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[All photos Brodie Coolidge]
Following the conclusion of the Civil War and the closing of the hospital, the Sisters of Mercy continued to perform burials at the cemetery when the bodies of 180 unknown Confederate soldiers were sent to Shelby Springs after the war. Four soldiers who died in 1862 in Vicksburg were exhumed at the conclusion of the war and reinterred at the cemetery to be buried with their fellow brothers in arms. Public burials at the cemetery continued until 1921. Today the cemetery can be visited and sits off the side of the road of Shelby County Highway 42. Down the hill from the cemetery are the remains of the entrance to the former hospital. This final resting place for Confederate soldiers and others is considered by many to be a hidden historical gem.
Additional resources
- Reports, Staff. “Resting Place for Confederate Soldiers.” Shelby County Reporter, 29 Mar. 2010, www.shelbycountyreporter.com/2010/03/29/resting-place-for-confederate-soldiers/.
- Seales, Bobby Joe. “Shelby County Alabama.” ALGenWeb, algenweb.org/shelby/cemSSConfederate.html. Accessed 2 Apr. 2024.
- “Shelby Springs Confederate Cemetery.” Shelby County, AL, www.shelbyal.com/Facilities/Facility/Details/Shelby-Springs-Confederate-Cemetery-52. Accessed 2 Apr. 2024.
About the author
Brodie Coolidge is a senior at the University of Alabama at Birmingham majoring in Criminal Justice with a minor in Spanish. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama and currently lives in Chelsea, Alabama. Brodie is a Military Police Officer in the Alabama Army National Guard. After graduating he plans on pursuing a career in law enforcement. |