Franklin City Cemetery

Entrance gates to the City Cemetery, Franklin, TN

The Franklin City Cemetery, located in Franklin, Tennessee, is a historic burial ground established in 1811, when Joel Parrish deeded two acres of land to the town commissioners for $100. The cemetery serves as the final resting place for four veterans of the American Revolutionary War, highlighting its deep connections to the nation's founding conflicts and the westward expansion of early American settlers. These individuals—Guilford Dudley, David Squier, Moses Priest, and Miles Priest—represent diverse regional contributions to the Patriot cause, serving in militias and the Continental lines from Virginia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. The site contains an estimated 285 to 373 marked graves in its western section of early settlers, and 300 unmarked indigent and African American graves in the eastern section. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. The Franklin City Cemetery is open to the public and managed by the City of Franklin's Parks Department.