Page 9 - Dictionary of Heraldry and Related Subjects

HAMMOND PROTESTANT CEMETERY

Some notes provided by Oscar Nicholson, the cemetery caretaker, February 1992

The Hammond Protestant Cemetery got its start early in the 20th century when Michael Miller
donated an acre of land to the Protestant people of the community as a place to bury their dead. At
that time there was no cemetery closer than Bear Brook and it was very inconvenient, horses being
about the only source of transportation. Some people even buried their dead on their own property
until they could be moved.

There were no hnds at the time and everything was done voluntarily and the burial lots were
practically free. After a few years some of the interested people, particularly J.F.Cooper, held
meetings and kept records of all things that were done and all donations and expenses.

After a number of years it became grown up in grass and weeds and needed attention so by
co-operation between many concerned it was levelled and tilled and then seeded with grass. What
headstones that were there at the time were lined up and put in place and the grass cut at regular
intervals, this made the cemetery look a lot better.

A small Methodist church in the village of Hammond was connected to the cemetery but the
people, through time, scattered to other districts and it came to a point that there were not enough
to keep it operating and so it was sold and turned into a dwelling. The Orange Hall on the other side
of the street was also sold and part of the money was given to the fund for care of the cemetery.

The funds are being held in an account and Term Deposits in the Caisse Populaire in
Hammond and along with donations from concerned individuals we are able to keep the cemetery
more presentable.

Back, sometime in the fifties, a new steel fence and gate were bought and installed along the
front next to the road. For the past four or five years the cemetery has been sprayed, fertilizer spread
and the grass cut, this has improved it considerably.

A charge of $100 is now made for a lot 16ft. square and $75 to dig, fill and clean up after a
funeral. To have the grass cut and the area around the head stone kept clean costs $25.

Mr. Miller, mentioned at the beginning, and some of his descendants have been buried here,
as has Mr. Cooper, his wife, sister and parents, my father, mother, brother and grandparents on both
sides and many cousins plus a sprinkling of others but the great majority are Empeys and Armstrongs.

Oscar Nicholson
3267 Gendron Rd.
Hammond, Ontario