Picture courtesy of Jim Kuntz

Picture courtesy of Jim Kuntz

This cemetery was established on 1847 for public burial. In 1897 many graves were moved to Oak Ridge Cemetery, now known as the City Cemetery.

The purpose of the concrete wall around the family plot of Dr. William Proctor was to keep livestock from knocking down tombstones and disturbing the grave site.

Most graves were unmarked. Important people whose graves are marked are Lemuel Kittrell, Doniphans' first settler, 12 soldiers killed at the Christmas Day Massacre, Capt. James Ponder also killed in the Civil War and Zebedee Washington Stephens who has many descendants still living in Ripley County.

Comments (1)

Jim Kuntz: ... In Missouri, cemeterys were normally not fenced. Being practical, farmers knew the grass was thicker there. Church and city cemeterys you will notice some family groups with concrete or stone walls erected to keep the cattle from knocking down the head stones. 1 August 27, 2006

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