Adcox, Grant b. January 2, 1950 d. November 19, 1989 Auto Race Car Driver. He made his auto racing debut in the Winston Cup Series in 1974, and ran 61 Cup races. His biggest success came in the Automobile Racing Club of America series, where he won eight races, and set a record for most superspeedway wins in a season in 1986, when he won four times. In November 1989 he was running a Winston Cup race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Atlanta, Georgia when on Lap 198, he crashed into the Turn 2 wall, and suffered major head and chest injuries, as well as...[Read More] (Bio by: D-Day) Chattanooga Memorial Park, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA
Andrews, James J. b. 1829 d. June 7, 1862 Civil War Union Partisan. Leader of the famed "Andrews Raiders". Born in Hancock County, (now West) Virginia. Spent the first year of the Civil War as a Union contraband runner and double agent. Conceived the idea for the raid. Was captured after it failed, tried by the Confederate Army, and hanged in Atlanta. Did not receive a Congressional Medal of Honor as he was a civilian and, hence, ineligible. (Bio by: Bill Sonsin) Cause of death: Hanged by Confederate Army Chattanooga National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA Plot: Section H, Grave 12982
Andrews Raiders Memorial Memorial erected by the State of Ohio to the Andrews Raiders. In early April, 1862, a band of Union soldiers lead by civilian James Andrews infiltrated south from the Union lines near Shelbyville, Tennessee and met at Big Shanty, Georgia (near Marietta). On the morning of April 12, 1862, 20 of them (2 raiders never arrived and 2 others overslept and missed the adventure) stole the passenger train "The General" during its morning breakfast stop. With the farms and factories of Georgia...[Read More] Chattanooga National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA GPS coordinates: 33.4480705, -84.2213821 (hddd.dddd)
Beckwith, Byron De La b. November 9, 1920 d. January 21, 2001 White supremacist convicted of the June 12, 1963, murder of NAACP field secretary Medgar Evers in Mississippi. In 1964, Beckwith was tried twice for the murder, but both trials ended with hung juries, both juries being all-white. In 1989, at the insistence of Evers' widow Myrlie Evers Williams, Hinds County, MS, Assistant District Attorney Bobby DeLaughter reopened the Evers murder case, which eventually resulted in the 1994 conviction and life imprisonment of Beckwith. The jury who convicted...[Read More] Cause of death: Heart failure Chattanooga Memorial Park, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA
Brabson, Reese Bowen b. September 16, 1817 d. August 16, 1863 US Congressman. Elected to represent Tennessee's 3rd District in the United States House of Representatives, serving from 1859 to 1861. Member of Tennessee State Legislature. Citizens Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA
Campbell, William Hunter b. September 9, 1839 d. June 18, 1862 Civil War Union Army Figure. He served as a civilian member of the Andrews Raiders. In April 1862, he was one of the 22 men which included 2 civilians who penetrated nearly 200 miles south into Confederate enemy territory. There they captured a railroad train at Big Shanty, Georgia in an attempt to destroy the bridges and track between Chattanooga and Atlanta. He was one of the members of that group whom were executed after their capture. (Bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith) Chattanooga National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA Plot: Section H, Grave 12982
Carter, Garnet b. February 9, 1883 d. July 21, 1954 Inventor, Pioneer. In 1927, he built and opened the first miniature golf course at the Fairyland Club on Lookout Mountain, Tennessee. To his surprise the course was taken over by adults, who liked the fantasy setting and enjoyed the challenge of putting a ball through the miniaturized fairways. Carter soon began manufacturing courses for national distribution under the patented name Tom Thumb Golf to continue with the fairyland theme of elves and gnomes. By 1930 there were over 25,000 miniature...[Read More] (Bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith) Forest Hills Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA Plot: 111, Section K
Doss, Desmond T. b. February 7, 1919 d. March 23, 2006 World War II Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient. He was born in Lynchburg, Virginia, and grew up in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, whose tenets forbid bearing arms. When he was called to the draft, he declined a religious exemption that would have allowed him to continue working in a shipyard. He served in the Army with the designation of conscientious objector, but he detested that phrase. He preferred "conscientious cooperator." However, he still refused to learn to shoot a rifle. Sent...[Read More] (Bio by: Ugaalltheway) Chattanooga National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA Plot: Section P
Duke, Ray E. b. May 9, 1923 d. November 11, 1951 Korean War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient. Served in the United States Army during the Korean War as a Sergeant First Class in Company C, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was awarded the CMOH for hia bravery near Mugok, Korea, on April 26, 1951. His citation reads "Sfc. Duke, a member of Company C, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and outstanding courage above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. Upon learning that several of his men...[Read More] (Bio by: grave hunter) Chattanooga National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA Plot: Section Z, Grave 272
Elberfeld, Norman Arthur 'Kid' b. April 13, 1875 d. January 13, 1944 Major League Baseball Player. He spent 14 seasons in the Major Leagues as an infielder for the Philadelphia Phillies, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, New York Highlanders, Washington Senators and Brooklyn Robins. He made his major league debut in 1898 at the age of 23. He appeared in 1,292 games during his big league career. He finished his playing career with 10 home runs, 1,235 hits, 535 runs batted in and a lifetime .271 batting average. (Bio by: Nils M. Solsvik Jr.) Chattanooga Memorial Park, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA
Engel, Joe b. March 12, 1893 d. June 12, 1969 Baseball Player, Team Owner. From 1912 to 1920, he played professional baseball for the Washington Senators, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Cleveland Indians. In 1930, he became the owner of the Southern League team, The Chattanooga Lookouts. Known as a flamboyant personality, many historians have called him one of the most colorful characters in baseball history. Some of his antics as an owner included trading a shortstop for a turkey, giving away a house as a promotion during the Depression...[Read More] (Bio by: Evening Blues) Forest Hills Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA
Ermer, Cal b. November 10, 1923 d. August 8, 2009 Major League Baseball Player, Manager. He appeared in one game with the Washington Senators on September 26, 1947 and recorded three at bats. He would spend the next fourteen years (1947 to 1961) in the Minor Leagues as a second baseman and manager, including six successful seasons (1952 to 1957) with the Chattanooga Lookouts before returning to the Major League level as a coach with the Baltimore Orioles in 1962. During the 1967 season, Ermer replaced Sam Mele as manager of the Minnesota Twins...[Read More] (Bio by: C.S.) Chattanooga National Cemetery, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Tennessee, USA