Cemetery Walk In North Webster
During the Cemetery Walk, the library conducts guided tours through the North Webster Cemetery where enactors are stationed throughout the cemetery portraying local persons who are interred there. It presents a unique and engaging way to learn about local history and the people who lived, worked, and raised their families here.
The 2012 Cemetery Walk will honor Howard “Dutch” Wyland (1923-1986), Earl and Irene Gerard (1897-1963 & 1898-1985); Neva Greider Spangler (1927-2005), Rebecca Wyland (1835-1926), and Verland Bockman (1922-1983). The enactors are Don Minear, portraying Howard “Dutch” Wyland; Beverly Earnhart, portraying her mother Neva Greider Spangler; Rebecca Pressler, portraying her great-great-grandmother Rebecca Wyland; Matt Pulley, portraying Verland Bockman; Lori Hickman, portraying Irene Gerard; and Mike Lamle, portraying Earl Gerard.
The deceased persons being portrayed in this year’s Cemetery Walk were selected from a Cemetery Walk Essay Contest held in March in which patrons submitted essays about the life of a person interred in the local cemetery.
Guided tours begin at the library, located at 305 N. Main Street in North Webster, and leave every 15 minutes between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. The North Webster Cemetery is within a short walking distance from the library. Golf cart shuttles will be available for people who have difficulty walking. While patrons wait for their tour to begin or after they return, they will be treated to free entertainment by local music sensation Ivory West and refreshments served by Friends of the Library in the library’s Local History and Genealogy Center.
For more information, contact Beth Smith, Director of Adult Services and Local History and Genealogy Center, at 574-834-7122 ext. 205. Videos of past Cemetery Walks are available for viewing on the library’s website at www.nweb.lib.in.us under the Local History and Genealogy tab.
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PHOTO CAPTION: Local school teacher Matt Pulley portrays Allen Morehead (1830-1914) during the 2011 North Webster Cemetery Walk sponsored by the North Webster Community Public Library’s Local History and Genealogy Center.