By BARBARA BARBIERI
This year the Wells County Historical Society combined a My Town program with the annual Cemetery Walk, as the history of the town of Tocsin and the Prairie View Cemetery were presented Sunday afternoon in the Historical Museum’s annex.
Lynn Elliott introduced the program presenters and Annie Kunkel Hoffmeier presented a brief history of the Prairie View Cemetery, also known as the Tocsin Cemetery that was founded in 1909.
Next to be introduced were four cemetery honorees — Rachel Ashcroft (Marcia Hotopp), The Honorable Michael Blue (Jim Sturgeon), Rev. Lewis Johnson (Dave Schultz), and Iven Richey (Alan Daugherty).
Cindy Lindeman Hedges gave a brief history of the town of Tocsin, which was platted in 1883. The town’s name came from the sound a train’s whistle made as it would travel through the area. The railroad played a big role in the town’s development.
Town honorees included Samuel Kunkel (Robert Kunkel), Arthur P. Kelly (Nat Bryan), the Trullender Family (Mickey Jones) and Bonnie Lou Kreigh Gregg (Jen Sturgeon). Current Tocsin resident Linda Sue Kumfer also was asked to talk about the current state of the community.
In presenting the history of the Prairie View Cemetery, Hoffmeier explained that it was first opened for interment on March 24, 1909. The first two rows on each side of the driveway were valued at $50 with the third and fourth rows valued at $35. The fifth and sixth rows were valued at $25 and the last two rows on each side were valued at $20.
These prices were established by the directors who were President John Heckley, buried in row 10; Secretary Charles White; Treasurer Jerry Rupright, buried in row 2; and Superintendent of the cemetery grounds John H. Johnson, buried in row 11.
An article in the Bluffton Chronicle from March 31, 1909, put it this way: “Three acres of land purchased from the John H. Johnson farm, one and one-fourth miles north of Tocsin was sold as a model of burying ground. Deputy Surveyor Fred Davenport and Elmer Sark did the survey and plat of the land and within a short time the association would be ready to sell plots.”
The first person buried in the cemetery was Jennie Sophia (Dougherty) Jones who passed away April 22, 1909. She is buried in row 2. In 2014, her monument was cleaned and set on a concrete base with funds donated by a living relative. A plaque placed at the base of the monument states she was the first person buried there.
Since 2013, volunteers have helped remove dead and unstable trees from the center drive and perimeter of the property. With a suggestion from Leann Nash, memorial trees have been planted to replace some of the trees, with memorial plaques attached. Those currently honored are Harold Wayne Hunt, The Rupright Family, Dorothy Watrous Hunt, Merlin R. Nash, Arden and Helen Kunkel, Ruben and Blanche Kunkel and Larry Kumfer.
To date approximately 336 burials are documented for the Prairie View Cemetery.
barb@news-banner.com
