Old Methodist Cemetery

From the Cemetery Records compiled by the Lost River Chapter DAR

Stampers Creek Township Section 12 T1N, R1E Abandoned

This old burial place, almost obliterated by time and the encroaching forest, has long been called bythe above name. It is about 1 mile south of State Road 56, and near the Paoli-Stampers Creek Township line. A pioneer Methodist Church stood near the graveyard, and a public road ran on the Township line directly South to Chambersburg. The road was long ago abandoned. The Church was on the Paoli circuit, and was called "Kearby's", being built on Edward Kearby's land. In 1840 the Church trustees were Edward and Joel C. Kearby, Daniel, Ezekiel, and Jacob Robbins. The Kearby families were among the early settlers from Kentucky. The graves of Edward and his two wives were covered by table tombstones, such as are used in the South. Beside the 20 stones with inscriptions, there are traces of several other graves. A few burials have been moved. The oldest marked stone is that of Elizabeth Kearby, who died in 1826.

NOTE from the editor: I have personally visited this cemetery. In addition to the stones listed by the DAR, I found one other, which is marked by an asterisk. I also cleared up a personal family mystery; the DAR lists Elizabeth Kearby's age at death as 19, which seemed impossible to some researchers. I carefully inspected the stone, and found her age to actually be 49, with the angle of the 4 being rather indistinct. I have photos of this stone which clearly show it to be a 4 and not a 1. I was also unable to locate four of the stones listed, but they may have been hidden in the underbrush, as it is a densely covered area. --VLH

The following is a transcript of data recorded by the Lost River Chapter of the DAR in the 1940's and remains their property.  This page may be freely copied for your personal use but may not be reproduced in any public media without permission

Copyright © The Lost River Chapter of the DAR and Orange County INGenWeb

BAKER, William T., son of J. & S., 19 May 1839-21 Jul 1851
BAKER, James V., son of J. & S., 1842-Jul 1851
BAKER, John E., son of J. & S., d. 28 May 1855, 11 years old
BENTON, Lewis, son of Morris Benton (a Methodist minister who had married
       Priscilla Ann Kearby, daughter of Joel C. Kearby), 5 Sep 1857-15 Aug 1858
*BENTON, Thomas A., daughter (sic) of M.W. and P.A. Benton,
       21 Aug 1851-27 Sep 1851
BOYD, Rhoda, consort of William (who was in Rev. War), 20 Nov 1753-
       30 Nov 1846, age 93 years  Photo
KEARBY, Elizabeth, d. 3 Oct 1826, age 49y 7m; consort of Edward
       (DAR has age 19y--incorrect)
KEARBY, Juda Merrain, d. 16 Sep 1845, age 58y 4m; consort of Edward
KEARBY, Edward, d. 3 Jul 1845, age 64y 4m
KEARBY, Priscilla, d. 11 Aug 1836, age 92y
KEARBY, Joel C., 8 Jun 1794-3 Dec 1876; 82y 5m 25d
KEARBY, George D., son of J.C. & Sally, 1819-18 Aug 1888
KEARBY, Henry C., d. 1855, age 23y
KEARBY, George M., d. 1855, age 2y 3m 8d; son of W.S. and R.
KEARBY, James E., 4 Oct 1853-26 Aug 1854; son of Thomas and Finetta
KEARBY, Paralee E., 20 Jan 1852-27 Dec 1852; daughter of Thomas and Finetta
ROBBINS, Daniel, 25 Mar 1785-15 Jan 1870; age 84y 7m 20d
ROBBINS, Jane, 6 Apr 1784-15 Oct 1872; wife of Daniel; 88y
STONE, Lewis M., d. 18 Jul 1855, age 1y 14d; son of J. & M.J.
STONE, James W., d. 1862, son of J. & M.
STONE, infant son, 1887-1887