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Wilson FamilyCemetery
By Ken Brown, July 28, 2016
UNION, KY (FOX19) - A family grave site dating back to 1840 is being dug up and relocated out of a northern Kentucky neighborhood.
For more than 175 years, the cemetery was the final resting place to 21 deceased members of the Wilson family, but that land will soon be used to expand the Ballyshannon community.
Longbranch Development Inc., the company responsible for removing the graves, said they did their homework and went through all the proper channels before taking action.
"We retained expert bioarchaeologists to plan and guide a respectful, professional process and then followed it to the letter. We are proud of our efforts," the company said in a statement to FOX19 NOW.
A search through Boone County Library records turned up the names of 21 family members buried in the cemetery, the first of which was a nameless newborn girl who died the same day she was born - August 26, 1840.
Longbranch reached one of the closest relatives of the Wilson family and received approval to relocate the contents of the graves, according to Boone County Planning and Zoning. They also placed advertisement online and in newspapers in an effort to notify family members. They didn't reach every next-of-kin, but said they have made contact with all possible descendants, reaching as far away as Texas.
The remains are being moved to Rice Cemetery, which is less than four miles from the original resting place.
By Ken Brown | July 28, 2016 at 1:03 AM EDT - Updated July 24 at 5:20 PM
Some tombstones remain at the site. (FOX19 NOW)
Some tombstones remain at the site. (FOX19 NOW)
UNION, KY (FOX19) - A family grave site dating back to 1840 is being dug up and relocated out of a northern Kentucky neighborhood.
For more than 175 years, the cemetery was the final resting place to 21 deceased members of the Wilson family, but that land will soon be used to expand the Ballyshannon community.
Longbranch Development Inc., the company responsible for removing the graves, said they did their homework and went through all the proper channels before taking action.
"We retained expert bioarchaeologists to plan and guide a respectful, professional process and then followed it to the letter. We are proud of our efforts," the company said in a statement to FOX19 NOW.
A search through Boone County Library records turned up the names of 21 family members buried in the cemetery, the first of which was a nameless newborn girl who died the same day she was born - August 26, 1840.
Longbranch reached one of the closest relatives of the Wilson family and received approval to relocate the contents of the graves, according to Boone County Planning and Zoning. They also placed advertisement online and in newspapers in an effort to notify family members. They didn't reach every next-of-kin, but said they have made contact with all possible descendants, reaching as far away as Texas.
The remains are being moved to Rice Cemetery, which is less than four miles from the original resting place.
Crews have already removed the remains from Ballyshannon, but the tombstones are still in place.
"A lot of our neighbors are kind of concerned," said Burke. "Where are the bodies and why aren't the headstones with them? Because that's a piece of them."
Longbranch said the tombstones will be moved to the new cemetery at the appropriate time and they are purchasing new caskets for each set of remains.
Below is the list of names of the people buried in what was the Wilson Family Cemetery:
Infant Daughter: Born & Died August 26, 1840
Elizabeth Wilson: Died June 12, 1842, Age 20 Days
Ann Wilson: Born October 5, 1949, Died September 8, 1950
George B. Smith: Born February 5, 1817, Died October 4 1850, Age 33
James T. Wilson: Died August 29, 1851, Age 8
Annie Scroggins: Died February 1875, Age 1
Margaret Wilson: Died January 23, 1954, Age 60
Thorton J. Wilson: Died May 3, 1854, Age 62
George W. Wilson: Died February 2, 1861, Age 31
George W. Wilson: Died February 26, 1861, Age 28
Martha Putnam: Died April 1, 1864
Mariah Wilson: Died April 9, 1869, Age 63
Thorton W. Wilson: Died July 18, 1873, Age 5 months
Isaac N. Wilson: Born March 7, 1848, Died November 12, 1874
Angeline Putnam Wilson: Born December 23, 1828, Died June 12, 1888
Maria E. Wilson: Born May 6, 1827, Died March 14, 1900 (Wife of George B. Smith)
Mary W. Wilson: Born March 23, 1821, Died May 2, 1901
Joseph M. Wilson: Born January 16, 1838, Died October 18, 1901 (Col in the 2nd KY Cav C.S.A.)
Cumberland H. Wilson: Born May 5, 1813, Died March 23, 1902
William H. Wilson: Born July 26, 1850, Died January 24, 1912
Martha W. Wilson: Born February 8, 1840, Died January 10, 1923
The comments associated with documentation on the family gravesite say:
"Tradition indicates that Wilson homestead had a lane to house lined with sugar maple trees form which they made maple syrup. A windstorm in 1854 broke one of the limbs on a tree, and it fell on Thorton causing his death.
Here is the full statement from Longbranch Development:
"Relocating remains from Wilson Cemetery to Union Rice Cemetery is a responsibility Longbranch Development, Inc. takes very seriously. We retained expert bioarchaeologists to plan and guide a respectful, professional process and then followed it to the letter. We are proud of our efforts.
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