CHAMPAIGN COUNTY — A local man is working to restore an overgrown cemetery that’s home to hundreds of people, including Revolutionary War veterans.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
As reported on News Center 7 at 11:00, the Rector-Guard cemetery is near the intersection of Storms Creek Road and Upper Valley Pike on the edge of Champaign County.
TRENDING STORIES:
- 17-year-old girl accused of killing mother, stepfather inside their home
- First human case of West Nile virus confirmed in Ohio this year
- Woman accused of intentionally setting Dayton apartment building on fire
To get to the graves, News Center 7 crews had to park on the side of the road, walk through a soybean field, and into the woods about a quarter mile.
Tipp City resident John Zerkle spent most of his childhood living near the cemetery.
He said he would often place flowers on the graves.
“What you don’t take from Mother Nature, she takes back. And she’s taking it back,” Zerkle said.
Zerkle moved away, but now, three decades later, he’s back in Champaign County.
When he visited the cemetery, he was shocked at its condition.
“You walk around and you’ll think ‘Is that a rock or something?’ And you find out it’s a tombstone,” Zerkle said.
News Center 7’s Taylor Robertson learned there are 287 people buried at this cemetery.
There are seven veterans, six from the Revolutionary War and one from the War of 1812.
“In just a year, it will be the 200th birthday of our country, and we have revolutionary war heroes in here, and I’m not even sure where some of the graves are. We can’t even find them,” Zerkle said. “In fact, some old writings say this is called a pioneer cemetery. One of the first in the Midwest, so I think the first burial was in 1814. The last was 1940.”
Zerkle said he has made it his mission to figure out a way to clean up the graveyard and make it more accessible for those who want to visit.
“People stop all the time and (say,) ‘How do I get over there?’” Zerkle added.
He said it’s been hard to figure out who owns the cemetery and who is responsible for maintaining it.
The cemetery stretches across Champaign County, Clark County, German Township, and Mad River Township.
German Township’s website lists Rector-Guard as an inactive cemetery.
News Center 7 reached out to both townships and counties, but none of them could confirm if they were responsible for the land.
Zerkle said that after three years, he thinks he’s making some progress with county officials.
“Champaign County commissioners are on board... Just within the past couple of weeks, I met with them. I should have gone to them first, but I didn’t know,” Zerkle said.
News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.
[SIGN UP: WHIO-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2025 Cox Media Group
