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Catholic Cemetery

Construction and Properties

Opened in 1853, the Catholic Cemetery in Savannah is the final resting place for ancestors and family members of hundreds of Savannah Catholics.

Four Bishops and many of our diocesan priests are buried here, as are veterans of the Civil War, Spanish-American War, two world wars, and the conflicts in Korea and Vietnam. Some of the older sections are notable for fine statuary, impressive monuments and historical vaults.

Burial Questions

Contact the Cemetery Office
912-201-4044

Genealogical Questions

Contact the Diocesan Archives


912-201-4078

Savannah's Catholic Cemetery is located at 1720 Wheaton Street in Savannah, between the Harry S. Truman Parkway and the conjunction of East Gwinnett Street and Skidaway Road. It abuts Hillcrest Abbey Cemetery to the east.

History and Preservation

The Catholic Cemetery in Savannah was opened on August 2, 1853 by Bishop Francis X. Gartland, after he was unable to persuade the City Fathers to set aside a specially consecrated Catholic section in the new Laurel Grove Cemetery. He purchased eight and one-third acres from the Rhinehart Plantation for the sum of $833.00. After the Cemetery opened in 1853, additional remains were exhumed from Colonial Park Cemetery and reburied in what is now the Old Section. Many stones and markers were also transferred around this time. Walking through the Cemetery today you will see stones that predate its existence.

Savannah's Catholic Cemetery served as the encampment area for some General Sherman's troops after the surrender of the city on November 23, 1864. Sherman ordered fortifications to be built, a project which removed cemetery fences, leaving it open to vandalism and theft. During this time many graves were desecrated by troops. The Sisters of Mercy, with the assistance of local women, rescued the remains of two bishops, two priests, and four sisters. It was only in 1867, after Bishop Augustin Verot urged President Andrew Johnson and Edwin M. Stanton (Secretary of War) to restore the Cemetery to its former state, that they were reinterred.

More land was added to the first purchase, expanding the size of the Cemetery. The last addition was the Holy Cross portion in the rear of Hillcrest Abby East Cemetery, purchased by Bishop Gerald P. O’Hara in 1934.

The Catholic Cemetery serves as a witness to the Catholic heritage of Savannah.

Savannah Catholic Cemetery Preservation Society

$25 Annual Membership
Become a member and support the cemetery!

Cemetery Index

Vol. I – $25 | Vol. II – $25 | Vol. III – $20 | All Three Volumes – $55
All volumes are available for free to educational institutions and institutions.
The Savannah Catholic Cemetery Preservation Society, through the generosity of the RJ Taylor Jr. Foundation, published a three volume index of the Catholic Cemetery in Savannah.

Director

John Grim
912-201-4066
912-677-3734 (Cell)

Cemetery and Properties Administrator

Heather Anderson
912-201-4044
 

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