Restoration and Preservation of a Historical Black Cemetery
Who We Are
Our history:
We are historians and appreciate Memphis history. Mt Carmel Ally was organized for the preservation of Mt Carmel, a historical African American cemetery. Mt Carmel Cemetery is located at the northwest corner of Elvis Presley Blvd. and Elliston Rd. Address: 2093 Elvis Presley Blvd Memphis, Shelby, Tennessee, 38106. Over the past one hundred years the cemetery has expanded to over ten acres, which represents greater than 3.400 burials. 2,297 matching records have been found. The cemetery exists in a depressed socially economic African American community. Over the years the cemetery was neglected, records lost due to fire, then abandoned. Negligence continues at present.
Mt Carmel Ally is a 501 c (3) nonprofit formed in August 2023 to conserve and provide relevant procedures vital to sustain the existing form, integrity, and materials of an historic property. Cemeteries can be spaces for learning and envisioning who we are and where we have come from, bridging descendants and the stories of our ancestors. Cemeteries can teach about the people who make up a community and about landscapes and plants. Artwork and architecture can be studied.
Mt Carmel Ally’s initial transformation measures will include steps to protect and stabilize the cemetery and will considerably focus on the ongoing maintenance and repair of historic materials and features rather than extensive replacement and new construction.