(TN DEPT. OF COMMERCE & INSURANCE RELEASE) – Starting Saturday, May 25, 2019, Galilee Memorial Gardens in Bartlett, Tenn. will be opened to the public on weekends and holidays, including Memorial Day, as part of a newly court-approved plan by the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance (TDCI).
“After years of work to address the numerous financial and legal issues created by the cemetery’s former owner, we are pleased the Davidson County Chancery Court approved a plan allowing the public to have regular visitation so family members might pay their respects to loved ones,” said TDCI Commissioner Julie Mix McPeak. “We hope to continue working with the court in the hopes that the public might continue to have ongoing access to the property.”
The cemetery, which is located at 8283 Ellis Road, was closed by TDCI because of financial issues in 2014. TDCI officials have kept Galilee Memorial Gardens closed to the public in the intervening years because of safety issues created on the property by the cemetery’s former owners. As part of the Department’s management, many safety hazards have been addressed and rehabilitated upon the cemetery grounds. The public will be asked to proceed with caution as there may still be areas that could pose a risk and the cemetery will not be staffed while opened.
In addition to being open on weekends, the cemetery will also be open on the following holidays:
- Memorial Day (Monday, May 27, 2019)
- Fourth of July (Thursday, July 4, 2019)
- Labor Day (Monday, September 2, 2019)
- Veterans Day (Monday, November 11, 2019)
- Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, November 28, 2019)
- Christmas Day (Wednesday, December 25, 2019)
- Martin Luther King Day (Monday, January 20, 2020)
- Presidents Day (Monday, February 17, 2020)
On the days the cemetery is available to the public, it will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (CDT).
Questions about grave spaces should be directed to Receivership Management, Inc. at (615) 370-0051.