The Shelton Family Cemetery at Possum Trot

Honoring Our Ancestors

In 2021, the Possum Trot Cemetery was renamed the Shelton Family Cemetery by Berry College as part of the family's preservation team’s collaborative efforts with the college to preserve and honor their ancestors' legacy. Many within the Shelton family believe that Hardy and Mary Shelton, along with relatives such as Lucy Shelton Spruce, Irvin Spruce, Lucy’s husband, and Saphronia Spruce Ware, are buried in this cemetery. In March 2022, Dr. Jennifer Hickey, Coordinator of Public History and Professor of History at Kennesaw State University, conducted a Ground Penetrating Radar survey, revealing a large number of burials. Below is a list of family and non-family members documented as buried at Possum Trot. Additionally, there is documentation of at least two family members being brought back to Rome for burial, including one in this cemetery, suggesting that other family members may have also been brought back for burial. It’s important to note that this area was historically known as both Flatwoods and Pleasant Hill, and that the cemetery may have been informally referred to as Spruce Cemetery and perhaps formally known as Pleasant Hill Cemetery at one point, based on burial records.

The Shelton Family Cemetery & the Greater Pleasant Hill/Flatwoods African American Community

Although referred to as the Shelton’s family cemetery by local funeral homes in the 1950s according to newspaper obituaries, and in addition to being the site of the interments of two infants, Lovie Haynes (connected to the Selman family) and Bobby Dozier, who do not appear to be related to the Shelton family, the cemetery, according to other family historians, may also serve as the final resting place for other African American families from the Flatwoods/Pleasant Hill community. We deeply honor and acknowledge these families and encourage anyone with information to reach out to us or other descendant communities/organizations. Your contributions will help us accurately document these interments, preserve their memory, and deepen our understanding of the history of African American families who lived near the Shelton family or on land they leased to others.

If you have information about family members or others who may be buried in the Shelton Family Cemetery, we invite you to submit their details using this form. Your contributions will help us honor their memory and preserve their legacy for future generations. For more information and/or to set up a Zoom call, please click below and/or email us at info@sheltonheritagesociety.org.

Modern Cemetery Marker: While at the cemetery during Possum Trot Community Day in September 2024, we were asked about the modern marker bearing the names of Aaron Hardy, his wife Fannie, his daughter Mary Madalyou Shelton King, and his son Pleas (Lewis) Shelton. This modern marker was installed by the family in recent years. The original markers for Aaron Hardy, Fannie, and his son Pleas Lewis are still visible in the cemetery; however, the marker for Mary does not appear to be present.

If you or someone you know has additional information pertaining to individuals buried in the cemetery, please reach out to us or other descendant communities associated with the family. The photos below were taken by Karen Stewart (Ross) - September 2024. Images showing only grass appear to reveal what seems to be an unearthed marker just beneath the surface.