USA > Michigan > Macomb County > Warren > Pioneer Cemeteries of Warren Township Warren Michigan in Macomb County > Part 1
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Pioneer Cemeteries of Warren Township Warren Michigan in Macomb County by Wesley E Arnold humble historian part of a series of books
Pioneer Cemeteries of Warren Township Macomb County Michigan By
Historian Prof Wesley Edward Arnold
A FREE PRESS IS THE SAFEGUARD OF FREEDOM. WHERE THEY BURN BOOKS THEY WILL BURN MEN. Where they take away freedoms THEY WILL TAKE AWAY MEN!
Library of Congress Cataloging In Publication Data Arnold, Wesley Edward
Pioneer Cemeteries of Warren Township Michigan
ISBN 0-915935-13-3
Copyright 2012 Wesley Edward Arnold humble historian However these records are free for all to use for research or educational use.
Printed in Warren Michigan.
Visit my Historical web site at macombhistory.us where there are lots of pictures. See some of my other 40 or so books
Warren Union Cemetery Index
Warren Union Cemetery based on research who is buried there and who might be buried there and graves by location.
St Clement Cemetery Index St Clement Cemetery burials by year St Clement Cemetery St Clement Cemetery records
History of Warren and Center Line a 20 volume compilation
Pioneer Cemeteries of Warren Township Macomb County Michigan
For most of the history of our area there were no cemeteries as we know them. Our area had many small single burial spots mostly single plots in the woods. Sometimes burial mounds, enclosures, special gardens were created. (See works by Wilbert B. Hinsdale) All of these were destroyed by pot hunters and plowed under. Many persons died in the wilderness and were eaten by predators simply because there was no one around to help them. Wolves hunted in packs and if you were alone a wolf pack could wear you down. Before fire arms alone you did not have a chance. Probably thousands of persons were buried over time in unmarked graves in Macomb County. Later there were small single family burial locations. For thousands of years persons who died were either buried by family or often if killed in battle were partly eaten by their killers (usually the heart was cut out and eaten by the killer) and the rest of the body was left to be eaten by animals. Sometimes the dead were eaten by animals in the wilderness. After 1700 European settlers buried their dead in shallow graves not far from where they died, often without a casket or stone marker. It they lived in larger communities usually a burial ground was set aside. All of these have been plowed over paved over and built over. Warren's oldest cemetery is in a school playground and parts of it were scattered around the area as fill dirt.
There were a few burial grounds but they had no engraved stone markers that have been discovered. Many of those were overgrown and later plowed and used as farmland. After 1845-1855 most of the dead were buried in one of six places 1 on the farm: 2 The Bidell-Green-Weier Cemetery, 3 The Warren Union Cemetery, 4 The St Clement Cemetery. or in a Detroit cemetery like Mt Elliot, or in Oakland County cemeteries. After 1880 some were buried at Mt Olivet on Van Dyke near Six Mile Road. There were almost no grave stone makers locally until after 1855. Many were buried without a casket or engraved stone marker. Often wooden markers were used. Of course these rotted away over time.
Both the St Clement and Warren Union cemeteries date from 1845-1855 but both appear to be preceded by the Bidell-Green-Weier Cemetery which probably began as an Indian mound.
In Warren Township the oldest recorded cemetery burials were at the Warren Union Cemetery, followed by the St Clement Cemetery. But between the A Bunert Farmhouse and the C Bunert Farmhouse Just N of Martin Road and West of Bunert Road, was an Indian mound which was 18 inches tall. It was most likely an Indian burial mound but this is uncertain. This mound existed prior to the settlement of their farm in 1849. It had become overgrown with weeds and shrubs so much that it was not particularly recognizable as an Indian mound and was missed on the early surveys. The settlers certainly were not in the habit of building mounds. The family reported that Indians came around often in the early days. They would read the sun like a clock and would disappear when the sun reached a certain angle. Indian artifacts have been found in the area. Local legends also give credence to the Indian mound theory. This area is generally flat and there is no logical geological explanation for a sand mound given the flatness of the surrounding area. Also considering that there was at least evidence of forty human remains removed from this site and that no archeologist was called in to evaluate the site so that there may have been other evidence that was certainly overlooked. Also consider that several dump truck loads of remains were trucked out of the site before it was discovered that at least one of them contained human bones. The family reported that other families sometimes brought relatives there for burial. I talked with one of the older Weiers and was told that their grand parents told them of a man who carried his dead baby for several miles to have it buried there as it was the only cemetery he knew about. Around this landmark early settlers from several families buried their dead. They probably did not know or care if it was an Indian mound or not. Whether or not it was will probably remain unknown as the evidence was destroyed and removed. Early farmers often raided Indian mounds to get pots. There was a road that led from Martin road directly to this cemetery. I have it on an aerial foto and showing the mound in the 1960s. I shall call it the Bunert-Indian Cemetery for shortness but it was
supposedly registered on the State of Michigan registry as the Bidell-Green-Weier Cemetery. I saw a 8 mm movie in about 1970 showing three burial vaults in which bones were being piled to be buried at Clinton Grove. It is now located on the southern half of the Briarwood school property. I spoke with the undertaker who performed the last removals. I found newspaper articles. And weirdly also found reports of ghost sightings believe it or not.
By the 1960s it was overgrown with Lilac shrubs that waved in the breeze. The Lilacs were planted by other families to mark the burial places but had become overgrown over the years. The Bunewrt-Weier family was forced by economic reasons to sell the property. The school district would have taken the property anyway as they wanted to build a school there. It was transferred about 1966. Mrs. Ida Weier told the school district that it was a burial ground and wanted all remains to be treated in a Christian manner. Bunert family burials were removed and reinterred at the Clinton Grove Cemetery in Mt Clemens. There were no stone markers, all of the wood markers had rotted away and the little stone pebble markers were displaced so it was not particularly recognizable as a burial ground. But she also warned the principal that it was a burial ground. He called her a crazy lady. During construction a skull and other human bones were discovered. (Per Tri City Progress 4 14-1967) In May of 1969 children playing in the school playground discovered more human remains. Imagine the look of shock on the teachers face when they brought human remains into the classroom. Later the principal went over to Ida Weiers house and wanted to question her about the remains. She reminded him that he had branded her a crazy lady for even suggesting that it was a burial ground.
A contractor or contractors dug a loads of dirt for fill dirt. One of the loads had been dropped it off on someone's property. The homeowner receiving the fill dirt found sculls and human bones and called the police who contacted the contractor. Imagine asking for fill dirt and getting human remains dropped off in your driveway. The poor truck driver was in trouble. But he just told the police that he doesn't inspect dirt put in his truck he just delivers it where told. It wasn't very long when that kids were also showing off human remains they dug from the mound. That finally got the officials attention. The school district wanted everything hushed up so no archeologists were called in and in fact it was them who hired a funeral director. The school certainly did not anyone to discover that this was anything other than a single family burial plot. But human remains of at least 40 humans were removed from what was left of the mound and the rest of the area was not explored. Historian Wesley Arnold states that he saw movies of this mound being excavated. William DuRoss the funeral director mentioned that Theuts, Greens, Hessels, and Schoenhers were probably buried there. So it was for sure a pioneer cemetery. Whether or not it was also the remains of an Indian burial ground had not been determined by scientific investigation and will never be never known as the evidence has been removed and scattered. And even though a few bones were removed the balance of the remains of those pioneer families remain underground. This historian does not believe in ghosts but must report many of sightings over the years by homeowners adjacent to the Briarwood School property. Several families and even children have reported sightings and strange happenings there. As a historian I am honor bound to tell the truth. Strange. This historian feels that a plaque should be erected at least on the on a bench on the grass next to the paved path that goes around the ball field that would honor those pioneers buried there in unmarked graves, but I am sure the school district would not want that.
The St Clement Cemetery is located on Engleman West of Van Dyke. It is the biggest of our area's pioneer cemeteries the first known recorded burial was March 27, 1854. Over 800 burials date from the nineteenth century and over 1,500 burials prior to1943. See historian Wesley E Arnold's books on these cemeteries. All of my books are free. Also is my CD of Warren-Center Line Records which has pictures and indexes of all of the old grave stones in both Warren's Union Cemetery and St Clement's Cemetery. I plan to put the fotos on line at my website macombhistory.us These two cemeteries hold most of the remains of the pioneers of Warren. But there were also some local farm burials prior in the 1800s but records of these are lost. One house on what was the old River Road has a stone burial marker marker.
The St Clement record writers should be whipped because of their disregard for clear writing and poor record keeping. Hundreds of names are unreadable. There are years without records. 1850-1853, 1855, 1907-1911, 1922-1928 Heard this may have been to careless smoking. No known backup records were made. They wrote in Latin and Latinized peoples names.
Just because a name is listed on the record does not mean that the remains are still in the cemetery or ever were. Many were buried elsewhere or removed. There was a time when each family was supposed to maintain the graves by cutting the grass maintaining the stones and wooden markers. Who maintained the rows between the graves? Sometimes no one. The cemetery fell in such a state of unkeptness that the priest felt that the community should use other cemeteries such as Mt Olivet so he encouraged people to have their loved ones buried there. Many folks actually removed their loved ones and moved them out. In some years this cemetery actually had more bodies removed than were buried. Norman Smith former fire chief and a caretaker at the cemetery, related to me that sometimes funeral directors took the bones out but left the casket. Later when digging for a new burial the old casket was rediscovered halting all work until the truth was discovered often causing more grief to families who just lost a loved one. There are few surviving records of removals. And this Cemetery has been closed to burials several times. It is quite possible that on rare occasion families buried loved ones in secret. People sometimes just buried their loved ones and placed a few stones piled onto the grave site. Now over a hundred years later all surface indications are gone. In fact Norman Smith indicated that many grave stones were buried and had to be re erected. There may be yet some stones buried. Back many years ago there were no cement vaults. Mostly wooden boxes sometimes cloth covered. In the very early days it is possible that in times of hardship only a shroud may have been used. After many years the wood boxes rot and cave in leaving a depression. Some of these depressions can still be partly seen in the old part. Several of the old stones need repair, support, revitalization and a coating of stone sealer. I was proud of the folks at St Clement. This is partly why I as an unpaid Historian have devoted hundreds of hours working on this historical project. Lastly these names have to be studied, and revised into correctness based on handwriting, and other records. This will take a few more years of research. Consult the negative to see the actual record. The negative number is the last entry on each line. All visible stones were photographed and are available on compact disk free from Wesley E Arnold. However I plan to put this online as this may be the best way to preserve these records. With each new priest at St Clements old workers are fired and new ones are hired. This often leads to no continuity particularly in regard to the cemetery. Valuable knowledge is lost. A caretaker at St Clement admitted that in the older parts of the cemetery they go exploring for caskets and stones before they dig. They use a metal rod to probe for a stone or casket. And when they dis they watch for bones because the old wooden coffins have deteriorated into dirt as have some of the bones. Sometimes all that is left is teeth and perhaps a metal button or belt buckle. It was reported in 2011 that St Clement has managed to lose some of its records and Wesley Arnold may now has more old records the they do. The good news is he publishes all of his research for all to see and for free. I went there to do a little research and they refused to give me information on a death that was over 100 years old. They told me that only family members could get this. Well all of the family members are dead. I told them that I was the person who rescued their cemetery record book from the trash 30 years ago and 6 years ago I was the one who filmed their cemetery records and that they are using my CD disk I gave them to look up records even now. But in the last few years they have failed to maintain the records and make back up records. And they have lost some records. Their refusal to share 100 year old records with the very historian who saved their records and put a lot of time and effort in saving their records was unjustified and ignorant. I will not share my newer extensive research with them. It is their loss. This lack of adequate care of priceless records is the norm around the world. At least St Clement has fairly good records although many are unreadable. The two other Warren pioneer cemeteries have no surviving records at all.
In Warren Township the oldest recorded cemetery burials were at the Warren Union Cemetery, followed by the St Clement Cemetery. St Clement's first recorded burial was March 27, 1854. Over 800 burials date from the nineteenth century and over 1,500 burials prior to 1943. However this was and is a Catholic cemetery centered in Center line. But believe it or not Warren Union Cemetery could
actually have more burials as the Warren Union Cemetery has depending on adult vs child 2,600 or more possible burials. That is in the realm of the possible because this cemetery took all faiths, and stillborns, and day old babies and paupers and anyone who died in the Warren Township area several churches. But St Clement was limited to Catholics and one church. The records of Warren Union Cemetery are lost due to great negligence, disrespect and dereliction of duty of those responsible and sad to report that negligence and disrespect continues on to this day. Proof on that is forthcoming.
There were also local farm burials prior to 1850 but records of these are lost. This includes the two burials at the Bunert Farm in a mound allegedly used by Indians for burials.
A local historian interested in documenting our local history for future generations commenced a several year study of Warren and Warren Union Cemetery by stopping at the Methodist church on Chicago Road and asked to see the cemetery records. That request turned up the response of "what records we have none nor do we have anything to do with the cemetery now." The historian went to the local Warren Historical Society and they stated they did not maintain records and could not find their records they had and referred me to a private individual whom could not find her "very limited records." I tried St Paul UCIC Church who owns most of the cemetery and was told they had no records. I later began attending that church did so for over a year and am in the process of joining it. Discovered they have a cemetery committee which consisted of only a couple people. They refused repeated requests to allow me to see their records. This committee appears to be somewhat secretive and does not hold regular meetings. In fact I tried for over a year to attend a cemetery meeting and had important business for them to take care of but this was totally ignored. It seemed that One Ann Pycheck appears to want to keep all of the dealings, decisions etc. only to herself and does not want anyone else involved. It also appears that this committee has ignored needed cemetery business. Example I wanted to tall them a big stone was about to topple and could hurt or kill a child. I have yet to figure out why this person or group is so secretive. They turn a deaf ear to anything they do not want to deal with but in all fairness they do manage to pay one half of the mowing and sometimes kick out money out of their huge cemetery fund to pay for emergency tree cutting. Anyway I was amazed and shocked that this church who has owned most of this cemetery since 1884 has failed to maintain any records.
I went to the Burton Historical Collection and made a copy of the 1938 survey of this cemetery made by the Detroit Genealogical Society which appeared to be done and double checked with a high degree of accuracy by different surveyors a year later. Around that time the local historical society had done the same thing and had someone type up the list which they are selling during cemetery walks with Dorothy Cummings. Since Dorothy has lived near the cemetery for most of her life. I interviewed her to learn what I can to put down in my books for future generations. I found out that she lived away from the Warren area for quite awhile and had not kept records. She was not the responsible person for records. In fact I interviewed many persons and visitors to the cemetery during the many months I was in the cemetery taking measurements and readings. One person told me records were kept on a board but that had rotted out and was trashed. Another told me that a church lady had good records but after she died her kids threw everything out including a big map of where most of the old burials were. Another told me records were destroyed when a church basement flooded. One man told me he suffered two broken legs when a stone fell on him while he was a child. That could happen again to a child there as both St Paul and the Warren Historical Society have ignored my suggestions that we take emergency actions to fix the tilting stones.
It is now 2012 and after doing research in and about this cemetery for a few years and the people of the surrounding area for many years I am in process of publishing my findings free to all in a 20 volume history of the Warren Area. Not to brag but just to state a fact I have done more research than anyone else including (and I list them with great respect and honor to them) Gerald Neil, Mike Grobbel, Jack Schram, Harold Stilwell, Pat Hallman and others such as Fred Gemmill (in telling the history of the City of Warren. I collaborated with him on the book Pathways to Freeways. You can recognize my writing in the first quarter or so of the book.) I also greatly helped Martha Burczyk with her Warren history book. Both of those books are nice but very incomplete so since I retired and since my time left here in this world is very short I decided to type up my research and give it to future generations without
cost. You can see my books and print out any of the 10,000 pictures you wish or print any of the 4,000 pages. As far as Warren Union Cemetery I have recorded, measured, figured, researched, talked with many visitors and locals. I have indexed all of the visible stones and photographed them. This book is Part 1, The Index is Part 2, the Pictures will either be on my website or in a few more parts of this series but for sure will be on my free CD. Visit my Historical web site at macombhistory.us where there are lots of pictures history, historical videos and 800 of the best music pieces of the past all free. There are over 2,000 links on that web site. 600 to pages of history. Plus there is the 20 volume History of the Warren area all free my gift to you and future generations.
The Warren Union Cemetery is located between the Red Run River and Chicago Road East of Ryan Road in the NW corner of Warren Township, Macomb County Michigan. Pioneer farmer Peter Gillette sold a parcel of land in 1845 to eighteen families for a burial ground and reserved a lot for his family. The Warren Union Cemetery Association (long gone) was organized in 1852 to maintain the cemetery. The plaque which was not based on serious research but someone counting existing grave stones states that Warren Union Cemetery has 325 graves that date from the 19th Century. This statement is so unresearched and misleading that it is an insult to those buried there. Note more recent studies by different researchers indicate perhaps at the very least 500 graves date from 19 Century plus nearly 500 buried after 1900 based on just existing stones plus an additional 500-1,600 unmarked graves just within the now fenced in area.
There are many unmarked burials in this cemetery there is no doubt. There are township records, church records, newspaper obits and articles and family records indicating or implying that multiple persons were buried there yet there is now no stone now marking that grave. I am finding these slowly with time as people contact me as a result of my huge history website. If I live longer I intend to add these to this book or at least put them on my web site.
Researchers who have studied this cemetery and other older Michigan cemeteries have found that there are often many more persons buried than there are stones. Millar Cemetery over on 16 Mile has only 54 head stones yet I have been told there are probably over 100 burials there if not more. At another location Archeologist Scott Akridge was amazed when he visited a local cemetery in 2004. "As many as 200 graves are located here," he said, although only six headstones exist. Most of the 180 cemeteries in the county have numerous graves that are unmarked or marked only with unscribed field stones. Many military veterans lie in these spaces." (http://www.argenweb.net/white/cems) And there are thousands of Civil War soldiers in unmarked graves. (I have identified a few that may be in Warren Union Cemetery.) And many thousands more babies and children in unmarked graves around our country. Every one of you have hundreds of relatives in unmarked graves. You doubt me. OK Where are your great great grandparents uncles aunts and cousins buried?
(Just do a Google search on unmarked graves and see for yourself.)
After looking at my research and others research it is discovered that Warren Union Cemetery may have hundreds of more burials than stones now show. Consider that the original 18 families who had lots 10 feet by 30 most did not place stones. That is around 180 burials, of which just a few now have stones. This was not considered at all when the uninformed social club that is called the Warren Historical Society chose words for the plaque. Also consider that in the early days this cemetery was expanded many times as lots were sold and were used and the area was filled up. Consider again that many additional families bought lots but did not place stones when someone died. And consider that many babies died at birth or shortly thereafter and were buried in the back or on top of other burials.
And in those days most had big families and they usually filled up their lots and had to buy additional lots here and elsewhere (We have proof of that from several sources. See what Dorothy Cummings says about her family and records of other cemeteries verify this.
There were many deaths from many diseases we now have cures for which killed many babies,
children and adults. Sometimes there were multiple deaths of children in the same family and some died within days of each other and were placed in the same grave. And no marker ever put there.
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