town of limits of Montevallo, AL, and is caddy corner to the intersection of King and College Drive. The graves that were found were dated from September 1848 to 22 November 1905, and the burial listing does exist. The King Cemetery is located on private property, and you could drive to it, for it is give or take fifty meters from the nearest road. Currently the cemetery is not active, and it is considered a family cemetery, that has been well maintained. The size of the King Cemetery is less than one acre, and a stone wall also surrounds the perimeter. There was no evidence of segregation or grouping within the King Cemetery, and the graves included marker types such as, small tablets, obelisks, and headstones. Veteran graves were found in King Cemetery, and those date back to the Civil War as Confederate soldiers. Marker designs included flower motifs, ovals, scrolls, and geometric. However, there were no grave articles found. The University of Montevallo and Hill House itself are associated historic buildings with the King Cemetery. Landscaping features included designed fencing and walls, and four trees and two stumps are the only ornamental plantings that have been found. The King Cemetery derives its importance from imported peoples being buried there that came from a significant and prominent family that lived in Montevallo. The King family was one of Montevallo's founding families, and also one of the wealthiest families of the time period. 

Powell Cemetery Excavaction

Located in Orr Park, the Powell cemetery belongs to the Powell family who was a prominent family in Montevallo before the University was founded. The family plot is in disrepair and has been the victim of many vandalisms. Below are pictures of some of the headstones. 

Last Day Visiting Mr. King

Courtney is preparing to learn to use the GPS from Dr. Winemiller

  

Ryan prepares to begin sketching the grave markers. 

 

The face of the GPS which reads the points for George D. Shortride's headstone.

Dr. King's Headstone

April 17 was the last day we worked in the King Cemetery; we finished drawing out the tombstones and even had a visitor to show us how to work a Geoexplorer machine. The gravestones must be drawn so that we know for our records what they look like and all the measurements. Measurements must be taken for the heighth, width, and length. We even have to measure the distance the words are placed from the top and bottom of the headstones/footstones. The GPS records the latitude and longitude of a position of this cemetery using the GPS data collection. It measures the time it takes to reach from the satellite to the data collection to create a distance and then it'll create a geometry to the GPS which gives us the points. 

The gate into the Kng Cemetery, located at the University of Montevallo. Mr. King was a prominant man in Montevallo and donated his farm land to be turned into the university. His family burial plot is maintained by the University of Montevallo and houses his family graves.

King Cemetery Day 1

Meeting Mr. King 

 

This footstone belongs to G.D.S. Junior who's headstone is seen in the background on the right.
Students enrolled in the Archeology class are seen in the backgroun working on various projects.

 

The first day of class spent in King Cemetery was on March 20, 2014 and it was a bright and sunny day. Students worked on photographing the headstones/footstones, mapping the site, and drawing the placement of the stones.