Hallowed ground with local history
Dedication of Grave Marking for Sarah Pruitt Jones & Francis Patrick Berry Sr. on Oct. 22, 2023
Oct 22 at 1:00 pm – The Ninian Chapter of the DAR held a Dedication Ceremony for Grave Marking of Sarah Pruit Jones (Daughter of Martin Pruitt, Revolutionary War Soldier)
Oct 22 at 1:30 pm – The Kaskaskia Chapter of the Daughters of 1812 held a Dedication Ceremony for Grave Marking of Francis Patrick Berry Sr., 1812 War Soldier.
https://woodriverillinoismuseum.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Invitations-Oct-22.pdf
November 11, 2022 – Dedication of crosses and Veterans Recognition
Vaughn Cemetery
We welcome you to the historic Vaughn Cemetery and trust that you will find this sacred resting place for many of Wood River’s early settlers and various war veterans, a scenic and peaceful place to visit amidst its towering mature trees.
This cemetery , once known as the” Vaughn Graveyard” dates back to the early 1800’s and was started by the Vaughn family whose family farm once encompassed much of the land that adjoins Highway 111 and whose farmhouse was located in the general vicinity. Within the boundaries of the two acre cemetery there once stood Madison County’s first Baptist Church, pastored by the Rev. William M. Jones Sr., whose family is buried here.
The cemetery also honors the veterans who fought to protect personal freedom in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War and the Mexican American War.
It is the final resting place for the victims of the Wood River Massacre. On July 10, 1814, while walking between two homesteads, a small band of Native Americans killed Rachel Reagan, her two children, two sons of William Moore and two sons of Abel Moore.
Due to their age, numerous headstones have been damaged and some repaired. Sadly, others could not be repaired or could not be reunited with the proper graves and the remains of those headstones are assembled in one location to keep them from being lost or destroyed. The unmarked graves are now marked with a cross as a memorial to those listed below. Based on our gathered information, it appears the first person buried in the cemetery was Sarah Pruitt Jones in 1806 and to date, the last was a descendant of the Vaughn family, Richard Vaughn Husted in 2019.
We hope you visit the cemetery again and invite family and friends so they can enjoy the serenity and share this piece of local history.
* For more details about the cemetery and Wood River’s early settlers, please visit the Wood River Museum and Visitors Center.
