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Watertown’s First Cemetery
Watertown Cemetery
Established 1845
The
old cemetery on Richards' hill, fronting on Western
Avenue and the first one ever
established in Watertown, was the subject of considerable controversy in the
late 1800s, owing to a request that ownership be relinquished by the city
council. This was done but later on was rescinded, and the cemetery, which had been
vacated by an act of the legislature eight years earlier, was to remain in possession of the city.
1844-1845
The
cemetery was established in 1845 by Silas W. Newcomb when he had the 2.84 acres
surveyed and platted.
Newcomb land sold to John Richards
First owner of the 140 acre
parcel was Silas W.
Newcomb who acquired the land in 1838 from the United States government
[Newcomb was one of only three homes on Octagon Hill in the early 1870's]. In 1846 he sold the land to John Richards,
builder of the Octagon House. The land
was surveyed for individual lots in 1870.
It
measured 360 feet north and south and 264 feet east and west. It included all of
the ground now occupied by the east half of the present day Northwestern College library-science
building, all of the preparatory dormitory, and the two houses numbered 503 and
505 Tower Road. The north wall of the
dormitory almost exactly marks the north boundary of the cemetery, and the two
residences just mentioned stand at the eastern edge of the cemetery.
___ 1844 __________________
"The ground whereon ye dwell is holy
ground!”
This
is true in a sense because half of our East Hall Dormitory now stands on ground
which was used as a cemetery for the townspeople of Watertown about a hundred
years ago.
In
1844, twenty-one years before the founding of Northwestern College, a Watertown
man named Silas Newcomb gave two- and one-half acres of his land to the City of
Watertown to be used as a public burial ground under the title of the Watertown
Cemetery Association. The cemetery later
became known as the Old Cemetery, and to this day it is still spoken of as the
Old Cemetery."
This
plot of ground is now part of our campus. It covers an area extending from the College
Circle Road to a line approximately sixty feet west of the water tower, bounded
on the south by Western Avenue and on the north by the small parking area in
front of East Hall.
Soon
after 1844 the City of Watertown had this grant surveyed and laid out in lots
for burials. M. Jones. the surveyor,
divided the land into city blocks with a total of two hundred and sixty-four
lots. Each lot measured nine feet by
twenty-four feet.
The
Old Cemetery served Watertown for about twenty-five years. A total of one hundred twenty-eight bodies
were buried in it. The last burial in
the Old Cemetery was made in 1871.
Through
the years the cemetery gradually fell into a state of disrepair. This was
partly due to the fact that the families of the buried
people died themselves, and no one was left to care for the graves. More important, however, was the fact that the
cemetery plots were not owned by the families of the dead. In accordance with the terms of the Watertown
Cemetery Association the families of the dead had not been permitted to buy the
deeds to their plots of ground, but they merely
obtained burial rights. The land
remained the property of the city. Naturally, since the plots were not their
own property, the families. gradually gave up caring for them.
Later,
when there was no apparent interest in the Old Cemetery, Northwestern College
decided to claim the land by "squatter's rights" since it owned all
the land surrounding the Old Cemetery. Opposition, however, arose from the few remaining
descendants of those buried in the cemetery.
Suit was brought against the college, and a
court decision favored the descendants. Consequently the Old Cemetery remained the property of the
City of Watertown.
-- -- Black and Red, Northwestern
College article, 1960-61, No. 5, pgs 140-141
___ 1857 __________________
Richards land sold to Northwestern College
Richards’ estate
Some
early historians believed that this property belonged to the Richards
estate. This is highly likely because
the adjacent five and one-half acres to the west were owned by John
Richards. This land was sold in the mid 1860s to Northwestern
College (then Northwestern University) for $687.50. This original plot of ground is the site of
the bulk of the present day buildings.
Watertown Cemetery established
Since
the cemetery didn't have an official name, it was simply known as the Watertown
Cemetery. Burials continued to be made
in the cemetery as late as the 1870s.
The 264 lots filled up quickly, due to an epidemic of the
cholera. Lots measured 9 x 24 feet and sold for one dollar each. John Richards purchased about twenty
lots. Records show only one burial from
the Richards' family. No doubt it was
one of their three daughters who died in infancy. One Negro who died of the cholera was known
to be buried there.
As
early as 1891, Northwestern College made it known they were interested in
obtaining this abandoned cemetery in order to round
out its property. This proved to be a
difficult matter that was strung out over a half century. Former Northwestern College President, E. E. Kowalke, in his Centennial
Story (1965) describes the deserted cemetery as:
"... an interesting jungle of locust trees, lilacs, prickly
ash, ordinary day lilies, weeds, tall grass sheltering such wild flowers as
violets and crane's bill, together with some quite vigorous poison ivy along
the fence that separate the cemetery from college property."
Students
had a fascination for the old cemetery despite its unsightly appearance. One student even eulogized the cemetery in an
ode of twenty-four stanzas.
click
to enlarge
Map
and aerial view obtained from www.lps.wels.net. Location of cemetery superimposed by author.
11 20 EFFORT TO CLEAN UP UNSIGHTLY CEMETERY
An effort is being made by the city authorities
to locate the owners of lots in the old cemetery east of the Northwestern
University, with a view of satisfying their interests and cleaning up the
property, which has become, in its dilapidated and neglected condition,
considerable of an eye-sore to that section of the city. The deed of the land has been resurrected,
which gives the names of some forty members of the association, but the names
are those of old-timers concerning whom little is now known. Perhaps most of them have long since passed
to the other world. Buried in the
cemetery are remains of many of the first settlers of this vicinity. WR
___ 1902
__________________
11 20 NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
ARTICLE
ON CEMETERY ON CAMPUS GROUNDS
When former students of this institution
reflect on the days of hard mental labor spent at the alma mater, a spark of
joy will naturally kindle in their hearts when recollection brings back to
memory hours of sport and pastime enjoyed either on the campus or at some other
spot endeared to them for some particular charm.
A place that had by no means a small attraction
for our students was the old pioneer cemetery — or call it what you will —
situated directly east of the college, on the western slope of a large hill
between the city and Rock river.
But although its charms are not fled, it is not
haunted by us as of old; someone found it more profitable to raise poultry and
garden vegetables, so the little strip of ground that once answered the purpose
of a path has been enclosed by a fence.
In former years there were many of us who with
a book as their companion went to some secluded spot of the old burial grounds
and read tales of a hero or heroine in the shade of some tree that had grown up
on the grave of a pioneer and patriot of our infant state of Wisconsin. The cemetery had then, as it is now, gone to
ruin; yet upon our entering the grounds now the desolation appears all the more
marked since we do not frequent the place as much as formerly.
Viewing the place from a distance, one will
hardly be able to recognize in it a resting place for the dead. The few remaining tombstones, which, to judge
from the fragments scattered about, must have been quite numerous in former
days, are almost invariably hidden among lilac bushes and other shrubs
overrunning the grounds. The larger
trees, as elms, acacias, poplars, hawthornes, and bitternut trees, growing in
clusters or singly, impress us as if nature had its own course and the hand of
man had never made an attempt to destroy the sacred beauties.
This is only an illusion of distance. To any one entering the condition of the
graveyard affords nothing more than a striking example of the negligence of our
American people who have neither time nor money for anything else than that
which serves their personal well-being.
The flowers and shrubs that once decorated the
final resting place of a beloved one are growing wild throughout the
grounds. The tombstones erected half a
century ago to the memory of a parent, brother, or child are shattered to
pieces by the rude hand of some unscrupulous intruder. Only a few are still extant, the largest of
which is in the northeastern corner of the square, and even this is partly
demolished.
On passing through the grounds one will notice
that not all have been willing to let the graves of their beloved ones be
forgotten; many have removed the ashes to some other cemetery; the partly open
graves still bear testimony thereof. On
the western side a lot has even been enclosed by a fence, which of course does
not prevent its being overrun by weeds, and one is at a loss to say where a
body lies.
Of late the cemetery has been vacated and
prospects for the future are that it will be turned into a public park. Of course, the change from a sacred burial
ground to a sporting place is not a very hard thing for the conscience of our
Americans to brook; there are in fact few problems of this nature which their
genius is not able to solve.
H. A. F., '01. Northwestern
University, The Black & Red, 03 14 1902
___ c.1905
__________________
OBLIQUE VIEW OF
___ 1908
__________________
06 12 THEFT FROM CEMETERIES
Complaint is being made by the aggrieved
parties, that the flowers and decorations upon the graves in the cemeteries in
this city are being stolen and carried away by vandals destitute of every sense
of honesty and decency. It hardly seems
possible, that there are people in Watertown so lost to an emotion of shame as
to enter a cemetery and ghoul-like steal from graves the flowers placed by sorrowing
relatives upon the resting place of their departed loved ones. Such parties ought to be apprehended and an
example made of them, that the practice may be discontinued.
“O heaven, that such companions
thou ’tdst unfold
And put in every honest
Hand a whip
To lash the rascals naked
Through the world.” WDT
___ 1909
__________________
Watertown Gazette, 09 10 1909
Dr. J. M. O’Connell,
formerly of the town of Emmet, writes as follows to the editor:
Editor Gazette — Enclosed please find Chicago
exchange for annual subscription to The
Gazette. During my recent visit to
Watertown at the Homecoming festivities I met many old-time friends and many
others whom I greatly desired to meet I failed to see. Watertown’s general appearance pleased me;
even after the flags and bunting were removed it showed its true substantial
worth. Homes as beautiful as
architecture could devise, streets as substantial as the best paved in St.
Louis and lawns second to none from the landscape artist’s point of view.
In one of the oldest cemeteries of your city
I was much dismayed with its appearance, weeds and grass effacing many of the
tombstones of our departed ones.
On the whole
an air of hope and success seems to pervade everything at and around the old
town.
Very
respectfully,
Dr. J. M.
O’Connell
The cemetery
alluded to above has since been put in shape, a cemetery association organized,
and work on it planned that will make it one of the best kept in the
state. [Editor Gazette]
___ 1918
__________________
12 28 The first cemetery laid out in what is now the city of Watertown was
located on Western Avenue, adjoining Northwestern College, in 1840. The remains of some of the early day settlers
are still lying there, but the most of them were removed to Oak Hill
cemetery. In 1850 an association was
formed and a cemetery located in the West Road, a short distance west of the North
Western railroad. The organizers of this
were John Richards, L. A. Friebert, Andrew Peterson and Daniel Jones. This continued as a burial place until 1864
when the present Oak Hill cemetery was laid out. Of these organizers none now remain. Daniel Jones was for many years president of the
Wisconsin National Bank. A. L. Friebert
was a merchant and Andrew Petersen was also a merchant, conducting a store
where Raue’s paint store now is located.
He afterwards served as consul to Denmark.
___ 1929
__________________
The cemetery
provided a bit of seclusion from college authorities. While there may have been some profitable
studying being undertaken, other activities such as card playing and catching a
smoke on the sly may have outweighed the time spent on academic affairs. Ultimately, in 1929, seven parties who had
distant relatives still buried there brought a court suit against the college
in order to block their obtaining the property.
In testimony, the card playing became gambling, and the headstones were
supposedly used for baseball bases. One
witness even testified that one professor had his basement lined with marble
slabs stolen from the cemetery. One
thing was certain as an outcome of the trial–the college had no claim to
ownership of the old cemetery.
By the 1940s
most of the cemetery headstones were not readable.
Punched in on your first
cemetery. I remember there as one at
Northwestern College right ahead of the water tower. That was the only water tower that I
remember. The cemetery was not kept up
and there was an old fence around it.
Most of the industries in the early times had their own water
towers. G.B. Lewis had one, and the time
I was working there, they still used water from their own well instead of city
water. The tower was gone .but the well
was still used. I remember walking by
the cemetery by Northwestern, and most of the headstones were not
readable. Just thought I would reminisce
to you about it. [Anon]
___ 1947
__________________
Eventually,
in 1947, when the college was ready to build the present library building, the
city fathers knew that the abandoned property would be put to a good use and
the eyesore of the deserted cemetery would be removed. Only one request was made; in the event that
additional graves beyond the five known graves were found, that they too, would
be removed to Oak Hill Cemetery.
Seventeen such graves were found, and the remains were carefully placed
in separate small boxes and removed to Oak Hill Cemetery.
___ 1948
__________________
FIRST
CEMETERY INTERMENTS MOVED TO OAK HILL
The
question of ownership of the Old Cemetery again arose in 1948 when Northwestern
College was about to begin a building program. The college wanted to make use of the Old
Cemetery for its new buildings, and so it made another request that it be
granted ownership of this land. This
time the request had better results, chiefly because the City of Watertown was
having difficulty in maintaining the cemetery, and the best way to dispose of
the land was to give it to an educational institution. And so the City
Council decided to give Northwestern College the deed to the Old Cemetery. One condition, however, had to be fulfilled by
the college. The college had to exhume
at least four bodies and rebury them, and if any more bodies were encountered
in the excavations for the new buildings, they also had to be removed and
reburied.
Now
Northwestern had the go-ahead for its new buildings. The library building and part of the new
dormitory were to be built on the Old Cemetery. Test excavations were made at places where it
was known that graves were located. In
other places a bulldozer was used to scrape off a shallow layer of earth, and
thus the outlines of the graves were clearly revealed. Diggings were then carried out to comply with
the orders of the City Council. The
college janitors sunk their shovels under the watchful eyes of the cemetery
superintendent of Watertown. When the
graves were opened, they found skeletons which were still quite well preserved.
There were no traces of the wooden
coffins in which the bodies had been buried. All that remained besides the skeletons were a
few lead nails that had been used in making the coffins.
During
these test diggings and the later excavations for the buildings a total of
seventeen skeletons were unearthed and taken to a plot in Oak Hill Cemetery
which Northwestern College had purchased especially for these remains.
Because
of the lack of adequate records and grave markings it was possible to make
positive identification in only one case. This was the body of a Mrs. Green buried with
her infant child. Today if one takes a walk through Oak Hill Cemetery, one may find a small stone
with the name "Green" written on it marking the spot where Mrs. Green
and the sixteen other former occupants of the Old Cemetery are now laid to rest.
-- -- Black and Red, Northwestern
College article, 1960-61, No. 5, pgs 140-141
ONE OF
THE LAST MARKS OF THE OLD CEMETERY
Caroline
M. Green and Little
Belle Green, interments at Oak Hill cemetery
Caroline
M. Green, b. unk., d. 1869, wife of Virgil D. Green,
a machinist, res n e corner of Wisconsin and First streets
Little
Belle Green, b.1855, d. 03 04 1861
Compiled by Ken Riedl
History of Watertown,
Wisconsin