City seeks living descendants of three buried in Bardstown cemetery
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio
Friday, March 24, 2017 — The City of Bardstown is seeking the public’s help in locating living relatives of three people who were buried in the Bardstown Cemetery between 1862 and 1870.
NANCY WOOD MCQUOWN
The grave sites for Elizabeth Ray (1811-1870), John D. Murphy (1843-1879) and Nancy W. McQuown, (1780-1862), have been tentatively selected to be part of a cemetery restoration project set for April 7, 2017. The city is seeking to locate living family members in order to get their permission to repair their family member’s gravestones.
The gravestones for all three individuals are broken and in need of restoration. The three will be used as restoration examples as part of a workshop conducted by nationally renowned cemetery preservationist Jason Church.
Church serves as the Materials Conservator for the National Center for Preservation Technology and Training. He will lead a cemetery restoration workshop on Friday, April 7 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. that will begin at the COBEC building before moving to the city cemetery for the hands-on training to repair and reset headstones.
Mr. Church will give a brief lecture on cemetery documentation, photography, cleaning, and preservation planning at COBEC, followed by hands-on training to reset and repair headstones in the Bardstown Cemetery.
JOHN D. MURPHY
Anyone with information regarding living relatives of the deceased should contact Preservation Coordinator RaShae Jennings, (502) 348-5947, ext 2243, anytime between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday prior to April 7, 2017.
NANCY WOOD MCQUOWN. This headstone is broken off just above the ground, with most of the stone now flat on the ground and partly overgrown by grass. The intent is to excavate the broken portion and demonstrate repair techniques to secure it to its base. The most recent burial in this family plot was Ruth H. McQuown (1913).
JOHN D. MURPHY. This headstone is separated from its raised base and is leaning against the base. The intent is to repair this headstone and place the broken part in its proper place.
ELIZABETH RAY (BOWMAN FAMILY PLOT)
ELIZABETH RAY (Located in the Bowman family plot). The top two parts of this three-section monument — the inscribed slab and a cap stone — are currently on the ground. The restoration of this monument will involve remounting the sections. The most recent burials in this family plot are Sallie R. Bowman (1922) and P.H. Bowman (1926).
If you have information regarding living relatives of the deceased should contact Preservation Coordinator RaShae Jennings, (502) 348-5947, ext 2243, anytime between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday prior to April 7, 2017.
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