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mcc-jrr_201-024
Elko Switch Cemetery, 20-1 Summary Report, page 24
Note that William Thompson as the “assignee” of another first bought the land of the southwest quarter of Section 7 (T4-R1W) in 1809. James Manning bought one third of an acre of land as a “fractional portion” of the section “west of the [Old Chickasaw Indian] Boundary” in 1818, on the first day of legal sale, 2 February. According to the G. W. Jones “INDEX TO LANDS”, James Manning acquired the rest of the southwest and the northwest quarters of the section in 1820 from William Thompson. It is interesting to note that William Gray (Sr.) and David Maxwell purchased the other quarter sections of land in this township and range. Both of these pioneers are connected to the Gray Cemetery, which is about 200 yards west of Balch Road and about a quarter mile south of Gillespie Road in the town of Madison. William Gray was a soldier of the American Revolutionary War, having come from Ireland with his bride Eleanor Wardrobe, who was of Scottish nobility. William died in 1834 at the age of 79. He and Eleanor and several of their family are buried in the cemetery in Madison. David Maxwell had a daughter who is also buried in the Gray Cemetery. Her name was Margaret A. Maxwell, and her tombstone tells that she was the daughter of David & Margaret Maxwell. She died September 16, 1835, at the age of only 6 years, 2 months, and 26 days. The Gray Cemetery is believed to have become the “church cemetery” for the old Providence Presbyterian Church, but it was on land owned by the Gray family and no doubt was initially the family cemetery. Since there have been no records found to date to identify any of the people buried in the Elko Switch Cemetery on the arsenal, nor even any deed references to it in land transactions, it appears that nothing more definitive can be written about the cemetery at this time. Perhaps by more exhaustive examination of land records and County Commissioners' minute books in the future something may be found to reveal more of the history of this large but unknown cemetery. For now, we simply must “put it to rest”, along with its interns. By John P. Rankin, August 17, 2005 24 - (1603)