Country music icon Dolly Parton was laid to rest on Friday morning in a private Nashville ceremony at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum, resting beside her late husband Carl Dean. Family members, including great-niece Lainey Parton, shared emotional tributes following the private ceremony honoring the singer’s life and career.
Private Ceremony at Nashville Mausoleum
Dolly Parton’s immediate family gathered at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Nashville on Friday morning for a private burial ceremony. The legendary singer was laid to rest alongside her husband of almost 60 years, Carl Dean, who died in March 2025. Parton died peacefully last week, her nephew Bryan Seaver announced in a news release shared with The Times, and Seaver also announced her death in a video shared to the singer’s Instagram page. Parton was 80.
The bronze crypt plate mounted at the mausoleum had the star’s name engraved on it before she died, alongside her husband’s name and a depiction of her Tennessee home. Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum is Nashville’s largest cemetery, where many other country western stars have been interred including George Jones, Tammy Wynette, Eddy Arnold, Marty Robbins and Porter Wagoner – Parton’s former mentor, for whom she wrote I Will Always Love You as a professional farewell when she went solo in 1973.
Following the ceremony, Parton’s great-niece Lainey Parton shared a tribute on Instagram, writing:
“This is a really hard post for me to make. I wanted to wait until after my granny was laid to rest yesterday before I tried to put any of this into words. From the time I was little, my granny always had a way of making me feel like I was enough. She never made my dreams feel too big or made me feel like I couldn’t do something. She believed in me before I even knew how to believe in myself. Most people can think of at least one bad memory with everyone in their family. I honestly can’t think of one with her. Because she couldn’t have kids of her own, she always made us feel like we were hers. She loved us that way, and I’ll forever be grateful for that.”
One memory Lainey Parton highlighted was when she was asked to sing on Parton’s @smokymountaindna album. She recalled being a freshman in high school and feeling incredibly nervous, but noted that her great-aunt made her feel safe, confident, and like she belonged right beside her, adding that She didn’t just tell me to chase my dreams, she helped me get there.
In a social media post, Amelia Young from Nashville’s NewsChannel 5 shared photos of Parton’s burial site and reported that the cemetery had set out velvet ropes and guest books so fans could visit Parton and pay their respects. According to the cemetery’s obituary, Dolly’s fans and friends from around the world are encouraged to pay tribute to Dolly on social media tagging @dollyparton. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
Photo: Fox NewsDolly Parton Laid to Rest in Private Nashville Funeral After Her Death
