Mt. Ebal Cemetery

Today's Walk Through the Tombstones is at Mount Ebal Cemetery in Bloomington, Indiana.  It is located on Fairfax Road near The Four Winds Resort and Marina.

GPS Coordinates: Latitude: 39.03306, Longitude: -86.48995

Mount Ebal Cemetery (we visited on Janurary 4, 2015) is located across the street from Mount Ebal Methodist Church, which is no longer an active church.  It was purchased by Bloomington Restoration Incorporated and restored.  The cemetery is, however, still active.  It was formally established in 1872 though the earliest grave is from 1856.  There is a grave here for Daniel Chambers.  His grave marker is engraved, "The Carpenter Who Built Mount Ebal Church".  

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Here is the grave of William M. Meadows.

Born: October 20, 1844
Died: May 17, 1948

And his wife, Sarah Ann Meadows.

Born: July 6, 1846
Died: September 14, 1930

There is an inscription on the base of the stone that says "Mother and Father".

William served in the 16th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, Company B.

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Now we come to the grave of William Harvey Butcher.

Born: December 3, 1855, Monroe County, Indiana
Died: March 29, 1915, Smithville, Indiana

He was the son of Hiram Butcher (1816-1902) and Amelia "Millie" Beasley Butcher (1820-1903).  They are both buried in Clear Creek Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.  

He was married to Jennie Scott Butcher (also listed as Nancy Jane Scott) (1859-1939).  She is buried in Clear Creek Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.

They had three children, two daughters and one son, but their names are not listed.  The couple divorced at some point and William later married Annie Hedrick.

He has 3 siblings:  
John E. Butcher (1850-1913) - buried in Mount Ebal Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana
Eunice Harriet Butcher Nikirk (1858-1937) - buried in Pleasant Grove Cemetery, Wise County, Texas
Joshua O. Butcher (1860-1878) - buried in Clear Creek Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana

His obituary is as follows, listed in the Bloomington Weekly Courier, March 30, 1915:

"Death of William Butcher

William Butcher, 60 years old, a well-known farmer south of Smithville dropped dead of heart failure this morning after he had partaken of a hearty breakfast.  He is survived by the widow who before her marriage was a daughter of William Hedrick. There are two children by a former marriage.  The only living sister is Mrs. John Nikirk of Texas.  He was a life-long republican.  

Funeral Wednesday at 1:30 at Mt. Ebal Church."

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Here we are at the grave of James Sexton.

Born: February 12, 1833, Tennessee
Died: May 12, 1914, Monroe County, Indiana

He served in the 82nd Indiana Volunteers.

He was married to Sara E. Siscoe Sexton (1840-1900).  She is listed on the opposite of the marker.

He had three children:
Laura Alice Sexton Eads (1864-1948) - buried in Mount Ebal Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.
Cordelia Sexton Shields (1877-1944) - buried in Mount Ebal Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.
Bertha Sexton Chambers (1883-1943) - buried in Mount Ebal Cemetery.

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And now on to the grave of James R. Kelley.

Born: August 2, 1858
Died: April 2, 1938

I could find no information whatsoever on this particular grave.  I would like to know something.  If you have any information, please email me or leave a comment.




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We now stop at the grave of Peter M. Gray.

Born: March 18, 1839
Died: March 28, 1872

The inscription on the stone states:

Peter M., son of P & S Gray
Died Mar., 28, 1872
Aged 33 years & 10 ds

There is no further information on this grave.  Please email me or leave a comment if you know anything.





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This is the grave of Silas Jerry Woodward.

Born: June 1, 1849
Died: October 12, 1892

He is the son of James Woodward (1813-1871) and Susan Dillman Woodward (1818-1909).  They are both buried in Mount Ebal Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.

This is definitely one of the most intricately carved graves we have seen so far.  The tree trunk can mean that the person who is carved into the marker was a member of the Woodsman of the World.  However, we could not find any mention of this on the grave anywhere.  It generally symbolizes the Tree of Life, or a life cut short.  The ivy carved into the trunk symbolizes the head of the family.

He is shown as having 4 siblings:
Mary Margaret Woodward Palmer (1846-1931) - buried in Clear Creek Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.
Joseph Simpson Woodward (1851-1930) - buried in Ketcham Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.
Julia Marie Woodward Borland (1857-1944) - buried in Clear Creek Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.
Flora Eveline Woodward Deckard (1863-1944) - buried in Clear Creek Cemetery, Monroe County, Indiana.

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I have not been able to make out much on these graves.  I will have to get back to Mount Ebal some time soon and see if I can get any more information.

Two of the three gravestones have the hand with the finger pointing up.  This symbolizes going home, i.e. to heaven.

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If you have any information on any of the graves shown here, or have a photo request, please feel free to email me or leave a comment.

I hope that you have enjoyed your walk through Mount Ebal Cemetery.

Please visit the listing at Find-A-Grave.