Exploring Almost Forgotten Gravesites in the Great State of Ohio

Dedicated to cemetery preservation in the great state of Ohio


"A cemetery may be considered as abandoned when all or practically all of the bodies have been Removed therefrom and no bodies have been buried therein for a great many years, and the cemetery has been so long neglected as entirely to lose its identity as such, and is no longer known, recognized and respected by the public as a cemetery. 1953 OAG 2978."

Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year! -- Thank you for following my blog

***Happy New Year!*** 

Extending my thanks to the followers of this blog for -- you guessed it -- Following!  
Thank you for comments made and thoughts shared.  It has been so nice hearing from some of you over the past year. 

I hope to learn of more cemetery preservation projects in Ohio as they come about and rely on others to help provide information when they learn of a cemetery workshop or restoration project. 
So, if you learn of any news relating to a cemetery being improved in any way, please feel free to contact me and pass it along so it can be announced to others. 
Thank you & Happy New Year!!
***********
Clicking on the title will take you to the website "OhioBar.org" and their page "State Law Regulates Most Ohio Cemeteries."  
Let's hope more legislation is passed in Ohio that benefits our cemeteries; particularly our pioneer cemeteries that are the most vulnerable.   

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Spotlighting and Thanking "Cyndislist.com"

Click on title to access "Cemeteries and Funeral Homes" on "Cyndislist.com" - a genealogical website that has been around since 1996.

Also, I wish to thank "Cyndi's List" for including this blog on their site. 

I know I could browse around "Cyndi's List" for hours and hours clicking on the links it provides and learn something new with each visit.

Here is a direct link to the State of Ohio on "Cyndislist":

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Merry Christmas! 

Don't forget to honor your special loved one in a special way by visiting their gravesite, making a donation in their memory, or honoring their memory in your chosen way. 

As an example, I enjoy posting the "verses and flowers" on the website Find A Grave.  You can choose flowers or other symbols from those submitted and used by others or create your own.  They can range from plain and simple to fancy and flashy. 

Most of all, you can remember your loved ones at Christmas and all year through by sharing your memories of them with others through the written or spoken word. 

You are the key to ensuring that the good deeds and accomplishments of your departed relatives and ancestors live on to inspire coming generations through your sharing of information and your memories about them.

If possible, do what you can to make sure their gravesites are kept dignified and clean.  Photograph their stones and repair or replace them if you can when needed.  

Their markers tell everyone walking past their gravesites that they lived, who they were, and when they lived, and perhaps if they were a veteran.  

In this way, they will be properly honored, remembered, and not lost to history.  

Thank you.  

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Vandalism Done at Elyria's Ridgelawn Cemetery

Click on title to read an Elyria Chronicle-Telegram story of November 15, 2010 about toppled tombstones at the Ridgelawn Cemetery in Elyria (Lorain County) Ohio 

Friday, December 10, 2010

Spotlighting the fascinating features of Find A Grave!!

Today I learned that I could link a memorial on "Find A Grave" to my Facebook Page. 
It is a wonderful feature offered on findagrave.com.

There is also a link to search "FAG" by surname:

Discussion Forums:

A listing of books for purchase:

While Find A Grave is not 'perfect', it is about as close as you are going to come to finding one site as dedicated to posting memorials for loved ones as you are going to find on the Internet today. 

With many 'tombstone' type sites, you MUST have a tombstone photo to post or you are not able to post information about your loved ones or friends. 

Also on Find A Grave, even if you don't know where a person is buried, you can still post a memorial to them showing their dates of birth and death and much more of course, just like you would for a deceased person whose burial location is known.


One of my favorite features in a memorial is the relationship link, where you can add links for spouses, parents and children.  You can virtually link one generation to the next, regardless of where they were buried. 

Find A Grave is currently boasting 54 million grave records. 

It is a contributor based site so errors and duplications do 'creep in.'  And, if you spot one, you can report it to Find A Grave with an email to:
info@findagrave.com
I know because I have done so many times. 

So, I encourage anyone who has not already done so, to please explore the possibilities that Find A Grave offers for finding where your ancestor was buried. 

Also, become a contributor yourself. 

You can contribute with posting memorials, taking volunteer photographs for others, adding photographs of the deceased. 
The site is quite flexible. 

For a one time $5.00 fee you can sponsor a memorial as well eliminating the advertising - the main drawback to Find A Grave.

This blog has links to Find A Grave for your convenience. 

Monday, December 6, 2010

Featuring "MyOhioAncestry.com" website by Roland W. Wilson

Click on title to access the website:  "MyOhioAncestry.com"
by Mr. Roland "Ron" W. Wilson.
Here is a partial quotation from his welcome page:

I was born in Ross County Ohio and grew up in Highland County.
Most of my ancestry was located in Fayette, Highland, and Ross Counties. This website will deal primarily with those counties, as well as others as the generations spread out.
Like others, my ancestors came from Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and just about everywhere.
My great-grandmother, Oma Syferd, was born in Pendleton County Virginia (now West Virginia in 1854, and by 1860 they were living in Fayette County Ohio.
She passed away shortly after the birth of my grandfather's sister who was born about 1883.
ALSO,
"I recorded some grave sites in Ross County last spring, specifically the graves in the Wilson Cemetery on Dewey Creek Road.
Also, my grandfather Charles Mack Wilson and some others were originally buried in the Satchel Cemetery in Lyndon, Ohio, but subsequent to 1996, my previous visit, they were moved to South Salem Cemetery."

"The following people were moved:
Mack Wilson and his wife Addie Wilson
Joseph H Wilson, and wife Amazony Wilson
Alice Jo McDonald
Don't know why they were moved."

**Note:  I have added "MyOhioAncestry.com" as a permanent link on the  left-hand margin of the blog's listing of informative links.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Spotlighting The Association of Graveyard Rabbits

Click on title or Logo below to link to the home page of
 "The Association of Graveyard Rabbits"
I encourage anyone with any interest in cemeteries to view this website (and check back often!) and follow the different blogs it promotes. 

Currently, there are seven Graveyard Rabbit blogs that are dedicated to covering a variety of topics related to Ohio cemeteries. 
Most also offer stories about the lives of those who were buried in Ohio among other topics of interest relating to Ohio's cemeteries including gravestone photographs.
 
The sites include: "A Grave Concern", "Gravestoned", "Graveyard Rabbit of Central Ohio", "Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay", "Great Black Swamp Graveyard Rabbit", "Strolling Through Cemeteries", and this blog. 

"The Graveyard Rabbit" is alive and well and 'he' dwells in every cemetery we research or visit!! 
Now, this Graveyard Rabbit organization and its website presents us with a unique opportunity to learn just how important every graveyard rabbit is.

Spotlighting William Audus of North Lewisburg, Champaign County, Ohio buried at the Butcher Cemetery in North Lewisburg

AUDAS, William
Born: December 5, 1800
Died: March 31, 1867
Calculated age: 66 years 3 mos. 26 days
1860 U.S. Federal Census – NA Film # M653-942, page 15, Rush Twp., Champaign County, Ohio:
William Audas, age 59; Eliza A., age 53; Sarah Furgason, age 37; Eunice Furgason, age 1; William H. Hollingsworth, age 39; Mary J. Hollingsworth, age 31; George Walker, age 11; Amanda Reynolds, age 14.
Previous stone readings have shown this name spelled “Andas”. Page 8, “History of North Lewisburg, Ohio – 1826-1976”, under the heading of “Streets”, “Audas Street running south from Maple to the corporation line, was named for William Audas, a prominent citizen and proprietor for that part of the village in the year 1867.” William Audas died in 1867.
William Audus on "Find A Grave"
Click on title to read about him and see his stone photographs.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Maple Grove Cemetery and Woodstock Cemetery - Rush Township, Champaign County, Ohio

Thanking Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr. on this Thanksgiving Day 2010

I received a nice note today from Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr. of Ogden, Utah.  
Ralph originally hails from North Lewisburg, Champaign County, Ohio. 

Ralph has been devoting countless hours of his time in research during the past two years in conjunction with personal hands-on work to document burials at both the Maple Grove Cemetery and the Woodstock Cemetery
These cemteries are in Rush Township which is located in the northeastern corner of Champaign County, Ohio.

Below is an excerpt from Ralph's note which updates his ongoing Maple Grove and Woodstock Cemeteries research and beyond:

"I'm still working on cemetery records at Maple Grove and Woodstock to make them more complete. I will have a revised database to send back to Rush Township so they can update the database I installed there when I was home last year. I have over 4000 burial records for North Lewisburg, so it will significantly increase the records they will have onhand for folks' research.

I'll have some publications put together which I will be donating to the libraries in Urbana and North Lewisburg as part of this process. I have records of cemetery plot deeds, burials, and so forth which will make it easy for people to research family lines and information without having to actually go to the cemeteries. I'm having this material professionally printed and bound before I send it off.

I've also been transcribing the 1870 and 1880 census records for North Lewisburg. I'm almost done with the 1870 report; I'll have it printed and bound and a couple of copies sent off to both libraries. I don't foresee having the 1880 census done until spring; at that time, I'll also print and bind and send off copies for the libraries."

Click on this post's title to link to Ralph's Blog titled:  "Along Spain Creek"

Also,
"Along Spain Creek" - Cemetery references

Thank you Ralph!!!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Mount Pisgah Cemetery Clean-Up Story - Proctorville, Lawrence County, Ohio

Click on title to read the October 31, 2010 story in the "Herald-Dispatch" of Huntington, West Virginia about a group of dedicated volunteers who cleaned up the Mount Pisgah Cemetery in Proctorville, Ohio. 

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Spotlighting Robert M. Sizelove, Sr. - Project Manager of USGenweb's Ohio Cemetery Photo Project

Spotlighting Mr. Robert M. Sizelove, Sr. who has been a major contributor on the "Rootsweb" site for many years as the Project Manager for USGenweb's Ohio Cemetery Photo Project (see link above). 
Robert also has his own website: "Robert's Cemetery Site" which I have also included here as a link. 
I wish to personally thank Bob for all of his tireless efforts with tombstone cleaning and inscription reading at several cemeteries in the state of Ohio. 
He has made a significant contribution with finding and sharing cemetery records that he has derived from his work. 
Bob has always encouraged others to contribute as much as possible their tombstone photographs and biographical information about the lives of our Ohio ancestors so we can honor them appropriately.

Spotlighting Paddy's Run Old Welsh Cemetery in Shandon, Morgan Township - Butler County, Ohio

Click on title to link to a colorful and informative website about the Paddy's Run Old Welsh Cemetery in Shandon, Morgan Township, Butler County, Ohio. 
Quoting from the website:
"Morgan Township was settled in 1802 by Welsh immigrants from Llanbrynmair, Montgomeryshire, Wales. The township was named after General Daniel Morgan for his victories in the American Revolutionary War; he too was a Welsh descendant from the colony of Virginia.
The Paddy's Run Old Welsh Cemetery in Morgan Township was established in 1821 by the congregation of the White Water Congregational Church. This church is now holding services under the name of The Shandon Congregational Church of Shandon, Ohio."

The website was last updated in 2003 by Jerry Johnson
(The link to the Ohio Bicentennial Page no longer works - Ohio's Bicentennial was in 2003)

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Interment.net Resource

Click on title to access the on-line records provided on the website "Interment.net" for the state of Ohio.
All of Ohio's 88 counties appear to be listed.  You can click on the county you need for researching your cemetery and learn if someone has submitted a transcription for an ancestor's stone you are searching for. 
Interment.net information is not as extensive as the contributor lists found on the website "Find A Grave" or even "Ohiogravestones.org", however, it is another resource to check and it just may contain some information you are searching for that the other sites do not currently have.

Some of the features offered on "Interment.net" include several genealogical type links and you can 'follow them on Facebook and Twitter'.  You can follow them via a RSS feed "of the newest cemetery transcriptions published daily."  

Interment.net is definitely a site to check back with from time to time to see new content.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Preserving Marion, Ohio's Quarry Street Cemetery

Click on title to read about preservation efforts going on at the Quarry Street Cemetery in Marion (Marion County) Ohio.  The story is from the "Columbus Dispatch"

Friday, November 12, 2010

Spotlighting gravesite of Samuel Crooks at Sheep Pen Cemetery, Highland County /Fayette County line, Ohio


My thanks to Ronnie Sword of the Fayette County, Ohio Veterans Association for placing the flag holder and flag for the gravesite of Samuel Crooks at Sheep Pen Cemetery in time for Veterans' Day 2010.

Click on title to read Samuel Crooks' memorial on "Find A Grave"

November 12, 2010:

Linda,

Ronnie asked me to send you these pictures he took of the grave at Sheep Pen Cemetery, where he placed a flag/ marker for the veteran you contacted him about.
Thanks
Amy Jackson
Fayette County Veterans Service Commission
133 S. Main Street Suite L11
Washington Court House , Ohio 43160
Phone: (740) 335-1610
Fax: (740) 333-3587
Email: amy.jackson@fayette-co-oh.com
People will forget what you said
People will forget what you did
But people will never forget how you made them feel.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Remembering Veterans on Veterans' Day, 2010 - Spotlighting Corporal Noah T. McVay

We can take a few moments to remember and honor all veterans, past and present, who made their individual sacrifices for all Americans to keep America safe and free.  

Spotlighting here Corporal Noah T. McVay (aka McVey) 
Clicking on the title will take you to his memorial on Find A Grave 

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Googling: "Cemetery"+Ohio"clean up"

Click on title to see results of a Google search for "Cemetery"+Ohio"clean up".

You can try various Google searches for your cemetery of interest, or for cemetery preservation, cemetery workshop(s), cemetery clean up, and other combinations to obtain further on-line information about cemetery preservation efforts. 
Most importantly, don't forget to include the word "Ohio" in your search so your results hone in on activities and plans that pertain to Ohio!! 
You can learn a lot and derive a lot of enjoyment from some of the information shared by others on-line. 

Friday, November 5, 2010

Update - Vienna Historical Society - Cemeteries Preservation Project - Vienna, Trumbull County, Ohio

Click on title to access website of the Vienna Historical Society of Vienna, Ohio (Trumbull County), and learn more about their cemeteries preservation project. 


Several links are featured on their site which include Vienna's Civil War soldiers, historic maps, Vienna Cemetery Walk 2010, Township Records Project, as well as other township links. 

Also, there is a link to a Warren Tribune-Chronicle article dated May 16, 2010 about:

"A Youngstown State University student completing her thesis on the history of the Vienna cemeteries is sharing her findings and recommendations with residents who want to improve the condition of the aging markers."


Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Spotlighting the Medina County Cemetery Preservation Society

To learn more about the Medina County Cemetery Preservation Society of Medina County, Ohio click on the title of this post.

The site also includes a link to the Wayne County Cemetery Preservation Society of Wayne County, Ohio.

Friday, October 29, 2010

"Historic Middleburg Heights cemeteries get needed maintenance" - Middleburg Heights, Cuyahoga County, Ohio

Click on title to read a great story posted today about two cemeteries in Middleburg Heights. One is the Hickox/Hepburn Cemetery and the other one on is located on Fowles Road, that are getting a clean up thanks to the local historical society.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

"Marietta Running out of available plots - Former city pool site may be a new cemetery" - Marietta, Washington County, Ohio

Click on title to access a story that ran in the Marietta, Ohio newspaper, "The Marietta Times" on August 14, 2010. 

There is also a video attached with the story. 
I found this information after "Googling" :
"cemeteries"+Blogs+Ohio

I have also added more Ohio related blog links -- please check them out!! 

Monday, October 25, 2010

Ohio Chapter of the Association for Gravestone Studies Meeting - Saturday, November 6, 2010 - 10:00 a. m. to 4:00p.m. - at the Hancock Historical Museum - Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio

Click on title to access the home page of the Association for Gravestone Studies.
Their announcement is posted about the upcoming November 6, 2010 meeting of the Ohio Chapter of A.G.S. to be held at the Hancock Historical Museum in Findlay, Ohio

"More Info 10:00am - Chapter Members (business meeting)
10:30am - Guest Speaker for Graham Cemetery - Kate Hayfield
Noon - Lunch (bring your own) Beverages provided
1:00pm - Graham Cemetery Tour followed by stops at Kampf/Ewing, Union, Biglick Cemeteries for those interested"

Beth Santore can be contacted with any questions at:  graveaddiction@gmail.com

and Beth's Graveaddiction website - check it out!!!

Updated news story about historic Erie Street Cemetery - Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio

Click on title for a great follow-up story about the restoration efforts at Cleveland's oldest cemetery, the Erie Street Cemetery, and read about a possible new book in the works for the cemetery.

Also, to view a current listing of burials, check out "Find A Grave" below:

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Blickenstaff Cemetery (AKA Karns Cemetery) - Monroe Township, Miami County, Ohio

Click on title to access a wonderful website for the Blickenstaff (AKA Karns) Cemetery. 
Some of the information provided includes a history of the cemetery and biographical information about some of the early local residents. 
Also, many stone readings and photos are provided. 
The site was last updated September 5, 2009

Abstracted from the website:
"Professional stone restorationists Helen Wildermuth and Mark Davis from Indiana were employed and in August of 2007 began several days of work cleaning, repairing and resetting the markers. Using only water and special plastic brushes mounted on drills, they cleaned each marker revealing in most cases beautiful, white Italian marble."

"The Kissing Ghost of Greenfield Ohio" - Highland County - Tuesday, October 26, 2010 - Parade Starting at 6:00p.m.

Click on title to link to Greenfield's Old Burying Ground on "Find A Grave"

From my friend, Earlene Scott - Thank you, Earlene, for sharing!!:

"Here is a story about Greenfield (1881 published by New York Times).
This is our Historical Society parade entry for the Halloween Parade in Greenfield to be held on Tuesday, October 26, 2010 - 6:00p.m.

We'll have a float with the ghost, grave marker, a bench for her to sit on at times and of course she will blow kisses to the crowd!"

10/22/2010 7:04:00 PM

The Kissing Ghost


New York Times published story on Greenfield ghost in 1881


By JEFF GILLILAND
Assistant Editor


It's been more than 128 years since Greenfield residents have observed anything like they saw Tuesday, according to witnesses.

The three witnesses, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of being ostracized, said they saw a ghostlike being walking atop the walls of the Old Burying Ground, also known as the Pioneer Cemetery, in Greenfield. The witnesses said the ghost was mumbling something as it moved near a gravemaker that may lend some clues to its identity.

"She kept mumbling something about coming back for a parade in town," one of the witnesses said.

October 26, 2010 - The annual Halloween Parade sponsored by the Paint Creek Joint EMS/Fire District will be held in Greenfield starting a 6 p.m. Tuesday. Lineup starts at 5:30 p.m. at colonnades at McClain High School.

On Feb. 7, 1881, The New York Times published the following account of what came to be known at the Kissing Ghost in Greenfield.

The story was titled "The Greenfield Ghost:

"Greenfield, Ohio has a real ghost. There cannot be the least doubt about it, for a local minister, while conducting a revival meeting the other day, told his hearers that the ghost was a supernatural visit sent to warn the people of the near approach of the end of the world. As the same minister also professes his belief in the alleged words of the prophetess Shipton, his intelligence and judgment cannot be called in question, and we must join Greenfielders in believing in the genuineness of their ghost.

"In the opinion of the women of Greenfield, the ghost is by far the worst that has ever made its appearance. There have been, according to ghost-seers, all sorts of undesireable ghosts. Such were the ghosts that threw things at innocent people and smashed crockery; the ghosts that came and stood by people's beds in the dead of the night without having the decency to knock at the door or to say what they wanted; and the ghosts that rattled chains and thumped on the floor overhead merely in order to make themselves disagreeable.

"The Greenfield ghost is, in local feminine estimation, more wicked than any of her predecessors - for she is a female ghost. It is her loathsome habit to waylay young men in the midnight streets to kiss them and then to vanish. Often, she throws herself upon young men who are on their way to visit young ladies, and so terrifies them that they flee to their homes or boarding houses, leaving the unhappy young ladies to watch the front door bell in vain expectation. Conduct such as this is to the last degree revolting to very well brought up young woman, and we can understand why the Greenfield ghost is firmly believed by one-half of Greenfield to belong to the satanic host.

"Among the young men of the town the ghost is, as a rule, greatly dreaded. It must be remembered that Greenfield is an Ohio town, and, as we have learned during the last four yeas, Ohio is a state inhabited exclusively by men of the loftiest principle, the clearest intellect, and the most shrinking modesty.

"Were a female ghost of not unattractive appearance to infest a New York or New England village and to violently kiss belated young men, it is probable that 99 of every 100 local young men would walk the streets of that town all night and betray not the slightest fear of the ghost.

"In Ohio, as has been said, a totally different variety of young men exists, and young men of Greenfield, with few exceptions, declare that there is no more terrible wild fowl than a female ghost who lawlessly kisses persons to whom she is a total stranger.

"Those who have seen the Greenfield ghost are numberless, and their testimony as to her conduct is unvarying. One the night of the 12th of January, young Mr. Smithers, assistant pastor of a recently developed variety of Baptists, was met by the ghost at 9:30 o'clock. He asserts that she approached him from behind with noiseless steps, threw her arms around him, and kissed him before he could call for help. He instantly broke loose and fled to his home, where he was at once put to bed and physician summoned, who afterward said that the nervous shock which the patient had sustained might easily have proved fatal.

"Two nights later, at about the same hour, Mr. Edward Potter, one of the most respected young men of the town, was kissed in front of Esquire Dewey's house, and left insensible on the pavement. He says that the ghost spring on him suddenly and kissed him three successive times. As he had never before undergone the operation of being kissed, he suffered acutely, not only because of the outrage to his modesty, but because he feared that his life was in danger. He has since wholly recovered from the shock, but he never goes out at night without tying up his mouth with large 'comforter.' and keeping a sharp lookout for sudden ghosts.

"On the night of Feb. 3, Mr. Thomas G. Wilson, who purity of character and freedom from all knowledge of languages have induced the administration to offer him no less than three foreign consulates, but who preferred to earn the proud distinction of being the only Ohioan who ever refused an office, was waylaid by the ghost, kissed within the sight of Mrs. Wilson's windows, and afterward brought home by his neighbors, who found him lying in the snow and uttering incoherent moans.

"These are but samples of the devastation caused by the Greenfield ghost, and so far as is known there is but one young man in the town who is not in terror of his life. the young man in question is a notorious plumber, and though he has repeatedly met the ghost, she has never once offered to kiss him.

"The popular theory is that the ghost was originally a New England school teacher; and that she is now wreaking on mankind her vengeance for their neglect of her during her life. This theory is based principally upon the personal appearance of the ghost, who is described as being very tall, very thin, and wholly unable to cast a showdown when one of her edges in presented to the light. This may be true, but it by no means proves that the ghost is a New England School teacher.

It might with equal force be quoted to prove that she was formerly a Boston poet or and eminent female philosopher. The host of a New England woman of any kind would never be guilty of kissing, and even could we imagine her entertaining for a moment the idea of perpetrating such a crime, she would be utterly ignorant of the way in which to perpetrate it.

"The Greenfield ghost is clearly a great mystery. That she should forcibly kiss unwilling citizens of Ohio is simply inexplicable, and the longer she continues that unsatisfactory and unaccountable proceeding the face of the fact that she would be welcomed in a hundred Eastern villages, we must assume that there are ghostly idiots as well as living Greenbackers."

Monday, October 18, 2010

Maple Grove Cemetery - Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio

Click on title to access the City of Findlay, Ohio's website for the Maple Grove Cemetery.
Searches can be done by name or spaces by owner. 

Spotlighing Butler County, Ohio - USGENWEB Project

Click on title for access to the Butler County, Ohio Cemeteries site on the USGENWEB Project.  Links include "cemetery, obituary and tombstone projects." 
I noted that some links no longer worked, but many of them are valid. 
If your focus is with Butler County, Ohio cemeteries, this is one you may wish to check out.  
The Butler County site was last updated on January 19, 2010.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Black River Historical Society - Lorain, Lorain County, Ohio


Ghost Watch at the Moore House and a Tour of Charleston Cemetery on October 30, 2010!
Hunt for ghosts in the Moore House in downtown Lorain with a team of expert ghost hunters who are members of the Ohio Researchers of Banded Spirits (O.R.B.S.). Only 10 adults will be admitted to each two-hour session at a ...cost of $2...5 per adult. Choose your time: 7:00-9:00 p.m. or 9:30-11:30 p.m.
The O.R.B.S. team recently did an extensive study of paranormal activity at the Moore House Museum on June 20, 2009 as well as on October 24, 2009.

The tour will be held at the Moore House Museum located at 309 W. 5th Street in Lorain and guided candlelit tours of the cemetery will be held, weather permitting. Call today at 670-6624 or 245-2563 to reserve your tickets.

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Updated information about Woodland Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga County, Ohio

Click on title to link to a story on "Cleveland.com" regarding the restoration efforts at the Woodland Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio. 
Per the story, 82,000 people are interred at Woodland Cemetery. 

Sunday, October 3, 2010

Westwood Cemetery - Oberlin, Lorain County, Ohio - "Radicals and Reformers" History Walk" - October 9, 2010 - 11:00a.m.

I apologize, but I just learned about these cemeteries walks at the Westwood Cemetery in Oberlin, Lorain County, Ohio.  There is one remaining that is scheduled to be held on October 9, 2010 at 11:00a.m. - See information below.  Thank you!

From the Oberlin Heritage Center website:

"Sept & Oct - Radicals and Reformers Cemetery Walk"

8/21/10 -- Walk with us this fall on the new "Radicals and Reformers History Walk" through Westwood Cemetery. This guided tour promises a pleasing balance of Westwood's scenic landmarks and stories of some of the many spirited men and women of Oberlin who simply refused the status quo.
Find out which resident was remembered as "gentle, soft-spoken, tolerant and yet nobody's fool."
Visit the headstone of the man who escaped from slavery (twice!) and later served on the Oberlin village council.
This walk is offered four Saturdays this fall, September 18 & 25 and October 2 & 9 at 11:00 a.m. and to groups by reservation.
History walks cost $6 per adult with a $1 discount for members, and children under 18 attend free (history walks are recommended for children ages 9 and up).

Reservations are strongly recommended and can be made at www.oberlinheritage.org or at the Monroe House front office (73 ½ South Professor Street). Meet near the entrance of the cemetery to begin this historic journey."
Press Release - Click on link below:

Monday, September 27, 2010

Nancy Spain information from Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr.

There are four Nancy Spains buried in Maple Grove Cemetery. Three are buried in the oldest portion of the cemetery, the part which was originally (and still remains referred to as Spain Cemetery). Burials started here in 1837, and continued until the 1960s with burials on very old family plots. Burial records only exist for the newer part of the cemetery area, referred to as "old" Maple Grove Cemetery and "the Gilbert Addition." Maple Grove Cemetery dates from 1890; the Gilbert Addition was added in the 1950s with the first burial there in the 1960s. There are about 4150 burials in the cemetery, not counting the burials in the Spain Cemetery portion.


Spain Cemetery was established shortly after the earliest pioneers arrived from Virginia, most of whom originated in Dinwiddie County. Many of these early settlers were Quakers, members of the Society of Friends. There are more than 211 Spains buried in the cemetery complex.

Unfortunately, Census records across the US did not record the names of females until the 1850 Census. You might want to try to find her listed in the census for Champaign County in 1850, and 1860. You might also attempt to find a marriage record for her and Audas in Champaign County during the appropriate time period. Some times these early marriages were recorded in county records; sometimes they were not. Death records were not required to be maintained until much later in the County's history. The clerk of the Probate Court at Champaign County Courthouse, 200 North Main Street, Urbana, Ohio 43078 (phone 937-484-1028 might be able to assist you in a search. There is a charge for copies of documents found.

All of the official burial records for Spain Cemetery have been lost for years. Information on burials there has been gleaned from existing, readable memorial stones by volunteer readers. I have the most up to date information from this source. Burial records via the local funeral home, dating back to 1892, are in my possession, but nothing from farther back in history.

The records for Maple Grove Cemetery, as contained in the original record books from 1890 - present day, are incomplete. I transcribed the original records in the summer of 2009, creating a digital database which is stored on my computer, and on the computer which I donated to the Rush Township trustees (in North Lewisburg). During the history of the cemetery, there were at least three sextons/caretakers who could neither read nor write. As a result, some individual burial records are incomplete with missing Christian names, dates of burial, mispellings of last names, etc. I also took over 7000 photographs of memorial stones. For the past year, I have been linking photos with the transcribed data, and supplementing this with additional information from funeral home records, obituary records, and news articles in area newspapers during the period. I probably have the most complete record of burials at Maple Grove Cemetery to be found anywhere.

There are the three Nancy Spain listings:

Nancy Spain, born 9 May 1775 - died 9 Oct 1841: no other information is available. - gleaned from an old transcript

Nancy A. Spain, born 1780 - died 23 Oct 1867: no other information is available. - gleaned from an old transcript

Nancy M. Spain, born 14 Jun 1787 - died 23 Feb 1848: no other information is available. - gleaned from an old transcript

It is a possibility that your Nancy Audas is the second name listed here. The Audas family was prominent in the area through the 1870s. A current street in North Lewisburg is Audas Street, which connects with East Street at the location of the now non-existant railroad crossing, and extends to the north.

There are no Audas burials in Maple Grove Cemetery. There are two known Audas burials in Butcher Cemetery, which is located on the west side of North Lewisburg, within the corporation limits, near Spain Creek. These are:

AUDAS, Martha

Wife of William

• June 9, 1809

September 8, 1846
(earliest known burial)

37 yrs. 3 mos. 2 days


AUDAS, William
December 5, 1800

March 31, 1867

67 years
(Nixon & Bolton page 99)

The Champaign County Genealogical Library, 1060 Scioto Street, Urbana, Ohio 43078, phone 937-653-3811, is a repository for microfilms of newspapers from the 1830s to the present day. You might attempt to locate an obituary for Nancy A. Spain by reviewing the newspaper which were in circulation at the approximate time of her death. The volunteers at the genealogical library have created an extensive obituary card file which also might be a source for information in attempting to ascertain if her maiden name was Audas.

I hope this information helps you in your search for Nancy Audas.

Ralph Coleman
1536 Robins Circle
Ogden, Utah 84404

Ohio Cemetery Complaint Form

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Ohio Chapter AGS - November 2010 meeting

Click on title to access information about the Ohio Chapter of the Association for Gravestone Studies next meeting which is scheduled to be held on Saturday, November 6, 2010 - from 10:00a.m. to 4:00p.m. at the Hancock Historical Museum at 422 West Sandusky Street, Findlay, Ohio.  

From the Chapter's Facebook page:
10:00am - Chapter Members (business meeting)
10:30am - Guest Speaker for Graham Cemetery - Kate Hayfield
Noon - Lunch (bring your own) Beverages provided
1:00pm - Graham Cemetery Tour followed by stops at Kampf/Ewing, Union, Biglick Cemeteries for those interested 

Monday, September 6, 2010

Spotlighting - "Along Spain Creek" Blog - Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr.

Click on title to access Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr.'s blog, "Along Spain Creek" - specifically the section which offers links to both Maple Grove and Woodstock Cemeteries in Champaign County, Ohio. 

The burials for both are linked to the website of "Find A Grave" and Ralph has that link posted for the researcher's convenience in searching for burials at these two cemeteries offered on the site.

Ralph has done extensive work researching burials, both marked and unmarked, at the Maple Grove Cemetery in Rush Township, just outside the city limits of the Village of North Lewisburg in Champaign County. 

From Ralph:
"There are approximately 20 LOTS of the nearly 968 LOTS in Maple Grove Cemetery (appoximately 2%) which have more than four burials recorded in the original record book.

However, these lots generally contain the remains of a baby, (or babies), an infant, or the buried cremains of someone who was cremated. In some cases, the walkway areas adjacent to the lots were purchased and used as burial plots. It would have been very difficult to "squeeze" in five adults, complete with burial vaults, into the space allotted to individual lots within the squares. The lots were measured by length and width when the cemetery was laid out. Adjustments have also been made over the years for the placement of the roadways, and trees which have grown up in some of the lots, making some of the lots within individual squares unsuitable for burials.
One extreme exception to the "four graves per lot" rule of thumb, (and one of the lots referred to in my paragraph 1 above),
Square 83, Lot 1 contains SEVEN burials: George Holycross (baby), Annabelle Holycross, Thomas E. Holycross, Bertha Holycross, Alonzo Holycross, Annis Holycross, and Fred Holycross."

Monday, August 30, 2010

Maple Grove Cemetery - North Lewisburg, Champaign County, Ohio - Additional Information

Further information provided by Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr.

Record keeping from 1837 - the present in Maple Grove Cemetery AND Woodstock Cemetery, Rush Township, Champaign County, Ohio.


The township records ARE the cemetery records. The township trustees are responsible for burials in Maple Grove and Woodstock Cemetery. Those burials within North Lewisburg (Butcher Cemetery and Friends Cemetery) did not come under the jurisdiction of the township trustees.

Yes, when a cemetery plot is purchased a deed is issued; that's Ohio state law. Cemetery deeds for Maple Grove Cemetery started in 1892, and sold for $5 per gravesite. These were eventually upped in price over the years to the present approximate $1000 per Lot (4 graves). These deed records are kept under lock-and-key in the Rush Township clerk's office, in North Lewisburg.

I had access to the original records from May - August 2009. I have made an index of ALL of the grave deeds for Maple Grove Cemetery from 1892 - 2009. I prepared a hard copy for the trustees of Rush Township, a copy for myself, and have all of that data in a digital database on my computer. Everyone who purchased a Square, Lot, or Gravesite is listed in either the original deed records, the hard copy index, or in my digital database. This also includes transfers of ownership from one party (the original owner) to another over the course of the years. Deeds to cemetery plots, as held by family members, are often passed on to succeeding generations via wills. (As an example, I have never purchased a gravesite in Maple Grove, but the deeds to five gravesites in various locations of the cemetery have been passed on to me by members of my family. My name now appears in the deeds record book as owner, based upon transfer of ownership).

Can you imagine how many generations have done this over the years? Often, a relative who did not personally own a gravesite was buried in a family plot owned by others. The plot was already paid for; the family merely had to pay the fees for opening and closing the gravesite. Often, that same family, strapped by a lack of cash or for other reasons, never placed a headstone at the gravesite. Sometimes deed owners of the gravesites were not even buried in them; they moved on to another town, or were subsequent buried in yet another cemetery plot, or their burials were not recorded.

In a perfect world, all of this original data would have followed some logical, set pattern when recorded on those recordbook pages over the years. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Sextons came and went; trustees were elected every two or four years over the past 120 years; standards were not set and maintained.

Each of the pages in the original record book for burials was written on, by hand, in pencil, red pencil, ink or ballpoint pen by the sextons of the cemetery over the course of the time that Maple Grove has been in existance. Some of those sextons (who dug the graves) could neither read nor write, so no annotations were made in the book. Or, annotations made in the book were sketchy...often listing very little information, no first names, no burial dates, etc. Sometimes the gravesite of a wife who died and was buried was merely listed as "Mrs." with no first, maiden, or last name. In thousands of cases, the burial dates were not listed.

The funeral home(s) were responsible for maintaining a record of the burials. Unfortunately, the records of the home in North Lewisburg were borrowed by individuals over the years to transcribe them into other records. As a result, many records (to include complete years) have been lost forever.

I have carefully compiled records from the Freeman--Freshwater-Ferguson-McDonald-Vernon funeral home for the years which I indicated (1890-1910, 1926-1956). The records for the missing years cannot be reconstructed by the present ownership of the funeral home.

Today, when a burial becomes necessary, a gravesite is purchased, or a member of a family is able to ascertain ownership of the proposed burial plot. A member of the family walks with the sexton or trustee representative to the actual site to ascertain exactly where the individual is to be buried. This was not always the case in by-gone years.

I hope this information helps you understand the history of recordkeeping in Rush Township. And, that you appreciate the fact that since the 1970s a genuine, concerted effort, and standardization of recordkeeping in the township's cemeteries has been followed by the sextons and the trustees. In point-of-fact, Gene Coleman, Don Coleman, Cinda Bailey, and Mark Westfall have done a great job in helping to record burials property at Maple Grove for the better part of the past 30 years.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Spotlighting Maple Grove Cemetery - North Lewisburg, Rush Township, Champaign County Ohio

Click on title to link to Maple Grove Cemetery's records on the website of Find A Grave.com.

With special thanks to Mr. Ralph Lowell Coleman, Jr.  for his extensive research of Maple Grove Cemetery's burial records.  Ralph has also taken hundreds of stone photographs of burials at Maple Grove. 

Bio and Links

Teacher, writer, published poet. Genealogy is not just a hobby; it's a passion. Researching the COLEMAN - HARPER - BRUNER - SHAFER - IMPSON -
BARNES - SALSGIBER family lines. Roots in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, and Utah.
I have taken more than 7000 photos of the markers in Maple Grove Cemetery, North Lewisburg, Ohio, and Woodstock Cemetery, Woodstock, Ohio, and am posting them on an irregular basis. Contact me for assistance if you have a loved one, friend or associate buried in either of these two cemeteries in need of a photograph.
Contact: rlcolemanjr@hotmail.com

Link to Ralph's blog:  http://alongspaincreek.blogspot/

Information about Maple Grove Cemetery in North Lewisburg from Ralph:
• No deeds were sold to Maple Grove Cemetery until April 1892.

• The numbering system at Maple Grove Cemetery is SQUARE - LOT - GRAVESITE(S). The cemetery is divided into squares, which are then divided into lots, and then further divided into gravesites. Each SQUARE (numbered from 1 to 242) is divided into LOTS (originally numbered numerically from 1 - 781; in recent years this has been changed; lots are now numbered from 1-4, starting in the upper left corner of the SQUARE and going clockwise) and GRAVESITE(S) which are numbered 1-4, there normally being only 4 gravesites in each lot. Occasionally there is a 5th gravesite because burials were "squeezed in" the available room. In later years this practice has been abandoned. There are no gravesites numbered 6, 7, or 8 in the cemetery.
• The cemetery is divided into three sections, referred to from the oldest part of the cemetery (Spain Cemetery, the original burial grounds), to the "Old" addition...all of the cemetery which sits east of Gilbert Road, and the Gilbert Addition...all of the cemetery which sits west of Gilbert Road which was purchased from the Gilbert family with burials which began in the 1950s.
• The official Deeds record for Maple Grove Cemetery, which I transcribed from paper records into a digital database, show the earliest deed sold to a Holycross in 1895 to John H. Holycross. No Henry Holycross is listed in the records of deed ownership. There is a H. H. Holycross, who purchased gravesites in 1906.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Pickaway County Maps of Cemetery Locations by Township

Click on title to access site which lists 164 cemeteries with their numbers on the individual Pickaway County, Ohio township maps.

Source citation:
© 1999 Rachel Meyer / rwmeyer@nktelco.net

This page may be freely linked to but may not be duplicated in any fashion without my consent.

Woodlawn Cemetery - Toledo, Lucas County, Ohio

Click on title to link to Toledo's Historic Woodlawn Cemetery's website.

Their map site is important as well to view.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Announcing the First Ohio AGS (Association for Gravestone Studies) State Chapter Meeting

Time:        September 18 · 10:30am - 4:30pm

Location: Grandview Public Library Meeting Room
                 1685 West First Avenue
                  Columbus, OH



"This will be the first AGS state chapter meeting for Ohio! Please come and bring guests - the event is not limited to current AGS members.
Please RSVP to Beth Santore, graveaddiction@gmail.com
If you are interested in giving a presentation or setting up an exhibit table, please contact Beth Santore for more information and to be added to the agenda.
Since this is the first meeting, we'll be discussing plans for future meetings: locations, frequency, etc. in addition to the presentations.
Lunch will be provided."

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Spotlighting my father, Harry Limes

Taking a moment to honor my father, Harry Limes, who would have been 106 today. 
Click on title to link to his Find A Grave memorial.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Monday, July 12, 2010

Greenfield Mausoleum - Greenfield, Highland County, Ohio


Click on title to view listing of names of burials at the Greenfield Mausoleum

"Information requested re: Greenfield Mausoleum
The City of Greenfield is attempting to contact relatives of people interred at the mausoleum in
the Greenfield Cemetery. The condition of the mausoleum is deteriorating, and at some point
something will have to be done with the building.
The following names were provided, along with dates of birth and death. If anyone seeing this is a
relative or knows how a relative can be contacted, they are asked to call the city offices at (937) 981-3500."

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Spotlighting William Lampson - Revolutionary War Veteran

Click on title to access "Footnote.com" and a historical account of the life of William Lampson, Revolutionary War veteran who was buried in Western Star Cemetery in Summit County, Ohio.

Also, a fascinating memorial is posted for William Lampson on "Find A Grave"

Happy Fourth of July!!!

Happy Fourth of July, 2010!! 

I'm taking a moment to remember and honor my Revolutionary War ancestor: the Rev. Jeremiah Duvall who was buried at the Duvall Cemetery in Bedford County, Pennsylvania. 

If you have a Revolutionary War ancestor, today is a great day to post a memorial on Find A Grave for him, or add a note to his memorial if is already posted.

Monday, June 28, 2010

Pontius Chapel Cemetery, Washington Township - Pickaway County, Ohio

Scenes from June 20, 2010 visit to the Pontius/Pontious Chapel Cemetery located on the Circleville - Stoutsville Road.
Note photograph of the mound of broken bits of gravestones.  It is located in back of the church.