Williamson Cemetery in the Cosby region of Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The Williamson Cemetery at Great Smoky Mountains National Park is located ten minutes from the start of the Snake Den Ridge Trail, which begins at the back of the B-Loop in the Cosby Campground. See the Cosby Region web page for an interactive location map.
The Williamson cemetery is quite small. Most of the graves belong to members of the Williamson and Campbell families, though other families are represented as well. A few of the original granite tombstones still have readable inscriptions, but many were budget memorials made of river stone, and the inscriptions have long since faded away. They now only anonymously mark a grave of a former Cosby resident. Some living family members had the foresight to replace the rapidly deteriorating stones with a granite memorial, and these were placed at the base of the old stone, preserving the identify of the person six feet below.
Grave of Joseph Campbell grave (12/3/1816 to 5/23/1894) in the Williamson Cemetery, Great Smoky Mountains National Park
A newer memorial stone sits at the base of the original tombstone marking a grave in the Williamson Cemetery, Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The most interesting of the graves is that of Ella Costner, who, according to the tombstone, was a POW in World War II and a Poet Laureate of the Smokies. She died and was buried in 1982, long after the park was created.
Ella Costner grave (2/18/1894 to 7/11/1982) in the Williamson Cemetery, Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Keep in mind that many of the cemetery names were coined after Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established, so they may not be the names used by the original families, if they used a name at all. Many cemeteries are now referenced by multiple names.
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Last updated on February 28, 2025
