At our September meeting Gerald Myers, member of the Union County Cemeteries Association reported that damage had recently been done to Delap Cemetery in neighboring Campbell County. Mr. Myers is a resident of Campbell County and helped to organize the cleanup of this historic cemetery. He said “When they attack these headstones they’re also attacking their own heritage and hurting themselves. They need to get a little more education on their history.”

Some stones were broken or knocked over. A few others were spray painted. Neighbors who reported seeing teenagers in the woods around the cemetery have promised to keep an eye out for suspicious activity around the cemetery.

The Delap Cemetery is maintained by the Campbell County Historical Society. They have marked over 100 Confederate soldiers graves. Early settlers are buried there also. Most of the stones destroyed belonged to the Hart Family, one of the founding families of the area.  Dates on the headstones indicate they lived in the area in the early 1800’s.

Sad to say but many of these headstones have elaborate inscriptions and cannot be repaired. Even with stones being replaced the history lost by the destruction of these old headstones can never be replaced. One of the goals of the UCCA is educating individuals, as to the value of our “Historic Cemeteries”, not only in Union County but other areas. This may help prevent this kind of incidents from happening.
 

By Ellen Perry