Newton Twp. – The Newton Township Cemetery Association is continuing to record cemetery gravestones until inclement weather in the seven cemeteries of Newton Township. Information from this project is being compiled in a data base at the Newton Township administration building. Work with the Lutheran and Wilderson cemeteries is nearing completion.
Types of information needed for this project are the deceased’s name (first, middle and last), complete dates of birth and death, and, where possible, a woman’s maiden name. When this data is not available on the gravestones, a volunteer looks to other resources such as newspaper obituaries at the local history rooms of the Newton Falls Public Library and the Warren-Trumbull County Public Library, records for deaths, social security and burials, or web searches through ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org.
The location of the gravesites and photos of the gravestones are placed in the database to eventually help the Township staff with the management of the cemeteries. Also, any inscriptions and art work on the front and back of the stones, military information, condition of the gravestones, what type of material they are (granite, marble, bronze, cement), the type of headstones (flat, table, obelisk, etc. and if any of these are on a base) and the dimensions of the stones are additional details entered into the data base.
With its limited funds, the Newton Township Cemetery Association makes cemetery improvements as monies become available. A new roof was placed on the St. Michael Cemetery chapel in 2012 by the Association through a private donation. Tree stumps were removed from the Newton Falls East Cemetery this year, again with donated funds. Another project of the Association was the repair and stabilization of some gravestones. Money for the repair materials was realized from the sale of calendars and Association membership fees. Two members, Kay Gary and Ed Hoerig, volunteered their time to do the repair work and always appreciated help from other community residents.
Future fund-raising suggestions were discussed at the October meeting. Still available for $10.00 is the 2014 calendar featuring the pen and ink drawings of Broad Street by Edward P. Sinchak, former art instructor at the Newton Falls High School. The calendars can be purchased in Newton Falls at Art Effects, Newton Falls Printing, Nussle Florist or Rood’s Wallpaper & Paint Store. Call 330-872-0236 or contact any Association member for information about purchasing a calendar.
If you would like to help preserve the history of the seven cemeteries, please consider joining the Association. It is a nonprofit which has been in existence for 109 years. Annual dues are $10; one additional family membership is $5.
Election of 2014 officers will take place at the next meeting on November 21, 2013 at the Newton Township administration building on Newton Falls-Bailey Road.
