Several headstones at Coral Township’s Union Cemetery in southwest McHenry County lean on one another, tired after a century of standing up to wind and rain.
“Mutter” proclaims one stone; “Vater” another. Another stone, “M.A. Smith 1853,” has a recessed rectangle where the date of death should have been inscribed long ago.
A granite monolith pays homage to “Homer Darling 1841-1913” and “His Wife Eunice 1841-1920.” A small white slab rests against its base. “Phebe” is its entire message.
It’s a message that speaks volumes to Elaine Obenchain of Woodstock. As chairwoman of the McHenry County Genealogical Society’s cemetery project, Obenchain has, for the last 12 years, spearheaded an ambitious research effort to record all gravestone inscriptions and cemetery records in McHenry County.
“The stones have historical importance because people didn’t always have birth and death certificates, and sometimes the only record of someone existing was on a gravestone,” she said.
But with development looming or caretakers long deceased, these historic spots may be in danger of disappearing. What is the future of the past?
“It becomes a dilemma because the families once connected with some of these cemeteries are long gone and they sit neglected, overgrown,” said Nancy Fike, administrator of the McHenry County Historical Society Museum and resident of McHenry. “As development continues to move into this area, there you are with these little cemeteries on your property. And whose responsibility is it to take care of them?”
Obenchain estimated there are records of at least 113 cemeteries in McHenry County. Of these, the bulk are active or, if no longer active, assured of proper maintenance. But 26 others have no stones remaining, six have neither stones nor an exact location, and four have stone fragments or stones that have been moved.
“So that’s almost a third of the cemeteries that have, in essence, disappeared,” Obenchain said. “And that’s information lost.”
Another seven are privately cared for, and another nine are neglected but still have stones. She considers these nine to be salvageable, possibly as historical sites or parks.
McHenry County coroner Marlene A. Lantz, a resident of McHenry, values the historic importance of the county cemeteries. “Granted, we have archives, but there’s still a lot of information to be gleaned off the old stones,” she said. “I like the old cemeteries. They are a good place to go and just reflect a bit.”
Obenchain has put together two volumes on cemeteries, both published by the McHenry County Illinois Genealogical Society: “McHenry County, Illinois Cemeteries Volume I: Northwest Townships” ($22); and “Volume II: Southwest Townships” ($45). Two more are on the horizon: The third volume will cover the northeast townships and is due in mid-October, and the fourth will focus on the southeast townships.
She has uncovered some long-forgotten cemeteries. Given the family name of White and established in 1836 on a rise above the Kishwaukee River in Union, a little cemetery is no longer there. Here’s why: By the 1950s, no headstones remained, so when earth was excavated to build a home, bones were found and assumed to be of Indian origin. In 1991, however, Obenchain and an individual seeking her roots had it confirmed the bones were those of pioneers.
In 1982, Fike researched the question of cemetery caretakers and found that the townships and the county have the option to take responsibility. But, according to law, they don’t have to.
“The problem is there’s not a lot of money set aside to do this, and once you take responsibility for one, you’re going to, perhaps, take on more,” she said. “That doesn’t lessen the situation that, in a civilized society, people maintain their cemeteries and their heritage in that respect. It’s a good, modern story that shows another facet of growth and what gets disrupted as a result.”
The historical society’s position is that it lacks the resources to do a proper maintenance job. “First of all, there ought to be a set of criteria of what would constitute a cemetery in need of public ownership,” Fike said. “Our job probably would then be to advocate that either the township or county be responsible.”
Bill Barron, an administrator for McHenry County, said the county will address the issue of the cemeteries on a case-by-case basis. “If it’s a small plot of land and we are mandated by statute to maintain it, we will do so,” Barron said. “If it’s an extensive parcel that would require more resources, I would have to look into the possibility of getting additional funding. I have a significant interest in things historical, and we will continue to provide maintenance to the extent that we are able (under) the tax cap. I believe it’s important to preserve our history as we urbanize. We just have to be mindful of the cost.”
Those costs include mowing and other routine maintenance such as fence painting.
Both Richmond and Nunda Townships in east-central McHenry County have successfully formed commissions to properly maintain some of the cemeteries within their boundaries.
“This goes back to the 1950s. They had a resolution for the voters, which passed, so four cemeteries came under the rule of one auspice,” said commission secretary Bruce Adams. “It’s supported by taxes plus revenue from lot sales and interest from the perpetual care fund.”
Adams said it costs about $1,200 each time Richmond Township’s four cemeteries are mowed.
But the real issue is often responsibility–and apathy.
“I think (the problem is) probably both inertia and financial,” Obenchain said. “In a lot of cases, nobody takes responsibility, nobody knows who a cemetery belongs to and they are afraid of doing anything for fear somebody will say they’re trespassing. If nobody knows who is responsible, nobody’s going to do anything.”
Mark Esarey, chief archeologist of the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency in Springfield, said a variety of groups, including Native American, churches and developers, have an interest in the question of what happens to the cemeteries. His group’s domain is the Human Skeletal Remains Protection Act of 1989. “This law covers burials and burial markers over 100 years old, as long as they’re not in a registered cemetery,” he said. “It offers some protection against vandalism and unauthorized removal.”
Statewide, Esarey said, about one-third of conflicts concern pioneer cemeteries, and the remainder concern American Indian burial grounds.
“About half the time we’ve been successful in getting a proposed development to change their plans (in order) to avoid the burials,” he said. “In general, it’s set up so there’s a preference to leave things in place, but it’s a balance of interests.”
Some inactive cemeteries have their futures in good hands. The McHenry County Conservation District maintains Mosgrove Cemetery in Stickney Run Conservation Area (in a section not open to the public, although plans call for trail access). It also has responsibility for Eckert Cemetery, safely tucked inside a fence that embraces Queen Anne Prairie on the same parcel just southeast of McHenry. A trail around the one-acre perimeter of the prairie affords closeup looks at headstones that loom like sages over prairie plants such as purple blazing star, prairie phlox, big bluestem and rattlesnake master.
“The old cemeteries can provide both historical and ecological values,” said Mary Eysenbach, assistant director of the conservation district. “For instance, Queen Anne, which we have managed since 1973, has original prairie remnants. Because it was set aside as a cemetery, it was never plowed or grazed.”
Located on Rose Farm Road, just north of where U.S. Highway 14 and Illinois Highway 120 merge, is Hartland Union Burying Ground. Deeded as a cemetery in 1854, its future is, at the moment, in question. Obenchain’s Volume I reports: “Here is an excellent example of the problems besetting abandoned graveyards. Despite watchful neighbors, vandals have destroyed stones and tried to excavate graves.”
Today, the investment corporation of Capital Growth Inc. holds title to the property but wishes to donate it “to a bona fide organization that will take over the upkeep,” according to Mitch Weisz of the Woodstock law firm of Weisz & Michling, which represents Capital. “The corporation has no intention of being in the cemetery business.”
Ostend Cemetery, which was established in 1842, is located a few miles west of McHenry on Illinois Highway 120 and is managed and maintained by the descendant-funded Ostend Cemetery Association. In his book “Ostend — An Early History of the Ostend and Bull Valley Area,” Loren Thompson wrote: “Everywhere are the scattered descendants of those resting peacefully in Ostend, and though scattered, they are held together by an inherent bond.”
Woodstock resident Everett Thomas knows all about that bond. His great-grandfather Andrew Thomas was buried in Ostend in 1888. Everett Thomas mowed the cemetery for a number of years, until descendants, through fundraisers and wills, obtained enough money to establish a fund to maintain the cemetery. Currently, the fund has about $13,000.
Today, Ostend is also scheduled to be named a historic site by the McHenry County Historical Landmark Commission. It is the first time the commission has given a plaque to a cemetery. The designation offers a certain amount of protection; the commission will now have to approve any changes.
Spicer Cemetery, located northeast of Huntley, recently got itself in the way of development. Although the Spicer family had deeded their burial ground to McHenry County in 1887, not much was done to maintain it in subsequent years. But it hit the local news in this decade when manicured, one-shade-tree subdivisions sprouted up all around the interred. The possibility that the property could be sold and the remains relocated was considered. But not for long.
In 1995, county administrator Barron contacted Assistant State’s Atty. James P. Kelly, who researched the question and wrote, “It is my opinion that the property cannot be sold and the remains cannot be relocated.” He cited the Conveyance of Burial Places to County Act, under which the land was conveyed to the county for use as a cemetery in perpetuity.
The developer, Dallas-based Centex Homes, simply platted around the cemetery and Spicer stayed put. And the county dispatched lawn mowers.
“Our maintenance department does periodic maintenance of Spicer,” Barron said. “It’s the only cemetery we know of for which we have specifically been given this duty, and certainly the board is very respectful of it.”
Obenchain, for one, has hope for the county’s old cemeteries. “I tend to be optimistic, but I think in the future, particularly in our area, which is getting built up, people will pay more attention,” she said.
AN ARMCHAIR TOUR
Taking a guidebook approach to McHenry County cemeteries, you can learn an amazing amount about the area, whether you’re interested in family genealogy, local history, war veterans, headstone styles or prairie grasses.
If you want to visit some of the neglected, abandoned, family-name cemeteries listed here, you may be chasing a wild goose or two. So do the armchair thing. Read about them in the McHenry County cemetery volumes (I and II) written by Elaine Obenchain of the McHenry County of Illinois Genealogical Cemetery Project.
To order, mail a check to McHenry County Illinois Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 184, Crystal Lake, Ill. 60039. Specify book title. Volume I is $22; Volume II, $45. Add $2.50 postage for the first book and 75 cents for each additional book.
These excerpts are from the Obenchain books, which feature descriptions, burial listing, maps and a user’s guide:
Brandow Cemetery, Alden Township (Volume I) — “The remarkable thing . . . is that there is still some trace . . . although it has been abandoned since the early 1880s.”
Dufield, Parks and Wingrove Cemeteries, Dorr Township (Volume II) — Dufield: “As with many private cemeteries, this one was maintained only until the last interested descendant died.” Parks: “All that remains is a single stone.” Wingrove: “Richard Wingrove . . . had it surveyed in 1849 and sold it for $10.”
Stewart’s Burying Ground, Marengo Township (Volume II) — “Today the carriage path is barely recognizable and the gate pillars are crumbling. The primary visitors are cows whose penchant for leaning on things has toppled most of the gravestones.”
Barber Cemetery, Riley Township (Volume II) — “Pockmarked with animal burrows and swathed in brambles, the wilderness is beginning to reclaim . . . this true family cemetery.”
