Many folks that live in Lisburn proper or even just outside our boundaries don't realize that there is a cemetery tucked between the fire company property and the Yellow Breeches Creek. For years the cemetery was only known by the swimmers who used it as a short cut to get to the deepest part of the creek to jump off the rope swings that used to hang from the trees on the steep cliffs.
The cemetery had a very elegant wrought iron gateway and fence that after years of neglect was over consumed by poison ivy , vines, and all sorts of overgrowth that hid the fact of it's existence.
Many people that know me, know my passion and commitment to the Boy Scouts. Scouting is a part of the American culture like a Norman Rockwell painting or a parade that happens every Memorial Day. For those not involved in scouting, it's easy to say without reservation that everyone knows the term "Eagle Scout" and what it takes to become one.
The Lisburn Cemetery Gate became my Eagle Scout project in the fall of 1980. The cemetery association had a need to restore the gate, and so I took on the challenge to restore a piece of our history. For (3) three weekends my scout troop and I camped along the mill race while spending the daylight hours with gloves, rakes, nippers, shovels and other tools of destruction to rid the area of the menacing overgrowth that covered the gate and fence. Then came the hard part, wire brushing down the gate and all the intricate parts of what is left of the original fence, then painting the entire structure.
One of the elements of preparing an Eagle Scout Project is putting together for approval the need and significance of the project. Usually a portfolio is put together with before and after pictures, the expected man hours, supplies needed, finances needed if any, and what leadership skills the Eagle candidate will show in completing the project. Part of the package to show the significance was to do research on the cemetery, compiling details of dates, prominent people buried there, etc.
It is fascinating to know that the lower part of the cemetery has native Americans buried there in unmarked graves. There are Civil War solders buried there, with GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) markers in front of their tombstones, although I believe unfortunately, many have been stolen through the years. The founder of the Churches of God for this area is buried there as well.
Many of the tombstones have been broken over the years and in an effort to be able to mow and trim throughout the grounds, have been stacked one on top of the other with no way of officially knowing where to relocate them in proper relationship to their owners. Many of the stones are so old and made of sandstone that the etchings are weathered and too smooth to read.
I hope that you each take a little time on some Sunday afternoon this summer and stroll through the cemetery grounds and read some of the stones. Find the grave of a Civil War solider or find the tombstone of a small child that only lived a very short time and imagine what might have happened to these people. By the way, I suggest starting your stroll of the cemetery grounds by walking through the actual gateway and fence. After 29 years, I'm still proud of my Eagle Scout Project.
Brian M. Kline
Eagle Scout Class of 1981
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