When I was a small boy, my father, Ed Tyson took me with him to Rushville with the team and buggy. We were on the lower Pleasant View Road that goes into Rushville on Lafayette Street. About two miles east of Rushville on the south side of the road in the corner of a field was a weed patch and some tombstones standing in the weeds. There was a fence around the cemetery. He said his father, John Tyson, was buried there.
After I got older, Dad told me when he was three year old his father was kicked by a horse and it killed him. Later his mother married again and when Dad was 12 years old, his mother sold her small farm and took her family to California. Dad came back and lived in Schuyler County the rest of his life.
It was probably about 1910 when I first saw the cemetery. After a few years the fence between the field and cemetery fell down and was removed. Through the years the tombstones disappeared
When the Schuyler Jail Museum began publishing the SCHUYLERITE, I saw a newspaper item taken from The Rushville Times issue dated 1859. It said Joel Cooney had died and was buried in the cemetery of the Cooney farm two miles east of Rushville. He left a wife, a six year old daughter Mary Ann, and a younger son. Mary Ann Cooney was my grandmother, the wife of John Tyson.
I went to the court house and began to look up the records. James Cooney, a veteran of the War of 1812 had come from the east and bought the farm November 28, 1838. He probably was the first person buried there, although there doesn't seem to be a record of the date of death. The American Legion has been placing a flag on Memorial Day on his grave for years.
There were several transfers of the farm through the years and in 1898, Etta Cooney, William Cooney, and Kate Cooney his wife, sold the farm to George G. Garrison, reserving k acre- for community burial purposes. Those were the days when many- times the roads were so bad the only way to get the coffin to the cemetery was with a team and-wagon. That is the reason there are so many small cemeteries all over the county- most families buried their dead in the nearest neighborhood cemetery. There were a lot of monuments when I first saw it, one was at least six feet tall and stood above all the weeds.
For most of the people who died before 1916, the only record of their death is found in the local paper and many times they didn't know about a death if the family lived in the country. At a death the body was placed in a wooden box, sometimes homemade, and buried in the nearest cemetery after the funeral, which was held in the house where the person died.
Clarence Robeson bought the farm August 29, 1906 and his son
owns the farm now in 1983.
COONEY CEMETERY-Cont'd
When I found out that all the Cooney's were ancestors of mine, and my grandfather and great grandfather and Mother Tyson were buried there, I went to Jake Robeson, the owner of the farm and he said he would buy enough new fence to put up between his field and the cemetery. He also went to see George Phillips who was a neighbor and a member of the Township Board and chairman of the cemetery committee. Mr. Phillips said if they had easy access to the cemetery from the highway, he would see that the township would keep it mowed.
Several of my family helped build the new fence and tear out the old fence between the cemetery and the road. We also got a batch of chiggers while we were there. Since then the township has kept it mowed every time it needs it.
This spring Jim Burnside took the broken tombstones and imbedded them in cement for markers for the few people whose markers were still there. He also is trying to get a soldier's monument from the government for James Cooney who was a veteran of the War of 1812, but hasn't convinced the government that James Cooney is dead and buried in the Cooney Cemetery on the family farm in Schuyler County.
A few weeks ago with the help of my family, we placed new permanent markers for Joel Cooney, John Tyson and Harrison and Lucinda Tyson.
COONEY CEMETERY
NE1/4 Section 32--Rushville Township
Stones imbedded in cement:
BROWN, LENA C. dau of W. D. & S. J. BROWN d. June 16, 1865 age 3y 4m 17d .ADKISON, SIRRILDA J. dau of H. & P. A. ADKISON d. July 27, 1863 age gone MAHALEY, wife of LEWIS
d. Jan. 19,
Parts of a stone with veteran's flag, probably what remains of the stone for JAMES COONEY, veteran of the War of 1812.
Another stone with inscription too faded to read.
BOLING, ELLEN C., widow o Wm. Boling d. June 12, 1872 (no stone) New Markers:
TYSON, LUCINDA 1811-
HARRISON 1809-1884
JOHN June 21,1850-June 23, 1878
COONEY, JOEL 1831-1859 (father-in-law of John Tyson)
Death notice of Joel Cooney from the Schuyler Citizen May 25, 1859: Joel J. Cooney died at his residence 2 miles East of Rushville, on last Wednesday the 18th inst., of inflammation of the brain; aged 28 years. He leaves a wife and 2 small children. Mr. Cooney was a man of quiet unobtrusive manners and was highly respected by the community in which he resided. He was taken sick at 5 o'clock Wednesday the Ilth and died the following Wednesday, just one week thereafter. '
DAVIS CEMETERY RUSHVILLE TOWNSHIP
Deed Book 73 - Page 544 - #34507 - Recorded 21 Sep 1898.
FIELDS E. DAVIS and his wife, LYDIA E. DAVIS
to (One dollar and other valuable considerations)
SAMUEL DAVIS and his successors in Trust
That part of the North East quarter of Section Sixteen (16) in Town Twk (2) North of the base line and -Range One (1) West of the fourth Principal Meridian: Beginning Four Hundred and Twenty four (424) links west and Four Hundred and Eighty seven (487) links South of the North East corner of said quarter section and running thence South One Hundred and fifty (150) links to a stake, thence West One Hundred and Seventy five (175) links to a post, thence North one Hundred and fifty (150) links to a Stake, thence East One Hundred and Seventy five (175) links to the beginning, containing one fourth of an acre less or more.
This ground to be solely used as a place of burial for ourselves and our descendants and such of people of the neighborhood as may choose to select said premises as a place of burial for their dead friends and relations. The right of way for travel to and from said lot is also guaranteed to and from the public Road on the East line of said quarter section.
The cemetery is overgrown with trees; as been enclosed by a fence. There are few stones left; several foot stones remain.
HUFF, LEE (s of James C. &- Hester A. Huff) June 1862 (2y2mi6d)
JEFFORDS, SARAH E. (w of D.H.) 8 Oct 1868 (20ylOmlld)
PRESSON, WINFIELD SCOTT (s of RB & Y-M) 23 Aug 1862 (2Y3m28d)
UNDM'W'OOD, PANSY 24 Aug 1888 (2y3m)
DAVIS, NELLIE (d of WW & IJ) 3 Feb 1900-28Feb 1900
ONE OF THE FOOTSTONES HAS THE INITIALS - A.D.
ADDITIONAL BURIALS IN DAVIS CFMTEPY--no stones
From Death Record at the Court House:
DAVIS, LYDIA EMALINE 25 Sep 1904 (65yllm2ld) SYITH
(Rer name is on a stone with her husband in Rushville City cemetery
From Newspapers-
DAVIS, ZUIULDA (w of Richard) 11 Aug 1873 (28y) HILLS
DAVIS, ZERELDA 20 May 1840-22 Feb 1900
EADS CEMETERY
This cemetery is located in the S1/2 of NE1/4 of Section 33, Rushville, Twp. Farm presently owned by Paul Schenk.
TOLLE, Mary E dau of G H & M E - d 4-1-1859-8y2m10d
TOLLE, William K, son of G H & M E - d 2-14-1859-2y3m15d
EADS, Owen L, son of W and J J - d 6-23-1863-26y2m24d
EADS, Mary E, dau of W & N.J.- d-11-7-1858-2y2m4d