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Red Rock cemetery falling into disrepair
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| Above, cemetery Trustee David Cooper and Doris Schwerin view her husband’s overgrown cemetery plot in Red Rock. Sesame Campbell/Chatham Courier |
Family members upset by appearance of gravesites
By Sesame Campbell
RED ROCK — Under the shade of a 200-year-old oak tree lies the grave of the legendary jazz musician, Mabel Mercer. But because of the severe overgrowth of weeds that covered her marker, it took more than 20 minutes for visitors to locate her plot.
From soldiers of the American Revolutionary War to legendary musicians, artists, teachers, poets, builders, mothers, husbands and children, those buried at the Red Rock Cemetery are facing an uncertain future.
Conditions are so dismal at the cemetery that family members from as far away as Acworth, Ga. are outraged. “I am disgusted with the disrespect that is shown to the Red Rock Cemetery,” wrote Holly Harrington-Eger in a letter to the editor. “If this cemetery were along a busy street where lots of people were viewing it, I would suspect that it would be kept up nicely!”
Still others, like Red Rock resident Doris Schwerin, are not only shocked and saddened by the state of the cemetery, but are asking questions. Why has the cemetery fallen into such disrepair and what steps do local officials intend on taking to ensure that the graves of those buried at the Red Rock Cemetery receive the perpetual care they were promised?
“The graves are like real estate,” Schwerin said. “I’d like to know where the money came from prior to this year and what plan is in play to communicate the state of the cemetery to families whose loved ones are buried there,” she said.
David Cooper is a trustee of the Red Rock Rural Cemetery. He said that five years ago, the Department of State Cemeteries saw this coming and warned local municipalities that there were not enough financial resources to properly insure the cemetery.
It costs approximately $2,000 to $2,500 to mow every summer, Cooper said. Factor in the rising costs of insurance and the actual cost per year to maintain the cemetery and it is about $5,000.
“We’ve been short of funds for the last four years,” Cooper said. “Because of the insurance issue we can’t just hire someone to mow because of insurance. Legally, as trustees, we can’t just hire someone to mow and we don’t have the resources to do that. For the last several years, I’ve been supporting the cemetery, along with other people.”
Cooper added that if the trustees were to knowingly hire someone not covered by insurance then they would be personally responsible if something unfortunate happened to them.
“In an ideal world the cemetery would be maintained in a trust fund that would generate enough money to maintain the grounds and costs associated with that,” Cooper said. “However, the cemetery never generated enough money to be solvent.”
According to Cooper, one of the founders of the private cemetery was Ken Ford. Ford served as the president of the trustees, along with Charlie Brigs, and the Ford family has been in the community for many generations and several Fords are buried at the graveyard. “It’s because of Ken that the cemetery was taken care of,” he said.
There are a couple of Revolutionary War men buried in the cemetery, along with some veterans from the War of 1812. According to a deed, in 1847, the burial grounds opened as an official cemetery. It is now divided into two parts: the historic section and a newer area.
Cooper explained that after World War II, the state standardized plot sizes. Family plots used to be 16 by 16 feet, with a 4-foot alley way that took up considerable space. “Now, to be interred one needs a vault, so that people can be buried right next to each other,” he said.
As of late, some of the trees are growing up around the graves and there are stones falling over. The famous Dutch framer whose work includes many paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, is buried next to Schwerin’s husband, Jules, who himself was a famous film producer and director. On his bench reads, “Hello out there.”
The Schwerins came to Red Rock 25 years ago as weekenders. They fell in love with the area and in particular, with Cemetery Road, which is the location of the graveyard. “Red Rock is not just a place, it’s a state of mind,” Schwerin said. “This cemetery has to do with honoring history, with pride and with community.”
Cooper said that the situation at Red Rock Cemetery is not unique to Columbia County. “It’s happening in many places,” Cooper said. “Under state law, the towns where there are cemeteries, those cemeteries are allowed to revert to the town.”
The state of New York set up a process for private trustees to be able to revert to public authority if the need arises, Cooper said. In the case of Red Rock Cemetery, that would be the town of Canaan. “The town of Canaan would pay for the upkeep of everything,” he said.
There is a process for the town to receive the cemetery back. Trustees would be obligated to notify the members of the cemetery, which would be the grave owners, through legal notice that the trustees of Red Rock Cemetery are requesting the town to take back the cemetery.
“You have to give the owners a chance to respond and reorganize to decide if that is what they want,” Cooper said. “You offer the owners a chance to resolve the issue. If they choose to they can appoint a new board. If they choose not to they can authorize the president of the board of trustees to turn it over to the town of Canaan.”
Currently, Ward Stone is the president of the board. Last year, Cooper said he spoke with the town Canaan Supervisor Richard Keaveney and told him that the process was eminent.
Furthermore, what made it more obvious to Cooper that the cemetery needed to be turned over to the town was that they had hired young people to mow the grounds. It was a liability to have high school students mowing a steep hill.
“[Keaveney] pleaded with me to maintain the cemetery for another year,” Cooper reported. “We got a volunteer to go in and mow for a year. But this not a mower-friendly plot and I’m concerned.”
Cooper was quick to add that the Canaan supervisor has been more than cooperative in part because the town has the funds and he understands the situation. “This is a very emotional issue,” Cooper said.
As it stands, New York state audits their books. They’ve watched the funds go down dramatically in the last few years,” Cooper said. “We’re now down to our last resources. The only assets that we have is land.”
At one time there was a fund for perpetual care, but that has been consumed, Cooper added. Local resources have gone into other municipal agencies, such as the fire department, and typically people do not contact the trustees to arrange for burial plots unless they have a serious illness.
Just as it is difficult to hawk graves, for many people it is an extremely emotional issue,” Cooper said. “The woman who wrote the letter to the editor was stunned at the state of the cemetery and really upset with the appearance. I know I am. I think it’s really disrespectful.”
Schwerin said that she plans to be buried in the cemetery along side her late husband. The neglect makes you wonder, she said. “What do you do with the memory? What does it all mean? The dignity of honoring the graveyard is what it’s all about. I’m going to be on that bench.”
She concluded that what this issue is about is belonging and a sense of community. “We’ve been a part of this since the mid-1970s. The pride of Red Rock has to be restored and it begins on that hill,” Schwerin said.
In her letter, Harrington-Eger wrote: “When purchasing family plots it was written that the cemetery has perpetual care. Why was I, or for that matter anyone with loved ones buried there, not notified that there was no more money to continue the upkeep of the Red Rock Cemetery. … I am disgusted with the disrespect that is shown to the Red Rock Cemetery. … I write this letter to inform anyone who has a loved one buried at the Red Rock Cemetery who may not have know that it is not being cared for.”
Harrington-Eger and Schwerin have done that. Perhaps more than just their questions will be answered — they may also help the graves of Mercer and others become more visible again and less painful to those they have left behind.
From soldiers of the American Revolutionary War to legendary musicians, artists, teachers, poets, builders, mothers, husbands and children, those buried at the Red Rock Cemetery are facing an uncertain future.
Conditions are so dismal at the cemetery that family members from as far away as Acworth, Ga. are outraged. “I am disgusted with the disrespect that is shown to the Red Rock Cemetery,” wrote Holly Harrington-Eger in a letter to the editor. “If this cemetery were along a busy street where lots of people were viewing it, I would suspect that it would be kept up nicely!”
Still others, like Red Rock resident Doris Schwerin, are not only shocked and saddened by the state of the cemetery, but are asking questions. Why has the cemetery fallen into such disrepair and what steps do local officials intend on taking to ensure that the graves of those buried at the Red Rock Cemetery receive the perpetual care they were promised?
“The graves are like real estate,” Schwerin said. “I’d like to know where the money came from prior to this year and what plan is in play to communicate the state of the cemetery to families whose loved ones are buried there,” she said.
David Cooper is a trustee of the Red Rock Rural Cemetery. He said that five years ago, the Department of State Cemeteries saw this coming and warned local municipalities that there were not enough financial resources to properly insure the cemetery.
It costs approximately $2,000 to $2,500 to mow every summer, Cooper said. Factor in the rising costs of insurance and the actual cost per year to maintain the cemetery and it is about $5,000.
“We’ve been short of funds for the last four years,” Cooper said. “Because of the insurance issue we can’t just hire someone to mow because of insurance. Legally, as trustees, we can’t just hire someone to mow and we don’t have the resources to do that. For the last several years, I’ve been supporting the cemetery, along with other people.”
Cooper added that if the trustees were to knowingly hire someone not covered by insurance then they would be personally responsible if something unfortunate happened to them.
“In an ideal world the cemetery would be maintained in a trust fund that would generate enough money to maintain the grounds and costs associated with that,” Cooper said. “However, the cemetery never generated enough money to be solvent.”
According to Cooper, one of the founders of the private cemetery was Ken Ford. Ford served as the president of the trustees, along with Charlie Brigs, and the Ford family has been in the community for many generations and several Fords are buried at the graveyard. “It’s because of Ken that the cemetery was taken care of,” he said.
There are a couple of Revolutionary War men buried in the cemetery, along with some veterans from the War of 1812. According to a deed, in 1847, the burial grounds opened as an official cemetery. It is now divided into two parts: the historic section and a newer area.
Cooper explained that after World War II, the state standardized plot sizes. Family plots used to be 16 by 16 feet, with a 4-foot alley way that took up considerable space. “Now, to be interred one needs a vault, so that people can be buried right next to each other,” he said.
As of late, some of the trees are growing up around the graves and there are stones falling over. The famous Dutch framer whose work includes many paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, is buried next to Schwerin’s husband, Jules, who himself was a famous film producer and director. On his bench reads, “Hello out there.”
The Schwerins came to Red Rock 25 years ago as weekenders. They fell in love with the area and in particular, with Cemetery Road, which is the location of the graveyard. “Red Rock is not just a place, it’s a state of mind,” Schwerin said. “This cemetery has to do with honoring history, with pride and with community.”
Cooper said that the situation at Red Rock Cemetery is not unique to Columbia County. “It’s happening in many places,” Cooper said. “Under state law, the towns where there are cemeteries, those cemeteries are allowed to revert to the town.”
The state of New York set up a process for private trustees to be able to revert to public authority if the need arises, Cooper said. In the case of Red Rock Cemetery, that would be the town of Canaan. “The town of Canaan would pay for the upkeep of everything,” he said.
There is a process for the town to receive the cemetery back. Trustees would be obligated to notify the members of the cemetery, which would be the grave owners, through legal notice that the trustees of Red Rock Cemetery are requesting the town to take back the cemetery.
“You have to give the owners a chance to respond and reorganize to decide if that is what they want,” Cooper said. “You offer the owners a chance to resolve the issue. If they choose to they can appoint a new board. If they choose not to they can authorize the president of the board of trustees to turn it over to the town of Canaan.”
Currently, Ward Stone is the president of the board. Last year, Cooper said he spoke with the town Canaan Supervisor Richard Keaveney and told him that the process was eminent.
Furthermore, what made it more obvious to Cooper that the cemetery needed to be turned over to the town was that they had hired young people to mow the grounds. It was a liability to have high school students mowing a steep hill.
“[Keaveney] pleaded with me to maintain the cemetery for another year,” Cooper reported. “We got a volunteer to go in and mow for a year. But this not a mower-friendly plot and I’m concerned.”
Cooper was quick to add that the Canaan supervisor has been more than cooperative in part because the town has the funds and he understands the situation. “This is a very emotional issue,” Cooper said.
As it stands, New York state audits their books. They’ve watched the funds go down dramatically in the last few years,” Cooper said. “We’re now down to our last resources. The only assets that we have is land.”
At one time there was a fund for perpetual care, but that has been consumed, Cooper added. Local resources have gone into other municipal agencies, such as the fire department, and typically people do not contact the trustees to arrange for burial plots unless they have a serious illness.
Just as it is difficult to hawk graves, for many people it is an extremely emotional issue,” Cooper said. “The woman who wrote the letter to the editor was stunned at the state of the cemetery and really upset with the appearance. I know I am. I think it’s really disrespectful.”
Schwerin said that she plans to be buried in the cemetery along side her late husband. The neglect makes you wonder, she said. “What do you do with the memory? What does it all mean? The dignity of honoring the graveyard is what it’s all about. I’m going to be on that bench.”
She concluded that what this issue is about is belonging and a sense of community. “We’ve been a part of this since the mid-1970s. The pride of Red Rock has to be restored and it begins on that hill,” Schwerin said.
In her letter, Harrington-Eger wrote: “When purchasing family plots it was written that the cemetery has perpetual care. Why was I, or for that matter anyone with loved ones buried there, not notified that there was no more money to continue the upkeep of the Red Rock Cemetery. … I am disgusted with the disrespect that is shown to the Red Rock Cemetery. … I write this letter to inform anyone who has a loved one buried at the Red Rock Cemetery who may not have know that it is not being cared for.”
Harrington-Eger and Schwerin have done that. Perhaps more than just their questions will be answered — they may also help the graves of Mercer and others become more visible again and less painful to those they have left behind.
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jkarwowski wrote on Sep 3, 2009 11:19 AM: