A graveyard that had long been forgotten, but which some residents had heard about, was recently confirmed in Greenspond, Bonavista Bay.
The local historical society called in Robyn Lacey and Ian Petty from Black Cat Cemetery Preservation to locate graves in a residential area, that had long grown over.
Lacey says it wasn’t long before talk about a graveyard in the area was proven to be true.
They eventually uncovered, nestled between two homes, 13 gravestones, many of which had completely worn away. They were able to decipher at least one date, 1790, confirming that the cemetery dated to the 18th century.
Petty says it’s not unusual that over time, a gravestone will topple over, sink into the ground, and get buried over. He says the grave markers they found were from a time when stones were shipped in.
He says the two main materials they were finding were limestone and sandstone, which would have been imported from England.
The stones had deteriorated under the soil, and the only legible name they were able to decipher was John Lush. The Greenspond Historical Society is now raising money for an Adopt-A-Grave program similar to that in Trinity to help restore and maintain the graveyard and learn more about its history and occupants.
