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20-472: As plans were being drawn up for the university in 1792, it was already a large tree, and legend has it that Davie personally chose to locate the school lands around the tree after having a pleasant summer lunch underneath it. The story is not true – the university's location was chosen by a six-man committee in November 1792 – and the tree was named by Cornelia Phillips Spencer in the late 1800s to commemorate

40-441: A cover of shade in the cemetery. There are also shrubs, like boxwoods, azaleas, nandinas, and crape myrtles, around many of the plots. During the spring, dogwood trees, azaleas and wisteria make the cemetery one of the most beautiful spots on campus. Some of the individual gravestones are covered by English ivy and vinca. A gazebo has been built between Section B and Section 1 and provides a convenient place to sit. Vandalism has been

60-412: A major problem in the cemetery. Whether the culprits are just careless or actually meaning to cause damage, the cemetery has had many tombstones ruined throughout the years. Five 19th century headstones were tipped over and smashed the day before Charles Kuralt was buried in the cemetery. On November 27, 1974, 40 to 50 monuments were broken and pushed off their bases. In 1985, football fans eager to get to

80-400: A seat damaged stones. Distinguished persons buried in the cemetery include legendary North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith ; band leader Kay Kyser and his wife, singer Georgia Carroll ; playwright Paul Green ; novelists Alice Adams and Max Steele; university presidents Frank Porter Graham , Robert Burton House , and William Friday ; and CBS newsman Charles Kuralt . In 2005,

100-610: Is a graveyard and national historic district located on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill , North Carolina . The land was a land grant to the University of North Carolina by the State of North Carolina . The land encompassed 125 acres (51 ha), and was sold for five shillings on October 21, 1776. The cemetery currently covers 6.98 acres (2.82 ha). The first recorded burial

120-518: The Memorial Grove portion was established to allow space for the spreading of ashes of cremated persons. Names of those whose ashes have been spread in the grove are inscribed upon the Wall of Remembrance. To date, the names of fifteen persons are inscribed on the wall. Some of these persons had been cremated before the opening of the grove. It is assumed that their ashes were originally retained in

140-520: The fire. In 2024, a large population of chimney swifts was documented to use the tree as a roosting site. This marks one of the only known modern cases of swifts roosting in large, hollow trees, which were their ancestral roosting sites prior to mass logging of such trees after European settlement. 35°54′46″N 79°03′06″W  /  35.9128°N 79.0517°W  / 35.9128; -79.0517 Cornelia Phillips Spencer Cornelia Phillips Spencer (March 20, 1825 – March 11, 1908)

160-399: The legend. The most enduring legend associated with the tree is that as long as Davie Poplar remains standing, the university will thrive; if it falls, the university will crumble. As such, many steps have been taken to preserve the tree. In 1918, after the tree was struck by lightning and fear that the tree was dying, UNC grafted a new tree, called Davie Poplar Jr. A second Davie Poplar Jr.

180-403: The newer sections. Marble and granite were used most frequently, but stone and concrete can also be found. The Old Chapel Hill Cemetery is not just a resting place for the deceased. It remains an integral part of campus life. For many students, the quiet, secluded setting is an ideal place to relax or study. Diverse species of trees, such as oaks, hickories, gums, cedars, maples, and pines, create

200-642: The rest. The Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies were the first to establish plots. In the other sections, there are administrators and professors, as well as prominent public officials, business leaders, and artists from the area. During the Civil War , Confederate soldiers were buried there. There are many different styles of grave markers represented in the cemetery. Many of the early family plots are marked by monuments and obelisks with smaller tablets marking individual graves. There are also uninscribed fieldstones, headstones, ledgers, boxtombs, and tomb-tables in

220-543: The school's reopening and, on March 20, 1875, Spencer climbed to the roof of the South Building and rang its bell to celebrate. She contributed to the university by writing hymns for special occasions, organizing community events and keeping the alumni records. In 1895, she became the first woman to receive an honorary degree from the University. Cornelia Phillips Spencer died at her home in on March 11, 1908. She

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240-485: The trees were planted is not known, except for the Burke County seedling, which is in front of Table Rock Middle School. In 1996, Davie Poplar was damaged by Hurricane Fran . A fire was set and a small device was detonated at the base of Davie Poplar on November 2, 2017, producing a small fire ball and scorching the side of the tree. The explosion caused minor injuries to Dr. Daniel Reichart who tried to stomp out

260-616: The university for local newspapers. She published regular columns in The North Carolina Presbyterian and the Raleigh Sentinel . She urged the North Carolina legislature to close the university in 1870 to protect the school from Reconstruction politics, later revealed to be her own disagreement with the politics of university leaders at the time. After Reconstruction, she similarly urged

280-559: The university, was awarded annually from 1994 until 2004, when it was retired following the discovery that Spencer espoused racist views, based on letters found in university archives, including opposing the admission of African-American students. The University Awards for the Advancement of Women were created following the Bell Awards' retirement. Posthumously: Old Chapel Hill Cemetery Old Chapel Hill Cemetery

300-431: Was George Clarke, a Burke County student at the university, who died September 28, 1798. His headstone was not placed until several years later. By January 28, 1994, 1,621 burials had been performed. The cemetery is now almost full, and all of the plots have already been bought. In 1922, the town took over responsibility for maintaining the cemetery, and in 1988, the ownership changed over to the University. A low rock wall

320-467: Was United States solicitor general under President Ulysses S. Grant.) In 1826, James Phillips took a post as a mathematics professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill . She married James Monroe Spencer in 1855 and moved to Alabama, where their only child, Julia (later known as June Spencer Love), was born in 1859. Spencer and her daughter returned to Chapel Hill after her husband's death in 1861, where she began her first book and wrote about

340-534: Was a poet, social historian and journalist in North Carolina , United States, who was instrumental in reopening the University of North Carolina after a five-year shutdown during the Reconstruction era . Cornelia Ann Phillips was born on March 20, 1825, in Harlem , New York City , New York , the youngest of three children born to James Phillips and Judith Vermeule Phillips. (Her brother Samuel F. Phillips

360-506: Was built around the cemetery in 1835 at the cost of $ 64.41. The school officially named the cemetery "College Graveyard," as opposed to "Village Cemetery," like the Chapel Hill residents called it. Five sidewalks divide the cemetery into six sections. Two of the sections were reserved for African-American burials because there were no black church cemeteries in town. A low rock wall divides the two segregated sections (Sections A and B) from

380-660: Was interred in Old Chapel Hill Cemetery . Her collected papers are in the Southern Historical Collection at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The university's Spencer Residence Hall is also named for her. As part of the university's bicentennial activities, the Cornelia Phillips Spencer Bell Award was established. The award, given to a woman who has made outstanding contributions to

400-463: Was planted near Hinton James Hall. Later, another tree, called Davie Poplar III, was planted nearby with a seed from the original tree. A steel band was added to Davie Poplar in 1953 to attach cables to other trees, and the base has been filled with concrete and pruned to keep it upright. As part of the university's bicentennial celebration in 1993, 100 seedlings from the tree were given to 100 children planted across North Carolina's 100 counties . Where

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