RULES AND REGULATIONS
As revised by the Trustees of Greenwood Cemetery Company on the 1st day of June 2003. Reviewed 1st day of October 2009. Reviewed December 19, 2011 and December 1, 2013. Reviewed 19th day of February 2016.
OWNERSHIP
Under Tennessee law, deeds to lots sold in a chartered cemetery are not issued, but the Cemetery Company conveys the right of burial or interment of human remains on each lot sold, by issuance of ownership thereto, when the contract price for said lot is paid in full, subject to the Rules and Regulations that have been or may be adopted by the Board of Trustees for governing the Cemetery, and it shall be used for no other purpose than the interment or entombment of the human dead, as authorized by the holder of the title to the interment rights, or the owner of record of the lot involved by written order duly signed.
No transfer or assignment of any lot, or part thereof, or interest therein is valid without the consent of the Company, and persons will not be recognized as lot owners unless their names appear as such upon the records of the Company. All transfers of ownership shall be subject to a reasonable charge, which must be paid to the Company at the time of the transfer.
The sale or transfer of any grave site or lot by any owner or purchases shall not be binding upon the Company, unless such transfer shall first be duly approved in writing by the properly authorized officer of the Company.
The owner cannot subdivide lots for resale. The Company reserves the right to determine the method by which a lot, or a portion of a lot, may be transferred. If transfer is by certificate, the original must be returned to the office of the Company, and a new certificate will be issued to the new owner. This procedure is required in order that the Cemetery Company may at all times have a complete and accurate record of all owners.
Any and all transfers of any lot or interment rights, whether by transfer of certificate or assignment of purchase contract, are subject to the Rules and Regulations of Greenwood Cemetery Company, which are not in force and effect, or which may be hereafter adopted, The Company may refuse consent to a transfer, or assignment of lots or graves, as long as there is any indebtedness due the Cemetery Company, or if for any other reason the transfer or assignment does not conform to the Rules and Regulations in force at the time of the transaction.
Lot owners who desire to authorize the privilege of future interments on their lots to others than those entitled to burial thereon, must file such instructions with the Company in writing, to be entered on the Company's records. One not having a legal right thereto shall not be buried in any lot except by written consent of the Company, and the owner of record, or other persons entitled to consent hereto under the Rules and Regulations.
Upon the death of any owner, or part owner of a lot, the surviving spouse, or heirs or next of kin of such decedent, must file in the office of the Company full information as to the survivors of such decedent, and the proprietorship of such lot designating someone by name and address who will be in charge of said lot, or part of lot. Such records protect the rights of those claiming ownership in the lots, and save time and trouble when future interments are ordered.
INTERMENTS - DISINTERMENTS
The proper location of placing of graves on every lot has been established by the Cemetery Company, and graves shall not be placed except in such designated locations. All bodies presented for burial must be in containers acceptable to the Company.
No interment shall be allowed without the consent of the Company. The Company may refuse to allow an interment of any lot for which the purchase price has not been paid, or on which payments are in default. Only one interment per grave space.
Before a grave is opened for interment or disinterment, an order signed at the office of the Cemetery Company is required from the lot owner of record, or someone duly authorized by the owner, or if the original purchaser is deceased then by his or her lawful heirs or next of kin, or the assignee or transferee of record; such authorized person will select and point out to the Superintendent in charge of digging such grave the correct location of the grave site. The Cemetery Company assumes no responsibility for erroneous location of gravesites when opened as requested. All interment or disinterment service charges will be paid to the Company at the time the order is given.
No disinterment or removal will be allowed without the consent in writing of the lawful custodian of the body to be removed. The work of disinterring shall be done only by the employees of the Cemetery Company, under the supervision of the Superintendent and at such times and in such manner as the Company may deem proper. The Cemetery disclaims any liability for any damages to caskets or outer containers or remains caused by disinterring or reinterring. The remains of a decedent may be removed from a plot on proper application to Cemetery by a person of closer relationship to the decedent than the owner(s) or heirs of owner(s) of the lot in which the remains of the decedent and buried, subject to the owner's rightful ownership interest in any marker, monument, or vase placed on the lot.
Orders or messages by telephone are accepted at the risk of the sender, and all such messages should be immediately confirmed in writing.
Only vaults approved by the Company may be used.
All funerals shall be subject to the direction and control of the Superintendent of the Cemetery, or one of his assistants in charge. All openings and closings of graves, and all interments, disinterments and removals shall be made by the Cemetery Company.
GENERAL REGULATIONS
The Company assumes the general care of the entire Cemetery grounds and lots. Monuments and memorials, trees, flowers, shrubs, plants, vases, ornaments or anything placed in the Cemetery is so placed at the owner's risk. The Company will take precautions for the care of such, but the Company is in no way responsible for loss or damage of such articles.
Floral designs, potted plants and vases (except recessed flush type) must be removed during grass cutting season (March 1 to December 1) and the Company shall have the right to remove such objects if so placed without notice.
Flowers will be permitted on graves for only ten (10) days at Easter, Mother's Day, Memorial Day, Father's Day and other holidays during mowing season.
Funeral flowers will be removed from graves when they become unsightly.
One single shepherd hook will be permitted per marked occupied grave. It must be flush to the marker. The basket must hang directly over the marker.
The Cemetery Company shall direct all improvements within the grounds and upon all lots and graves before, as well as after, interments have been made therein. They shall have the charge of the planting, sodding, surveying and improvements generally.
The Cemetery reserves the right to determine, establish, modify, alter or change the grade of each lot, driveway, walkway, or part thereof, and shall not be liable to anyone for such action.
All grading, landscape work, sodding or seeding and improvements of any kind, and all care of lots, shall be done by the Cemetery. All trees, shrubs, and herbage of all kind shall be planted, trimmed, cut or removed by the Cemetery.
No trees, shrubs or flowers may be planted on, or removed from lots without approval and permission of a duly authorized employee of the Company.
The Company reserves the right to reject and decline to have planted any and all plants which, in the opinion of the Superintendent, are diseased or injured or not in good taste or in keeping with the general plans of the grounds, or are otherwise objectionable or unsuitable.
The Company reserves the right to remove at any time without notice, any tree, shrub or plant in whole or in part, whether growing on a lot or in the Cemetery, when, in the opinion of the Superintendent, the same or its roots, branches or any part thereof, is diseased, dangerous, or is injurious or detrimental to any adjacent lot, road, or walk or renders access to any lot inconvenient or is otherwise objectionable.
The entire time of the persons regularly employed on the grounds belongs to the Cemetery. Visitors and lot owners must not otherwise engage them. Requests for special work on lots should be made at the office and the Superintendent will make estimates for the job.
No person other than the proper employees of the Company shall be allowed to perform any work on any grave or lot within the grounds without permissions from the Company.
No advertisement or sign of any kind shall be placed or kept on any lot or grave.
Any flag placed on a lot shall not exceed 12" x 18" in size and not be over 36" in total height. Flags placed by veteran's organizations will be removed in accordance with military protocol.
No urns, glass or wood boxes or house, trellises, fences, trinkets, toys, baskets or ornaments will be allowed on any lot or grave. This also includes gravel, marblechips, etc. around a memorial. If so placed, the Company shall have the full right to remove such objects without notice.
Granite or marble benches permitted only with Company approval. All benches of other material such as concrete, wood, plastic, etc. are strictly prohibited.
No enclosures of any kind, such as fences, coping, hedge, or ditch, shall be permitted around any grave lot. Grave mounds will not be allowed and no lot shall be raised about the established grade.
No shrubbery or planting of any kind is permitted on any lot of grave except in space allocated for planting.
Any unauthorized person found on the grounds after dark will be considered a trespasser.
Fast and reckless driving of cars or motorized vehicles will not be permitted. No person shall ride or drive upon the lawns.
All persons are strictly forbidden to break or injure any tree or shrub, or may any landmark, marker or memorial, or in any way deface the grounds of the cemetery.
MEMORIALS
Lot owners proposing to purchase monuments or markers should first obtain from the Cemetery office rules and regulations regarding the size and type of memorials that will be permitted. The proper location for monuments and markers have been established for every lot and lot owners must conform to the regulations.
Memorial care as defined by Section 1, Chapter 780 or Public Acts of 1980, State of Tennessee, is afforded in accordance with each contract made for installation of monuments, markers or vases except where otherwise noted.
No monument or family memorial may be set on a lot until the entire cost of a lot and all service charges have been paid in full. On lots where individual markers are permitted they may be set whenever a sufficient amount has been paid on the lot to cover space used and all service charges are paid in full. The lot payment requirement may be waived at the discretion of the Company.
A scale drawing of every monument, mausoleum or flush memorial with specifications as to size and type of material used, including bronze, must be submitted to the Cemetery office for approval.
The Company reserves the right to prohibit the erection of any monument or structure and to remove any monument or structure considered undesirable or to be in violation of the Rules and Regulations.
All memorial work must be done during regular working hours observed by the Cemetery Company. No setting or work on memorials will be permitted on Sunday or legal holidays.
Applications for use of government markers will not be accepted for approval by the Cemetery Company without properly signed permit on Company form and payment of charges for foundation and setting of marker.
Every monument or marker must be approved by the Superintendent on the grounds, or one in authority at the office before it can be set in the Cemetery.
No monument or marker will be erected without an approved foundation.
The Company reserves the right to do all excavating and foundation work for monuments and other structures.
All individual grave markers to be placed on all lots must be flush with the ground, unless special permission is obtained to duplicate other markers already on the lot.
No temporary marker or memorial may be placed on any lot.
Only one family memorial on each lot will be permitted anywhere in the Cemetery.
Photographs will be permitted on markers, monuments, or other memorials.
Certain entire sections know as Garden Sections and Single Plot Sections are designed for use with flush memorial and no raised monuments will be permitted.
Certain sections and lots have been designed by the Company as most appropriate for the erection of mausoleums. All plans and specifications and location on lot for such buildings must be submitted to and approved by the Company.
If any monument or marker, at any time, for any reason, becomes unsafe or unsightly, the Company may remove such monument or marker, or repair same and the expense of removing or repairing said monument or marker shall be chargeable to and be paid by the lot owner.
The Company reserves the right to remove any marker, monument, mausoleum, or other memorial, planting, etc. if placed or installed in violation of the Company rules.
The Cemetery disclaims any and all responsibility for the loss or damage to monuments, markers, and vases from the acts of thieves, vandals, rioters, and malicious mischief makers, and from the elements including but not limited to winds, tornadoes, cyclones, hail, snow, frost and ice, whether such damage directly or indirectly results there from.