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Bettes
Cemetery is the oldest cemetery owned by Akron. The first grave dates back to
around 1817. It is located on a woody hill, hidden from view behind several
surrounding industrial buildings. Veterans from the Revolutionary War, Civil
War, and World War I are buried here. Despite this historic significance, Bettes
Cemetery had been forgotten for several decades. The cemetery was only recently
discovered, after having sustained several decades of neglect and severe, irreparable
damage by vandals.
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| The most notable grave is that of Captain Nathanial Bettes, a Revolutionary War hero who died in 1840 at the age of 92 years. This is his original gravestone. Before taking this picture, this marker was covered in dirt and had to be brushed clean. Throughout our visit to this site, we were reminded again and again of the cemetery's dire need for better preservation efforts by the city. |
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Gravestone of Captain Bettes' son. His grave still shows signs of being violated last year by local, drunken high school kids who dug up his 148 year-old grave. They were later charged with vandalism by local police. |
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One of many badly damaged and illegible tombstones. In the background, outside the fence on the edge of a hill, is a piece of another unknown tombstone |
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Grave of infant Mathew Bettes, born June 24th, 1839, deceased July 22nd, 1840. The other black tombstones in the background are illegible
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The Lakey or Yocky (spelled both ways on these markers) Family plot. The large white tombstone on the right is that of brothers John and Henry, who died on the same day, September 5, 1842. They were 7 and 5 years old, respectively. |
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Tombstone
of Edward Mansur, who died in May 1866 at the age of 56 years. This, like many
markers, had been sloppily painted white on some parts of the stone in an apparent
attempt to improve its appearance.
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