Cemetery Restoration Project
The Brownhelm Cemetery has been the main resting place for residents of Brownhelm Township since 1817. The land was originally part of the farm of George Bacon, Jr., who donated a sizable portion of land at the corner of North Ridge and Sunnyside Roads for the burial ground. The first internments began immediately, as the bodies of Sarah and Alice Graves, and Calista Curtis, young girls who perished in the very early days of the township, were laid to rest. Eventually, members of nearly every early pioneer family that cut Brownhelm Township out of the wilderness found their eternal rest in this place.
In 1993, the Brownhelm Historical Association was formed to preserve the rich history of the people, places, and events of Brownhelm Township. One of its goals has been to restore and protect the three cemeteries in the area. In 2017, the dilapidated state of the Brownhelm Cemetery prompted the BHA to start a fundraising campaign to pay for the training and supplies necessary to begin the restoration of gravestones.
In June, 2018, the BHA hosted their first cemetery preservation workshop led by a professional gravestone restoration expert. This workshop, attended by several members of the BHA as well as cemetery enthusiasts from states throughout the Midwest and the Northeast, provided the training necessary to begin the laborious project of cleaning, repairing, and preserving the markers for future generations.
Since that initial workshop, the BHA has formed a Cemetery Restoration Crew, which holds work days at the cemetery throughout the spring, summer, and fall. The crew has repaired and restored more than 100 stones, with a seemingly endless list of future repairs to tackle. The BHA has hosted several more cemetery preservation workshops and continues to be a resource for the community on cemetery restoration.
See examples of our work in the galleries below!