CHURCH OF ISRAEL CEMETERY
Church of Israel Cemetery is located off Hurts Chapel Road east of Jackson. The gravel access drive to the cemetery is on the east side of the Hurts Chapel Road about a third of a mile north of Hurts Chapel Cemetery. There are 15 graves with temporary marker plates without information and maybe 2 or 3 unmarked graves. Two markers recorded in 1995 seem to be missing in 2004.
David Donahue recorded this cemetery on January 16, 2004 based on earlier work by Jonathan K. T. Smith. Mr. Smith's 1995 record for Church of Israel Cemetery appears in his Tombstone Inscriptions from Black Cemeteries in Madison County, Tennessee and a 2000 update appears in his Tombstone Inscriptions from Black Cemeteries in Madison County, Tennessee, Volume 2. These works are referred to collectively as Smith in the notes below.
Crayton, Katherine, Oct. 25, 1910-Apr. 21, 1997 [adjacent to marker for Otto Crayton, Sr.]
Crayton, Otto, Sr., Apr. 11, 1906-Mar. 11, 1970, "Beloved husband & father"
Croom, Lincoln A., no dates (homemade); also temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw, d. Dec. 2, 1989, Aged 44 Years
Dunlap, Bessie Mae, Jan. 22, 1919-Mar. 13, 1993
Freeman, Major, d. Dec. 26, 1970, Aged 72 Years [listed by Smith as unmarked grave; see additional note below]
Freeman, Modie B., d. Mar. 16, 1990, Age 61 Years, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw Funeral Home, 8 feet east southeast of marker for Nancy C. Kidd
Fuler, Annie Lee, Feb. 14, 1886-Mar. 27, 1972, "Mother"
Fuller, Andrew Jackson, Nov. 21, 1885-Nov. 4, 1977, "Father"
Fuller, Mae Willie, May 8, 1922-January 2003, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw, 2 graves 7 feet north of marker for Annie Lee Fuller
Fuller, Oscar R., d. July 20, 1988, Aged 35 Years, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw, 4 feet south of marker for Annie Lee Fuller
Fuller, Oscar R., Nov. 6, 1934-July 30, 1988 [Smith reported this information in 1995; it seems to have been read from a marker no longer present]
Harvey, James K., Jan. 20, 1924-Aug. 21, 1995, military marker "PFC US Marine Corps"
Hegmon, Clifford H., May 20, 1923-Feb. 5, 1966, military marker "Pvt Co. E Engr CS World War II" (broken, dates buried in 2004) [dates listed are those reported by Smith in 1995]
Hegmon, Emily McClain, d. Nov. 15, 19??, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw Funeral Home [not found in 2004; reported by Smith in 1995]
Hegmon, Katherine, Mrs., Dec. 23, 2003-Sept. 9, 2003, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw, 8 feet, 2 graves north of broken military marker for Clifford H. Hegmon [birth year is listed as 2003 on temporary marker plate; this is not a transcription error]
Hill, Catherine, no dates [not found in 2004; reported by Smith in 1995]
Jenkins, Johnnie, d. Nov. 23, 1987, temporary marker, Mercer Brothers Funeral Home, 10 feet west of homemade marker for Lincoln A. Croom
Jenkins, Lottie, d. Jan. 10, 1986, temporary marker, Mercer Brothers Funeral Home, 11 feet west-southwest of homemade marker for Lincoln A. Croom
Jones, Fredonia, Jan. 14, 1914-May 21, 1989, "Mother"
Jones, Jessie Lee, Sr., 1935-1985
Jones, Dawn Michele, 1977-1985Kidd, Nancy C., 1923-1977, "Loving aunt"
Lanier, Farris, Sr., 1931-1983, "2nd King of Israel"
Lanier, Fate, Son, July 25, 1950-Jan. 18, 1991
Lanier, Kari Sade, July 28, 1986-Aug. 10, 1995
Long, Beulah Mae, Feb. 28, 1925-July 23, 1993, "Mother"
Macklin, Charles Edward "Billy," d. Oct. 3, 1987, Age 49, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw Funeral Home, 6 feet north of marker for Pink E. Wortham
Majors, Edward, Jr., June 1, 1921-Dec. 2, 2002, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw, 3 feet south of marker for Classie E. Whitlaw
Majors, Eula May, May 17, 1923-Apr. 3, 1990
McClain, Emily [see Hegmon, Emily McClain]
Muse, Betty Lue, July 21, 1932-May 29, 1989, "We love you, your children and brother" (disintegrating homemade marker)
Nunnally, Curtis H., Apr. 3, 1938-Nov. 11, 1979
Nunnally, Denzell, Jan. 23, 1970-Jan. 25, 1970, "Beloved son & brother"
Nunnally, James, Jr., Aug. 2, 1948-Mar. 12, 2002, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw, 4 feet north of marker for Michael darryl Nunnally
Nunnally,Michael Darryl, Aug. 18, 1973-Sept. 2, 1996, "1996 Olympic Coach" "A World Class Boxer"
Pope, Meek J., Dec. 3, 1937-June 1969,; also temporary marker as footstone, Stephenson-Shaw, Meek Jack Pope, d. June 29, 1969
Price, Rachel, Mrs., Feb. 1, 1918-Dec. 13, 1995, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw Funeral Home, 3 feet south of marker for Darrian Deandre Wallace
Prince, James William, Mar. 7, 1892-Aug. 14, 1972, "US Army" [reported by Smith in 1995 but not found in 2004, even when looking specifically for it]
Robinson, Addie, Oct. 12, 1893-Apr. 28, 1973, "Mother"
Robinson, Simon, 1910-1975
Robinson, Sylvester, May 30, 1901-Sept. 26, 1991
Theus, Annie Mae, Feb. 24, 1917-June 23, 1971 (fallen, out of place) [This marker is lying loose and out of place. There is no evidence of its missing base anywhere. Smith did not record this marker in 1995.]
Wallace, Darrian Deandre, Oct. 9, 1997-Mar. 13, 2001
Watson, F. W., 1887-1966, "1st King of Israel"
Watson, Lula, 1892-1961, "Mother of Israel"
Whitelaw, Classie E., Aug. 29, 1919-Feb. 25, 1991
Wortham, Earl Glover, Oct. 7, 1949-May 13, 2003, temporary marker, Stephenson-Shaw, 4 feet north opf marker for Georgia Ann Wortham
Wortham, Georgia Ann, Aug. 12, 1949-May 31, 2001
Wortham, Pink E., Feb. 7, 1921-Aug. 17, 1980
Unidentifiable
Mr. S_____ Mc______, d. ____ 24, 195_, temporary marker, Ford Funeral Home, 4 feet south of military marker for James K. Harvey
Freeman Note
Jonatham Smith included this note in his 1995 record of this cemetery:
Buried here in an unmarked grave is Major Freeman (August 3, 1897-Dec. 26, 1970), a minister at Church of Israel; son of Aaron and Lucy (Turner) Freeman; grandson of Major Freeman, who in the days of bondage had been one of the black family of the well-to-do Freemans of Walnut Grove Plantation in Central Madison County (as shown authoritatively by Robert D. Taylor, Jr., Assistant Librarian, Tennessee Room, Jackson-Madison County Library). Major Freeman (died 1970) left Children: Misses Madie Rachel and Belinda Gail Freeman; Robert L. Freeman, Jimmie Freeman, Willie Freeman, Lee Henry Freeman, Major D. Freeman, Jerry O. Freeman, Amos C. Freeman, David Wayne Freeman. (The Jackson Sun, December 29, 1970)