This article was taken from the Columbus, IN Republic and permission was
granted to post here at this website.
James R. Hull, Ph.D.
Neighbors of cemetery given deed to property
Saturday, July 26, 2003
By Marla Miller, mmiller(a)therepublic.com
Giles and Mary Mitchell buried their 1-year-old son, Stephen, on rural
family property the same year settlers gave birth to Bartholomew County,
according to historical research. Buried in 1821, Stephen's grave is among
the oldest in the Mitchell-Gaines family cemetery, a neglected burial ground
now in Cross Creek Subdivision on Road 200 South. While new houses pop up
around it, the 182-year-old cemetery continues to erode - and it seems few
people care. Bob Bellows, the original developer at Cross Creek, deeded it
to Chuck and Tammy Landis in June after the homeowner's association declined
to take it. "I let the people have it that wanted to take care of it," he
said. "I thought it was the best way to handle it." The Landises' yard
borders the cemetery to the west and north. "There will never be money for
Cross Creek to do anything with it," Landis said. "I was the one with the
most interest because my property is right here by it." Bellows said he
did not approach Columbus Township Trustee Fred Barkes because of the
disinterest shown by the former trustee when he first purchased the land.
By law, township trustees must maintain abandoned cemeteries, but there are
qualifying requirements. "When I first started developing, they wouldn't
take it because they said there was no access to the cemetery," Bellows
said. "They absolutely wouldn't have any part of it, they wouldn't even
hardly talk to me. So we took it and cleaned it up the best we could."
Trustees cannot refuse to take a cemetery simply because of limited access,
said Jeannie Regan-Dinius, with the Department of Natural Resources Division
of Historic Preservation and Archaeology. "If taxes are being paid on the
property, there's nothing a trustee can do," she said. "But access is not
covered in the law. The trustee may still be responsible for that cemetery."
The law leaves a lot of room for interpretation, she added. Last fall, Ken
Patton, chief executive manager of Patton Homes, purchased the remaining 19
lots in Cross Creek. Due to an error in the deed work, he also ended up
with the cemetery and two retention ponds. "There was no deal that involved
me buying a cemetery," he said. "It never would have happened, but I was out
of town and had my wife sign the closing papers." Patton worked through his
attorney, Jeff Rocker, to make sure all three were out of his name. The deed
refers to the cemetery as Block C. "He wasn't even aware it was his,"
Rocker said. "We did a corrective deed with the seller. In effect, Patton
Homes never owned it." Landis and the cemetery's southern neighbor, Rick
Gilliam, have whacked weeds and cleared brush since moving next door to it.
Concerned about his property value, Landis said he would like to remove the
remaining headstones and make it more like a sanctuary. "It's an old, dead
cemetery," he said. "Why can't people let it go? "It hasn't gotten
any
respect since I've been here. I'd like to put a new fence up, lay ground
covering, plant a few shrubs and make it maintenance free." After being
informed of a law that prohibits erecting any structures, including a fence,
within 100 feet of a cemetery without DNR approval, Landis said he would
probably do nothing.
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