WE NEED A PICTURE OF THE OTWELL CHAPEL (if there is one).
This gives me a chance to apologize for what may appear to be a lack of
interest on our part! We just have not spent much time hanging around the
computer this summer.
It seems that I have been reporting that our project at the Otwell Chapel
Cemetery in Whitewater Twp., Franklin Co., IN, was "almost completed" for an
awfully long time. I'm still reporting that! There are a few large stones
that need to be leveled if possible. We have a donation of topsoil to help
level the ground, but we are in no rush to do that, as there are still a
couple of headstones we had hoped to find.
The township trustee hired a man with a "bobcat" to help us remove the
troublesome stumps and tree roots. We were amazed at his ability to tug up
the stump without disturbing a headstone. It sure was quicker and easier
than our primitive methods, and we were glad to see the long roots slither
out of the ground behind the stump, too. Only one footstone was discovered
in this process.
We have now reset all the foot stones. Though it was against our better
judgment to replace them in their historically correct locations, that is
what we did. We know this creates a mowing problem for the type of mowers
normally used, and fear that if the cemetery is difficult to mow it will
someday creep back into oblivion. We missed one week mowing this summer, and
really saw how quickly the vegetation got a new start.
As we were digging a hole to set a footstone (MEH), we discovered the actual
footstone for that grave (MH). (We know of a Martha Hollowell whose death
record states she is buried in Otwell Cemetery, but we have not found that
headstone.) We set the MEH footstone in the line with the headstones. This
MH footstone, along with it's base had dropped straight down, with it's top
about 8" under the surface; normal probing would probably have never found
it.
We have a donation for a sign, but are discovering that we have to be pretty
creative to obtain one on that budget. We have some good ideas, and will
work on that in the winter months. We sure would like to incorporate a
drawing of the Otwell Chapel church in the sign, but still have not obtained
a photo.
That's about it...we're "almost" finished!
Merle and Ruth Schlemmer
SE Indiana