Stonewall Cemetery

In 1817, Nathaniel Wilson III set aside land at the east side of his property in Hocking Township as a family burial ground.  He enlisted the help of Thomas Ewing to convey the cemetery to President James Monroe.  On October 24, 1817, the land was deeded to President Monroe and his successors forever in trust for Nathaniel Wilson and heirs for their use as a family cemetery.

To protect the site, Wilson began construction of the 7′-high sandstone walls in 1838, situating them in the shape of a dodecagon.  Nathaniel died May 12, 1839, before finishing the walls.  His youngest son, Gustin, completed the project.  The wall is considered one of the best examples of dry-stone masonry in Ohio.  There is not another cemetery known to be like this one.

The entrance faces geodetic true north.  The inscription above the gate reads:

THIS WALL
which encloses the family burying ground of
NATHANIEL WILSON (one of the early Pioneers of
the West, who emigrated from Cumberland County Pa and settles near this place
AD 1798, when all around was one continued and uninhabited
wilderness) was commenced by him AD 1838 & finished in the following year
by his son GUSTIN, the former having suddenly died May 12, 1839.

Looking from the gated entrance of the cemetery to the back wall were six graves.  The first marker is for a Child of Mandana Wilson Gallagher.  Second, is that of Harvey Wilson.  To his left is Infant Daughter of Gustin and Marg Wilson; to his right is Son of Alice Peters.  The third stone from the entrance is for Nathaniel Wilson III.  To his right, Alice Peters.  The fourth stone from the gate is that of Alice Wilson, the fifth is Polly M Wilson, the sixth is Noble Wilson.  In 1907, the remains of Nathaniel Wilson II and his wife were moved here and buried but without slab markers.

No evidence has been found that President Monroe ever accepted the deed.  However, for many years it was the tradition of Fairfield County officials to notify each new president that he was the trustee of Stonewall Cemetery, thereby giving Stone the local nickname, The Presidents’ Cemetery, even though no president is buried in it.

Ownership of the cemetery was returned to Fairfield County in 1960.  In 1966, Fairfield Heritage Association acquired the site, restored it, and opened it for viewing in 1978.  It was vandalized repeatedly.  Eventually, it came under the care of Hocking Township Trustees until 1998 when it was acquired by Fairfield County Parks.  The gate is kept locked to prevent further vandalism.