Wednesday, March 6, 2013

The Case of the Unwanted Stones


In 2000 when I was working on the new Crittenden County Volume I, Cemetery Book, I and a co-worker, Doyle Polk, went to every cemetery that we could possible get to to re-record the old cemeteries for any corrections or stones that might have been missed in previous recordings.  One of the cemeteries that we went to was the H. R. D. Coleman Cemetery that was locate a short distance northwest of View, On the property of Melba Penn, next to the house of Burnie Bradford Jr.

In a previous copying of this cemetery that was done in 1950, there were '10' stones recorded as being there.  In 2000 there were only two.  Mrs. Mary Catharine Alcorn, a tall stately stone, and one leaning on the base of the Alcorn stone, for Henry A. Coleman, son of H. R. D. & N. Coleman.

The other stones that were previously recorded were:
 Ann R. Clement,
 Susan C. Clement,
 Isham Henry Clement,
Margaret E. clement,
 Parthena Clement,
Narcissa Coleman, wife of H. R. D (1st wife of Henry)
 Henry  R . H. D. Coleman
Catherine E. Coleman

In about 2010, someone had brought to Mapleview Cemetery and dumped in an overgrown fence row in the NW section of the cemetery, the missing stone of Susan C. Clement, and Narcissa Coleman, wife of H. R. D. Coleman.  This was reported and I was told they would be taken care of and put back where they were suppose to be.  I didn't hear anymore about the stones.

Now 3 years later, I get a call from the County Road Department, that 3 tombstone had been brought to the site to be disposed of in the trash department. Would I come and look at them and maybe know where to put them. After going to check on the stones, I couldn't believe it, for there - again - were more of the missing Coleman stones.   In this group were:
Catherine Coleman, Parthena Coleman and Henry H. D. Coleman.  


 



Henry's stone was broken, but was all there.  This is such a shame, he was an early Crittenden County Pioneer and was a Justice of the Peace in April 1942, when Crittenden became a county from Livingston.  A Justice of the Peace had the responsibility of governmental administration to the parts of the county not incorporated.









 The stone of Catherine Coleman, sister to Henry R. D. Coleman







 


The stone of Parthena, daughter of Isham Henry and Margaret Clement.




Where have these stones been all these many years, and to turn up at the city/county waste facilities.  Where are the others that were found and removed from the fence row at Mapleview.?

These stones were snow white, probably from someone cleaning them with bleach.

Now to try and find a home for these stones.

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