NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Recent storms have created destruction for both the living and the dead.
“We had a tree come down and a tree split in half and we had a couple limbs come down,” said Executive Director of Metro Historical Commission, Tim Walker.
The 200-year-old Nashville City Cemetery is the final resting place of more than 20,000 people.
Walker said it was "probably the most prominent place to be buried in Nashville up until the Civil War, just thereafter.” But today, the Nashville landmark is a yard of mangled tree limbs and branches. “One of the trees came down in an area of the cemetery that’s the oldest and the stones are very closely packed together.”
While the cemetery avoided flooding, the storms’ strong winds left their mark on the historic site. “It appears that maybe eight stones are damaged- two of them being box tombs, which are pre-Civil War tombs, and one being a table tomb, and the rest are just headstones,” said Walker.
The Metro Historical Commission is working with the Board of Parks and Recreation to begin cleanup, but officials still don’t know the true extent of the damages until trees and limbs are removed.
“We’ve already contacted individuals to look at the damage and give us bids on repair work,” said Walker.
Now officials are hoping to raise money for repairs through the Nashville City Cemetery Association. The nonprofit will step in to provide funding when city funds run out.
