Hello, I have been closely following the dialog on "Tennessee Cemetery Law" and have found it to be very interesting and a subject that I feel strongly about. I am a SUMMERS/BRILEY descendant. It is my understanding that the two Briley Family Cemeteries where John Logan Summers and Ella Summers are buried in Sumner County are slowly being destroyed by cattle using them as a pasture. The cattle are knocking down and breaking the old headstones, with manure all over the graves. The other Briley Family Cemetery is very close to this one, on the same property, much in the same condition. These old family cemeteries are part of our heritage, our family history and the resting place of our ancestors. The headstones, as well as the cemeteries themselves, are slowly being destroyed, and like endangered species, once they are gone, they are gone forever. We all need to feel a responsibility to maintain and protect these pioneer or small family cemeteries, regardless if we have ancestors buried there or not. Ancestors of these families need access and entitlement to ensure the maintenance, care and upkeep of these precious treasures. These old cemeteries are the final resting place of the people that help make this country as great as it is today. We owe it to them to ensure they have the final respect and honor that they justly deserve. The "Summers" that moved to Sumner County, TN from Guilford County, NC and then moved to Franklin County, Illinois, and other states such as Arkansas, Missouri and Texas, fought in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, The Black Hawk War, Civil War and each war every since. On 12 Sep 1825, Robert Clancy Summers married Sarah (Sally) Briley in Sumner County, TN (my great-great-great-grandparents). Robert and Sarah had six of their sons fighting in the Civil War at the same time. They lost one son, Private Harvey M. Summers at Vicksburg, Mississippi on 01 Oct 1863 (buried Section I, gave 7703 in Vicksburg National Park). They gave the ultimate sacrifice for their county and we need to honor their final resting place. The people buried in these cemeteries were real families with hopes and dreams just like those of us living today. It is up to us to ensure they rest in peace and honor. Below, you will find a list of the people buried at these two cemeteries: The first list is the smaller cemetery, one 7/10 mile south of the Clearview Church of Christ: Nancy Briley, b. 3 Oct. 1817 d. 17 Apr. 1882 Wife of S. Briley Samuel Briley b. 28 Nov. 1814 d. 15 Mar. 1893 M.E. Brinkley Briley, b. 22 Apr. 1841 d. 3 Sept. 1921 Wife of S.M. Briley S.M. Briley b. 10 Mar. 1845 d. 18 Feb. 1892 The second cemetery is 8/10 mi. south of the Church: Piety A. Chandler b. 25 Apr. 1837 d. 14 June 1876 Emory Hiram Briley b. ? Jan. 1816 d. 05 Oct. 1858 Larkin Briley b. 25 Dec. 1848 d. 31 Dec. 1928 Mary F. Briley b. 14 June 1847 d. 15 Oct. 1887 W. Ottie Briley b. 28 Oct. 1883 d. 05 Apr. 1928 Ruby Briley b. 14 Jan. 1914 d. 28 Oct. 1934 Virgil L. Summers b. 30 Apr. 1885 d. 23 Jan. 1917 J. L. Summers, Father b. 06 Feb. 1863 (No death date) Ella Summers, Mother b. 03 Apr. 1864 d. 23 Jun. 1910 - Dau. of Jesse & E.L. Summers, Wife & Mother Luther Summers b. 09 Oct. 1887 d. 01 Mar. 1908 Mary L. Summers, b. 21 Sept. 1864 d. 03 Mar. 1884 Elizabeth L. Summers b. ? May 1836 d. 06 Mar. 1883 Everyone's help and support is needed in protecting and preserving the old family cemeteries. If it requires changing the existing laws, then we need to take on that challenge. We also need to work with the owners of the land where these cemeteries are located, to convince them to do the right thing. We need to increase their awareness of the importance of saving our historic cemeteries and to allow access by relatives. Thanks for listening, Dale Foresythe Acton, Massachusetts dale4sythe@mindspring.com Below, I have repeated the website's recommended by Diane Payne, as I feel they are excellent reference resources: http://www.savinggraves.com/ http://web.utk.edu/~kizzer/genehist/research/cemetery.htm