Trees being removed at Bethel Cemetery near Gravette

GRAVETTE — The historic Bethel Cemetery is south of Gravette, just a short distance east of Arkansas 59. The burial ground has a long history, with some tombstones dating to 1818.

At least 50 veterans are buried in the cemetery, including 28 Confederate veterans and six unknown soldiers buried during the Civil War conflict.

An article in the 1993 Gravette history book written by Louise Russow says the six unknown soldiers were said to be Union soldiers bushwhacked on Little Spavinaw.

“Where they came from, no one knew,” Russow wrote. “The secrets of their lives were buried with them.”

Bill Degge, a member of Benton County’s Cemetery Preservation Group, has been cleaning and refurbishing the headstones of Confederate veterans at Bethel and other area cemeteries in recent years.

“This plot of ground for Bethel Cemetery was donated by Col. Bill Hastings,” Russow said. “Records in Benton County Courthouse show that in August 1880, Hastings sold some land. The deed read a certain number of acres were sold, except that area of Bethel Cemetery was a burial ground. In May 1991, a marker was erected in honor of Hastings by members of the Bethel Cemetery Association,” Russow said.

“In the early days, there were two churches, the Methodist on the north and the Antioch Baptist to the south on the hill. On the west was a highway, and the watermill on a creek east.”

A simple concrete arch at the northeast corner of the cemetery features a plaque noting it was erected in 1936 “in honor of our dead.” The arch was constructed by a group from the community who worked to clean and refurbish the cemetery.

Then, in 1980, people who had family members buried at Bethel organized the Bethel Cemetery Association, electing officers and stewards.

Friends of Bethel Cemetery met recently to decide about the future of the cemetery. Three members of the Benton County Cemetery Preservation Group — President Nancy Feroe, Dorothy Miller and Becky Feroe — reported 337 stones had been cleaned in the last few months. The group responded by donating $150 to the preservation group.

Rows of Bradford pear trees are planted at the cemetery and have long adorned the property. However, several headstones in the cemetery have been broken in recent months because some of the trees are diseased and limbs are breaking off at an alarming rate. Therefore, the members made the decision to remove a number of the trees. They also approved hiring a person to remove the large pine tree beside the arch because it was leaning toward the arch and they feared it might damage the structure. Members also agreed to platting the cemetery, which has been needed for many years.

Cemetery stewards have been responsible for raising money and soliciting donations to pay for upkeep and mowing. Volunteers are needed to sit at the cemetery during the three-day Memorial Day weekend in May and ask for donations from visitors. Anyone interested in helping can contact Betty Russow, (479) 787-0625, who will set up a schedule for volunteers.

The next meeting of the Friends of Bethel Cemetery will be held at 2 p.m. April 26 at Berean Ministries Church, 303 Birmingham S.E., in Gravette.

(NWA Democrat-Gazette/Susan Holland) The trunk of a large pine tree that flanked the 1936 concrete arch at Bethel Cemetery lies on the ground near the arch. The tree was downed recently since it was leaning toward the arch and the Friends of Bethel Cemetery feared it might damage the structure.