Editorial: Cemeteries should be cared for

Talk about it

There is a lot of history in Rosemount’s cemeteries. The city’s founding families have members buried there. There are graves that go back more than 100 years, veterans whose service includes the Civil War.

It is a remarkable resource for people interested in genealogy, and there is a chance at least some of them could disappear.

The people in charge of Rosemount’s Pine Bend Cemetery have become concerned in recent years that their operations are no longer sustainable. The group of volunteers that manages the cemetery is made up of older residents -- they range in age from 77 to 92 -- and some of whom would prefer to hand their position over to someone younger.

The problem is, there are few young people interested in taking on the job.

The city of Rosemount turned down the Pine Bend association a few years ago. A deal with local veterans’ groups fell through. The county might take over eventually if the group were willing to abandon the cemetery for some undefined time, but none of the association members, all of whom have relatives in the cemetery, is eager to do that.

If nobody steps forward, graves that have stood for decades, and in some cases more than a century, could disappear in the near future beneath tall grass and weeds.

That would be a shame. Cemeteries like Pine Bend are among the most tangible links Rosemount has to its past. They are pieces of history that interested visitors can stroll through, seeing the names of some of the people who settled this area.

We don’t know what the answer is to help ensure the future of these resources. But we hope there are people out there willing to step forward and try.

Tags: opinion, rosemount, editorials