This cache is placed with permission.
The site is open from sunrise to sunset (no night caching, please).
The area is regularly monitored to help preserve and respect this historic site.
Cell service will be limited in various areas on the AMNHA Geo-Path. Please plan accordingly.
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CONGRATULATIONS TO RED CROW, ALLIESANT, TEAM SHURTLE, FLY_FISH, LILRAPTOR, SPACEKITTYXD, ANNA LISA AND SUPER ELI FOR BEING THE FTF!
AMNHA Geo-Path Series
AMNHA: Lithonia City Cemetery
Passport: Geo-Path
Series: Lithonia's Historic Hike
Password: Located in the logbook
Hours: Sunrise to Sunset
Parking Options: See waypoints
Welcome to Lithonia City Cemetery
Welcome to Lithonia City Cemetery, a quiet historic landscape where the monuments and names found here reflect the families, granite workers, and community leaders who shaped the early town of Lithonia.
The listed coordinates will not take you to the final cache location.
Instead, they will guide you to the first stage of a short walk through Lithonia City Cemetery.
As you visit several monuments and learn about the people who helped shape the early town of Lithonia, you will collect the information needed to determine the final cache location.
Please move respectfully through the cemetery during your search. This is still an active place of remembrance for families today. Do not disturb monuments, markers, or decorations, and remember that cemetery visits should take place during daylight hours only.
About the Cemetery
Lithonia City Cemetery was established in 1851. Among its earliest residents are J.R. George and J.M. Born, who donated the land for the cemetery. The first burial here was Ann T. Born.
The cemetery also reflects the story of Lithonia itself. Locally quarried granite was used for many of the headstones, and many of the names found here connect to the families and workers who helped build the town. As Lithonia grew, its granite industry brought new opportunity, skilled labor, and lasting influence to the area.
The last names Anderson, Born, Bond, Cagle, George, Hollingsworth, Reagan, and Swift are commonly seen here and represent some of Lithonia's prominent early residents. It is also believed that enslaved people connected to some of Lithonia's early settlers are buried in the cemetery as well.
Stage 1
This multi begins at the headstone of Ann T. Born, Lithonia City Cemetery's earliest interment. The headstone information for Ann has become illegible, so look to the right (north) and find a large memorial monument with legible information.
It reads: "In memory of J. M. Born and his wife _________ Born"
A = Number of letters in his wife's first name + 4
Stage 2
You are at the final resting place of Miss Lula Almand. The first library in DeKalb County was opened by Lula in her private home. She filled a glass-front case in the living room of her Victorian home with books from her own collection and novels donated by family and friends. Lula served as librarian until 1914 and also founded the Improvement Club, which focused on beautifying the city of Lithonia.
In 1928, the library moved into the newly built Lithonia Women's Clubhouse. Lula's library bookshelf is housed inside the clubhouse today. Lithonia's city library is now located on Church Street on land donated by the Davidson family.
Looking at the headstone, add the year Lula died to the year she was born. Your answer should be a four-digit number.
B = The second digit from the right in this four-digit number
Stage 3
Look closely at this four-sided headstone and you will see that it mentions the birth location of the people buried below. Before Lithonia's wealth of granite resources was discovered, many residents were farmers or operators of mercantile businesses. Between 1890 and 1920, however, the quarry industry demanded labor skilled at cutting and polishing stone.
During this period, stone cutters from Scotland, Wales, Ireland, and Italy immigrated to the United States, and some found work in Lithonia's quarries. These immigrants were artisans, and their craft could be seen in granite curbing, paving blocks, and building facades throughout the country.
Find Christina Neilson, wife of John Wilson.
Count the number of letters in the town she was born in.
C = Number of letters - 5
Stage 4
This is the Davidson family plot. John Keay Davidson, Sr. emigrated to Lithonia from Scotland in 1888 and formed the Davidson Granite Company in 1895. The Davidson family owned several quarries in the Arabia Mountain area and eventually became the largest supplier of chicken grit in the world.
"Chicken grit" refers to bits of granite added to chicken feed to help with the birds' digestion. According to a TIME Magazine article in 1941, the Davidson Granite Company was allowed to continue operating during World War II in the name of national defense. By the mid-1960s, the company was considered the largest diversified granite producer in the world.
Find John Keay Davidson, Sr.
D = The last digit in the year he was born + 2
Stage 5 - Time to Find the Cache
The final is located at:
N 33 43.0AB
W 084 06.6CD