Forgotten burial grounds of Jewett detailed in new book

JEWETT―There may never have been a better time to be among the dearly departed in Jewett than the here and now.

Town Historian Elaine Warfield recently submitted her annual report to local government leaders, detailing her multitudinous efforts on behalf of the souls within the community’s dozen or so cemeteries.

“God only knows why I do it,” Warfield said, laughing when asked about the source of her attention and devotion.

Burial sites are often places people prefer to avoid at any cost. Warfield is the seemingly opposite, happily hobnobbing with dead folks.

Some of the graveyards are hidden or at least hard to find, many with no discernible signage. Others were discovered only after “walking down a back road and turning right at that weird looking tree,” she says.

Warfield’s deepening interest in the wellbeing of boneyards quite possibly stems from her introduction to the job in August of 2024.

“When I became historian, in some ways it was me doing what I was doing anyway,” said Warfield, already a well-respected documentarian, author and a former town councilwoman.

“Susan Neugebauer offered to take me to all these graveyards,” Warfield explained, referring to one of her local archival predecessors.

“This all started there and, since then, I’ve gotten pretty involved, trying to get every bit of information on who is buried where,” she says.

It has resulted in a 300-page book, Jewett, NY Cemeteries, and caretaking of eternal resting spots that makes them desirable real estate.

Well, almost. As she mingles with the mourned, Warfield keeps fastidious notes, informing government leaders of her deeds such as:

- “Spoke with David Slutzky and Louise LeBrun regarding Mills Cemetery on David Slutzky’s property.

- “Dug into the ground to locate three gravestones at Mills, uncovered some stones laying down in his backyard.”

- “Cleaned up Solomon O. Merwin gravestone which was hidden under dirt at a Jewett Heights cemetery and added it to the memorial list onfindagrave.com.”

- “Sent letter to Muriel Acres at Jewett Center regarding sign at Gass Cemetery, the oldest cemetery in the town”

- “Ordered new metal signs for the following cemeteries: Lord, East Jewett Church, Woodworth, Old (on Farber Farm property along Route23C), Hull Peck, Jewett Heights, Gass, Skiff, Towner and Miles.”

- “Documented a child’s grave on Merwin Street, small monument in the woods.”

- “Documented lone gravestone found face down at a property on Colgate Road in East Jewett, Grant McCoon, date of death 1926.”

While there are only two active graveyards in the town of Jewett―Maplewood Cemetery and the East Jewett Methodist Church―all are equally deserving of reverence for Warfield.

She is joining the legendary ranks of Margaret O’Bryan and Olive Newall Woodworth who traversed the mountaintop in search of all but forgotten final resting pastures.

Warfield also confabulates with genealogist Sylvia Hasenkopf, president of the Town of Cairo Historical Society and co-owner of Porcupine Soup, a popular local online newspaper.

Jewett, NY Cemeteries, is a compilation of information gathered from Warfield, Neugebauer, O’Bryan, Newall Woodworth and Hasenkopf, along with Windham Town Historian Patty Morrow and storied Jewett history buffs Gerry Loucks and Elwood Hitchcock.

Each tale of entering the great beyond is unique, not excluding that of a beloved horse, Flora, and her earthly master, Chauncy Lord.

“While going up the road one day, Flora fell dead,” Warfield recounts. “Chauncy buried her along the Eastkill in East Jewett.

“He carved a stone and it remained there for over 100 years until it either was swept away by rising storm waters, or the stone was removed by someone,” Warfield said, noting Chauncy had no marker for himself.

As for Warfield’s own departure, her family has eight plots behind the East Jewett Church.

“My husband Buck is there. My name is on the stone, ”Warfield says in easy-going fashion. “So, I say to my kids all the time, the only thing they have to do is add the end date” and maybe stop by some sunny mornings or peaceful evenings.

More information on the book can be found at elainewarfield.com/town-of-jewett-ny-books.

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