The future has been in question this year for one of Buckhead’s most historically rich sites, the Paces Ferry United Methodist Church and adjacent Pleasant Hill Cemetery. Paces Ferry UMC, founded in 1877, shuttered its doors permanently in March and was subsequently sold. The cemetery, which predates the church building, was not included in the sale, but its operational status was left in question.
However, a group of residents recently formed a nonprofit organization to preserve Pleasant Hill Cemetery. Now with the property’s deed in hand, they are looking to its future.
Nonprofit aims to connect families with gravesites, improve cemetery
Hank Koppelman, who served for nearly 15 years on the Paces Ferry UMC’s board, helped spearhead the creation of the 501c13 nonprofit — Pleasant Hill Cemetery Association at Paces Ferry, Inc. — which will operate the historic cemetery. The association recently received the cemetery’s deed from the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church, allowing the group to “get to work.”
The association has set out with two major initiatives — improve the cemetery and connect with the living descendants of those buried there.
“There are a lot of people buried in the cemetery we think are related to people who are still alive,” Koppelman said. “Some gravesites have flowers on them on a regular basis, but we have no way of contacting these people. With our new association, we are looking for families to join us as volunteers, maybe even contributors.”
Koppelman said the cemetery association is planning on mailing letters to the believed descendants, but not all these addresses are verified. The association hopes more families will reach out to the newly formed group to connect the past with the present and improve the site.
Connect and chip in
Those who have family members buried at the site, or who want to volunteer with the association, can use the association’s new website, PleasantHillPacesCemetery.com. Physical mail can also be sent to the cemetery at 3612 Paces Ferry Road, Atlanta, Georgia, 30327.
“There’s a lot of history in that little cemetery, and we’d like to get out the word more,” Koppelman said. “We’ve had a number of tours of the church and cemetery, and every year we do a Wreaths Across America event placing wreaths on gravesites. There’s lots of activities, but there are also a number of things we need, like signage and to clean up some of the gravesites. There’s a lot of manual labor that needs to be involved.”
Koppelman and the association are hoping these plans will help preserve the historic site for future generations.
“When the church closed, there were a number of us who were members of the church who wanted to continue working with the cemetery,” he said. “I think a number of us are relieved to get the deed. It took a while to get through the hierarchy of the North Georgia Conference. We have an active board, and we are anxious to get to work.”
Among the believed 181 gravesites are 11 veterans dating from the Civil War to the Vietnam War. Among them is William Brown, a Confederate soldier who donated the land for the cemetery and Paces Ferry UMC. In 2020, the cemetery was professionally studied with 19 potential unmarked gravesites identified. Those unmarked graves are now marked with wood slabs.
The cemetery’s new operating group has started its next steps as the adjacent historic church looks to its next era under new ownership.
New owners intend to retain Paces Ferry UMC’s historical character
Citing low attendance, Paces Ferry UMC held its last service in March, ending more than a century of it serving as a gathering place and spiritual home for those in Buckhead. While services have ended indefinitely, the church and fellowship hall could soon again serve as a community hub.
A group of investors purchased the church and fellowship hall property earlier this summer. The group plans to honor William Brown’s original intent when he donated the site in the late 19th century to “promote [Christ’s] heritage on Earth.” Additionally, the group said it will repair the church while retaining its original character.
The church’s new ownership group has floated the possibility of using the historic building to host Bible studies and as a potential hub for student ministries.
