The History of Maple Grove Cemetery
Harrodsburg High School: This Place Matters
January 17, 2023
Why Preserve?
April 27, 2023
Research indicates there are nearly 1000 known burials in Maple Grove Cemetery; there are approximately 11 interments each year.
MAPLE GROVE CEMETERY
On March 1, 1883, David Vanarsdale, prominent businessman in Harrodsburg, and his wife, the former Rebecca Williams, deeded four acres of land to the Board of Trustees of the Town of Harrodsburg for an African-American burial ground. (ref: Mercer County Deed Bk 50, pg 425) Research of marked graves on the tract known as "Maple Grove Cemetery" indicates interments occurred prior to the Vanarsdale conveyance.
Among the first known burials in Maple Grove were America Hunn (1810-1866), Sec B, (wife of John Hunn), and Matilda Washington (1823–1883), Sec M, eulogized as “A Faithful Servant to God & Man.” Research of marked graves indicates the interment with the earliest birth year is Letitia Easton, Sec B, born March 25, 1800. She died April 13, 1884.
Burials include slaves and house servants as well as African-Americans who were prominent leaders in the Harrodsburg community and elsewhere.
In 1913 Harrodsburg businessman, John B. Stagg, erected a cemetery monument in Section E to Henry Smith, "Faithful Servant."
When he died June 21, 1952, at the age of 106, Charles Doneghy, Sec K, was reputed to be the oldest African American citizen in Mercer county. The ferryman at Mundy's Landing, he worked for the Chinn family through five generations. His tombstone simply reads “A Gentleman.”
As a young man Rev. J. Francis Wilson, D.D. (1870-1937), Sec F, traveled to Capetown in Africa as a missionary. He brought the first African students to Simmons College in Louisville to further their education. For thirty years he was a state organizer for the Baptist Young Peoples Union. His tombstone states “His distinguished service among Baptist Youths will long be remembered.” He was also grand chaplain of the Free and Accepted Masons.
David Arron Shearrell (1878-1939), Sec F, composed poems about everyday life that were published in 1922 in a book entitled "The Farmer."
Dr. James Jessie Thomas, prominent Harrodsburg citizen, died September 6, 1953, according to his death certificate. A native of Columbia, S.C., he completed his medical training in Louisville, Ky. Dr. Thomas moved to Harrodsburg in 1916 where he practiced medicine for about forty years. The location of his grave has not been determined.
Joseph "Jody" Tilford (1881-1958) was the town crier for Harrodsburg. As a boy, Tilford shined shoes. Gifted with a superior memory, he started running errands with messages at an early age. He continued until his health failed in the 1950's near the end of the town crier era. The location of his grave has not been determined.
Cynthia Crockett White Sallee (1885-1962), a graduate of Wayman Institute, was a painter. Some of her works include "The Lord's Supper," "The Finding of Moses," "A Slave Auction," and "Lady and Her Friend." Her husband, George Alfred Sallee (1881-1939), a carpenter and construction worker, was the builder of St. Peter's A.M.E. Church in Harrodsburg.
The Wilson Family was associated with Harrodsburg cemeteries and the funeral home business for decades. Iveson "Uncle Ive" Wilson, former slave, assisted James Stagg in the maintenance of Spring Hill Cemetery for over twenty years. Later he was named keeper of the graveyard at Old Fort Harrod. Uncle Ive used a scythe to cut the grass in both cemeteries. Nathan Wilson, Sr. (1865-1945), Sec G, was an undertaker in Harrodsburg for about 45 years. His son, James Nathaniel "Nate" Wilson (1908-1971), Sec A, operated the Wilson Funeral Home owned by his father since 1910. He served as president of the Kentucky Association of Morticians, Inc., and was a board member and director of the National Funeral Directors Association. After his death, his widow, Vivian Ballard Wilson (1905-1976), Sec A, maintained the mortuary.
Born in Salvisa, Annis Roach Hayes (1891-1982), Sec B, graduated from eighth grade at West Side School in Harrodsburg and from Wayman Institute, a four-year boarding school formerly located on Cornishville Road. After she completed high school at Wayman, Mrs. Hayes taught school for six-month sessions in Mercer county. She taught third and fourth grades at West Side School for 36 years while she continued her education at Kentucky State College in Frankfort. Her husband, George Hayes (1886-1936), was a barber in Harrodsburg.
Mary Wilson Utley (1899-1983), Sec K, was a registered nurse at the former A. B. Price Hospital and later the James B. Haggin Memorial Hospital, both in Harrodsburg, for 47 years. A native of Mercer County, she graduated from high school in Frankfort. A graduate of Kentucky State College in Frankfort, she received her nursing degree at the University School of Nursing in Knoxville, Tennessee. A registered nurse when few African Americans were employed in the nursing field, she worked twelve-hour night shifts at the old Harrodsburg hospital.
Abraham Jacob "A. J." Bradshaw, Jr. (1914-1987), Sec G, the son of a minister, was born in Harrodsburg. He attended West Side School and Kentucky State College. He completed his graduate work at the University of Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky University. He began his teaching career in segregated schools in 1932, first at Dunbar High School in Somerset then schools in Frankfort, Richmond, and Paris. Later he taught at Dunbar High School in Lexington. After integration, he retired from Henry Clay High School in Lexington in 1975. Active in civic work, he served in an advisory capacity for the Harrodsburg mayor. He was a member of the Harrodsburg-Mercer Planning and Zoning Commission and the West Lane Park Board for several years.
Margaret Hunter Graves Mundy (1914-1993), Sec K, well-known speaker, historian, and activist, was one of the volunteers who coordinated the "Head Start" video shown throughout the United States. She served as chairperson of the Board of the Executive Committee of Bluegrass Community Action for over twelve years. She was a storyteller for the Mercer County Arts and Humanities Council’s “Cabin Fever Storytelling Festival” at Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill.
Cecelia Jackson Hill (1910-1996), Sec L, was one of the first two graduates of West Side School. She was the first graduate to return as a teacher. Mrs. Hill earned a degree from Kentucky State University and did advanced study at Howard University in Washington, D.C. She returned to Harrodsburg and taught at West Side School for approximately 20 years, starting in 1932. She taught junior high school history, math, and music. While visiting friends in California, she met and subsequently married Frank Hill. They settled in Los Angeles and she attended USC-LA. In 1975 she retired from the Los Angeles department of water and power where she had worked as a supervisor for about twenty years. After her retirement, she returned to Harrodsburg. Her formula for success was "patience, perseverance, and prayer."
Truman Bartleson, Sr., (1925-2000), Sec K, was the first African-American elected to the Board of Education for the Harrodsburg Public School System. He served as vice president and coach of Mercer Little League Baseball and was a volunteer at the Mercer County Fair & Horse Show for 36 years. A member of the Housing Board and the Parks Board, he was a dedicated public servant and community volunteer for 40 years.
Willie Monzo "Jack Rabbit" Bottoms, (1933-2006), Sec K, was a renowned world champion roadster horse trainer and exhibitor for Freeman Brothers Stables in Harrodsburg. His career spanned six decades. In 1990 he was the first African American inducted into the American Road Horse and Pony Hall of Fame. In 2005 he was inducted into the Mercer County Fair and Horse Show Hall of Fame. Proud to serve his country, he was a veteran of the Korean Conflict.
MILITARY BURIALS
Over one hundred of the known burials in Maple Grove Cemetery answered our country’s call to military service.
Civil War
Marked graves indicate the following African-Americans fought for the Union cause during the Civil War: Pvt. Lewis Ingram, Co. E, 6th USCC (Sec A); Pvt. Henry McKee, Co. F, 5th USCC (Sec E); Pvt. Ezekiel McCowan, Co. K, 114th USCI (Sec B); and Sgt. Richard Morton, Co. F, 114th USCI (Sec A). Although the specifics of his military service are unknown, the tombstone of Robert Walker, (Sec J), reads “A Civil War Soldier, At Rest.”
Spanish-American War
Research of military markers in Maple Grove confirms at least one veteran, John Duncan (Sec F), served in the Spanish-American War.
World War I
There are twenty-eight known veterans of World War I, many of whom served in Pioneer Infantry Regiments. Although his grave was previously unmarked, in May 2022 the James Harrod Trust sponsored a marker dedication ceremony honoring the service of CPL Charles William Estell, who died of injuries sustained after the Battle of Chateau Thierry. The Estell marker is located in Section A.
World War II
More than forty-four veterans of World War II are interred in Maple Grove Cemetery including Staff Sergeant Leon Ison Steele, Sr., (Sec K). SSGT Steele died on Luzon Island in the Philippines on April 15, 1945. Army Tec5 Robert Jackson, Jr., (Sec K), was awarded the Bronze Star for his service in World War II.
Korea
Approximately twenty veterans of the Korean War are interred in Maple Grove Cemetery. Included are PFC Leslie A. Shy, Jr., (Sec F) and 2nd Lt. Charles William Hardin, Jr. (Sec K). PFC Shy, also a veteran of World War II, was killed in action in Korea on February 14, 1951. Second Lt. Hardin was a paratrooper assigned to Battery C of the 101st Airborne Division known as the “Screaming Eagles” when he died August 6, 1951.
Viet Nam
Among the veterans of the Viet Nam War buried in Maple Grove Cemetery (to date) are: Melvin Douglas Brown , USMC (Sec L); USMC Lance Corporal Raymond L. Brown (Sec L); Carl Henry Owens, US Army (Sec K); Robert Anthony Owens, US Army (Sec K); PFC William J. Penman, US Army, (Sec L); USAF MSGT Johnny Lee Sanders (Sec K); and USAF TSGT Donald O. Vaughn (Sec G). TSGT Vaughn also served in Korea.
And their deeds shall find a record,
In the registry of fame;
For their blood has cleansed completely
Every blot of slavery’s shame.
So all honor and all glory
To these noble Sons of Ham—
To the gallant colored soldiers
Who fought for Uncle Sam.”
-“The Colored Soldiers,” by Paul Laurence Dunbar, 1872-1906
