Camp Chase Confederate Cemetery

I had the pleasure of visiting this wonderful site on Thursday. The heat wasn't quite as oppressive, and Nathan was gone to his seminar, so I rolled out of bed midday and went exploring. Unfortunately the Pochi "bubble tea" station on the corner wasn't open. I was so looking forward to tasting the "Coffee & Avocado" smoothie. No seriously, I was!

Disappointed, I meandered down the street and caught the #2 bus to midtown. I debated whether I was going to chance the trip to Camp Chase at this point. It seemed so easy according to the COTA trip planner. But, I'd neglected to print a copy of the return trip...so I didn't want to get out there and be stuck.

I mulled it over in my head until the #6 approached. I got on, resolving just to ride down and glance at the place; making sure to note the nearest bus stop on the other side of the street.

It was about a 15 minute ride from the heart of downtown to cemetery. Unfortunately, this place was in the middle of the ghetto. On every corner and every street there were abandoned and boarded up houses. Sadly enough, these places flaunted the fancy architecture of the late 1800's-1920's. You could squint your eyes just enough to imagine the carriages clattering up the still obvious carriageways. You could picture ladies with their fancy hats and tight corsets striding down the thoroughfare. All that was left now was flaking paint, sagging support beams and glassless windows. I found it extremely sad that no one had tried to save these beautiful slices of history. But with the economy being what it is, maybe the saving was well beyond the pockets of the most optimistic investor.

It was almost 2:15pm as we meandered past the liquor stores and the dingy gas stations of the area. More and more, it seemed like a bad idea to trek out into the cemetery by myself. But as we got closer, there were less people...so my fear abated somewhat. Then suddenly, there it was! Shining like a hidden jewel buried in sand. Beautifully maintained, no graffiti, it was unbelievable!

The place was microscopic compared to Green Lawn. Only about 2 acres but from my view it barely looked that. The graves were aligned in the military fashion, in straight, stiff rows, all the way back to the fence. You could feel the energy here. Even in the daylight on a summer day. You could feel that you were not alone.

I quickly snapped some pics of the monument, the historic marker, and a really cool cannonball, all the while keeping an eye on the bus stop across the street. A couple of clicks of headstones and I saw the return bus approaching. With that I hurried across the street just in time to catch it.