RE: Lack of response to "The Price of Progress -- Growth sparring with
respect for the dead"
There is an interesting letter to the editor in the paper today in response
to an earlier article about Helms cemetery. The writer is defending the
efforts of the owners of the land on which Helms cemetery is located and
alleges that some years ago the county relocated the nearby county road on
top of some of some of the graves.
I couldn't locate the more recent article from the _Journal and Courier_
home page, but when I fed in the URL you supplied, the story appeared.
Had the Cedar Bluffs cemetery been recorded? I thought it hadn't been, and
we have speculated that we may have family buried there.
The very modern, one-story house built there in the 1950s reflected the
thinking of the time, when everyone thought the future was bright, as
symbolized by the space program. A lot of valuable things, including the
old cemeteries, were thrown away in the 50s and 60s. Today we have another
view of the past and the future.
I have received a rather disturbing message from Jeff Parrott
<jparrott(a)journal-courier.com>, the Lafayette, Indiana Journal and Courier
writer who did a terrific series of stories in that paper on 8/15/99 on "The
Price of Progress -- Growth sparring with respect for the dead".
Jeff reports that he was pleased with the way the stories turned out but
that he is disappointed in the lack of response to them, especially in light
of the fact that he quoted a county commissioner saying she doesn't believe
the general public cares much about this issue and that the county does not
expect to address the matter for that reason.
Please, please, take a minute today to read Jeff's on-line article at:
http://www.jconline.com/news/news0815/0815l01.html
[note: the photo displayed there is NOT the one that accompanied the print
article]
{second note: this is the only story in the series which is available
on-line; accompanying this story were stories on a local woman who has
compiled comprehensive records on the 133 cemeteries in Tippecanoe County,
several instances where land development has clashed with old cemeteries and
the status of legislation protecting pioneer cemeteries}
Then, I hope you'll take a few minutes to write a letter to the Editor,
directing it to:
Dave Bangert, Opinions Page Editor
Email: editor(a)journal-courier.com
This is particularly important if you live in the Lafayette area!
Feel free to send a copy of your letter to the writer:
Jeff Parrott <jparrott(a)journal-courier.com>
It's only by letting your voices be heard that our state and local goverment
officials can be persuaded that, yes, people DO care that our pioneer
cemeteries are vanishing at an alarming rate and that they are worthy of
protection.
Thank your for your time and thanks for caring.
Lois