Born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr, will be laid to rest alongside the Kentucky greats at Cave Hill Cemetery in Louisville.
“The Greatest” as he was known globally will join some other Kentucky greats in his final resting place at.
Chartered and dedicated in 1848, Cave Hill Cemetery is nearly 300 acres of monuments, markers and carvings.
“It’s really been Louisville’s finest, most historical cemetery,” said Jim Holmberg, curator at Filson Historical Society.
Holmberg describes Cave Hill as more than just a cemetery. He calls it a “popular tourist attraction.”
According to Holmberg, the reason for that can be found in a few of the roughly 135,000 graves.
“For Louisville and some of Kentucky and really the nation’s famous, Cave Hill is the final resting place for many of them,” Holmberg said.
The founder of Kentucky Fried Chicken, Colonel Harland Sanders is buried there.
There’s also the man credited with settling Louisville, George Rogers Clark.
The man who created Churchill Downs, Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr. can be found at Cave Hill, as well.
Former state senator, Georgia Davis Powers was laid to rest at the historic cemetery, earlier this year.
Legendary boxer and Louisville native, Muhammad Ali will now be added to the growing list.
“He’s probably instantly going to be the most recognizable famous person buried there in Cave Hill, and I think it’s very fitting that he would be ‘The Greatest’ as he was known, among these other fellow greats,” said Holmberg.
Holmberg says he is not really surprised that Ali chose the historic cemetery.
“He was born here in Louisville. He was raised in Louisville. He moved away in his adult life with his career, but he would come back and visit. Louisville meant a lot to him,” Holmberg said.
With Ali’s burial, Holmberg predicts Cave Hill Cemetery will be more popular than ever.
“With Muhammad Ali going to be laid to rest there, you’re gonna have all kinds of people that want to go and see it,” Holmberg said. “That just makes it even more of a famous cemetery in its own rite.”
Cave Hill gave out letters Tuesday to let guests know that the cemetery will be closed Friday- the day Muhammad Ali is set to be buried.
He will be remembered for his world famous quote “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.”
He had battled a 32-year Parkinson’s disease.
He was 74.
Additional reporting by Sydney Morweng, news editor
