All faiths and cultures welcome

Johns-Ridout's Mortuary-Elmwood Chapel is a Birmingham funeral home that's committed to accommodating people of all belief systems and cultures. We believe funeral services should reflect the uniqueness of each life. In addition, we strive to help families create one-of-a-kind memorials that capture and convey the essence of a loved one.

Chapels and reception spaces

Our funeral home is 20,000 square feet in size and includes a spacious, light-filled chapel called the Celebration Chapel. This chapel comfortably seats as many as 250 guests and has a traditional, formal atmosphere. We also have a smaller, more contemporary chapel called the Maple Room and it can accommodate approximately 45 guests. In addition, the Celebration Room at Johns-Ridout's Mortuary-Elmwood Chapel is ideal for hosting a reception before or after a memorial service.

In 2017, Johns-Ridout's Mortuary-Elmwood Chapel renovated for greater comfort and beauty. From new landscaping outdoors to fresh paint inside, our funeral home has an up-to-date, modern look that appeals to today's families.

Cremation services

Not everyone knows that there are many cremation options. If you are interested in cremation, the funeral home team can explain the process and different options. From a direct cremation without a memorial service, to a witness cremation, to a full funeral service before or after the cremation and more, we help you understand this increasingly common choice—and handle all of the cremation arrangements.

You can count on us

We provide professional, compassionate service as you and your family navigate difficult times. The experienced teams at Johns-Ridout's Mortuary-Elmwood Chapel and Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum are dedicated to exceeding expectations by ensuring each funeral, cremation and burial is both personal and memorable. Please call us whenever you need us. We are here for you.

Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum

Comprising approximately 400 acres in southwest Birmingham, Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum is one of the larger cemeteries east of the Mississippi River. Our park-like property offers a tranquil final resting place and a serene environment in which to remember your loved one.

Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum is predominately a cemetery for traditional ground burial, but we also offer lawn crypt entombment and cremation interment. The cemetery is known for its large Asian mushroom carved out of a tree, which was created by an artist in the 1930s to symbolize joining the earthly life with the eternal.

Notable interments

Many notable people are interred at Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum, including Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant, the longtime head coach of the University of Alabama football team. Former Alabama governor and United States senator Braxton Bragg (B.B.) Comer is also interred at our cemetery, along with other Alabama politicians, such as Russell McWhorter Cunningham and Joseph Forney Johnston. In addition, baseball legend Fred E. “Dixie” Walker is interred here. We also have music notables, including Eddie Kendrick (Temptations founding member and singer) and Henry Strzelecki (renowned bass musician)—both men born in Birmingham.

Community service and support

The teams at Johns-Ridout's Mortuary-Elmwood Chapel and Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum are engaged members of the Birmingham and Jefferson County communities, hosting "planning ahead" seminars and memorial events that are open to the public.

We participate in the Homeless Veterans Burial Program, founded upon the belief that every veteran deserves a dignified and honorable burial. It is a cooperative effort with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, local medical examiners, coroners, veterans’ advocates and veterans’ organizations. Through the HVBP, homeless and indigent veterans, who have no family to claim them, are identified and provided with proper military burials.

Additionally, we participate in the We Honor Veterans Program—a collaborative effort of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization and the Department of Veterans Affairs—as well as the Dignity Memorial® Public Servants Program, which provides no-cost funerals for career and volunteer law enforcement officers, firefighters and emergency services personnel who fall in the line of duty.

History

Our cemetery was founded in 1900 as Elmleaf Cemetery on what was then Montevallo Road. In the 1920s, the named was changed to Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum. Today, the cemetery is located on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, near Johns-Ridout's Mortuary-Elmwood Chapel, which was established in 1962.

In May 1987, Elmwood Cemetery & Mausoleum joined what is now known as the Dignity Memorial® network, North America's largest network of funeral, burial and cremation service providers. Johns-Ridout's Mortuary-Elmwood Chapel joined the same network in 1996.

As we grow and evolve, we remain committed to upholding the legacy of personal and professional service that the people of Birmingham and surrounding communities have come to expect.