December 15, 2002 * Sauk Valley Sunday (Greg Smith)
Boy Scouts uncover history while volunteering at old cemetery

Not many people know about Zacariah Melugin, who founded Melugins Grove in southeastern Lee County. It took an Eagle Scout project to uncover this important piece of the county's history "I think the biggest surprise I had about the project was that it took a month to get permission to clean up the cemetery" said Riley Flowers of Dixon, the Boy Scout who organized the proiect. I had to write a letter to the (Lee County) states attorneys office and get waivers for volunteers who helped with the project in case anyone was injured. About 40 Boy Scouts and adult leaders worked on the project, though noteveryone worked at the same time. The actual work took about four days. Riley was looking for a project that would help him earn the rank of Eagle Scout early this fall His father, John, accidentally learned about the old cemetery that sets on land that once was owned by Melugin. I found out about the cenietery one day while returning from a work site on (Interstate) 39 when a co-worker casually mentioned as we drove past the site that there was an abandoned cemetery "over in those trees." said John Flowers. I immediately thought that this would make a great Eagle Scout project, and I asked her to stop so I could try and find the grounds.''

After searching for a few minutes, Jon Flowers found the only two remaining stones that stood up erect. Chest-high grass and small trees obscured them. When I found them they mere like something out of the "Blair Witch Project," said John Flowers. "Overgrown weeds and saplings prevented me from seeing much more than the two stones during my first visit, but I was convinced Riley mould be excited about the possibility of using this as his project. The cemetery known as ` Robinson's Cemetery" or `The Old West Burying Ground` sets on land that belonged to Zachariah Melugin. Melugins grandfather, John Melugin fought at the Battle of Bunker Hill and witnessed the British surrender at Yorktown. Zacarsah Melugin came to Dixon's Ferry from Tennessee in the early 183Os to participate in the Black Hawk War, He was a sergeant in one of thecompanies in which Abraham Lincoln served The war ended in 1832. After the war, Melugin was encouraged by his friend. Father John Dixon, to establish an inn about one day's travel from Dixon's Ferry on the Chicago-to-Galena Stage Coach Road. Melugin, with the help of his sister Mary, settled in what is now Brooklyn Township. Melugin was the first white settler in Lee County besides those who lived near Dixon's Ferry.

The project received a lucky break when it was discovered that Deb sutton of the Lee County Genealogical Society, Stella Grobe of the Lee County Historical Society and Carol Bally recently had spent some time at the cemetery trying to locate some graves, but were unable to do so due to the dense growth. Sutton was the one who learned that Lee County most likely owned the cemetery. Riley met with Sutton and Bob Boward, the president of the Lee County Genealogical Society. Sutton, had done a title search on the property recently and discovered the Robinson deed turning the property over to Lee County. She already was working on gaining formal permission to enter the property and record the visible graves. "I noticed that as the project progressed, Riley became more excited about what was going on." said Sutton. "It was real exciting when a grave marker that had never been recorded before, was found buried under the ground. Zachariah Melugin died in 1842 at the age of 36 years old. He was the first person to be buried in the Old West Burying Ground. The cemetery was active until 1885 After Zachariah's death, his wife married John Robinson, and is 1847 John and Mary Robinson deeded the cemnetery property to the trustees of Lee County. "I'm glad the project is done because I need to get my Eagle before I turn 18," said Riley. His birthday is later this month. A Boy Scout needs to turn in all his work for Eagle prior to turning 18. Despite the work on the historic cemetery, the volunteers involved in the project are reluctant to reveal the exact location to keep vandls from finding the site.

MORE MELUGINS GROVE CEMETERY PHOTOS

NAME	BIRTH	DEATH	SPOUSE	PARENTS
ADRIAN, Evins Obituary	15 Oct 1815	10 Oct	Marilla Goodle	.
ADRIAN, Mary Ann (Agler) Obituary	03 Feb 1828	12 Mar 1891	Evins Adrian	John & Mary Agler
ATKINSON, Francis	24 Jun 1851	25 Sep 1854	.	.
ATKINSON, Hampton A.	13 Dec 1816	09 Jun 1847	.	.
ATKINSON, Hampton	26 Jan 1853	19 Sep 1854	.	.
ATKINSON, Mary (Ross)	04 Feb 1814	13 Apr 1880	William Atkinson	.
ATKINSON, William	04 Dec 1806	31 Jun 1888	Mary Ross	.
BENNETT, Elizabeth	29 Feb 1811	29 Jul 1855	Joshua Bennett	.
BENNETT, Joshua	24 Dec 1803	24 Apr 1875	Elizabeth	.
BENNETT, Permelia	23 Feb 1807	05 Jul 1878	Joshua Bennett	.
BERRY, Sarah Eleanor (Melugin)	30 May 1823	28 Feb 1906	Ezra Berry	Jonathan & Sarah (Mitchell) Melugin
BOWERS, Jesse H.	18 Sep 1846	03 Jun 1878	.	.
CARNAHAN, Allen Mann	1807	11 Apr 1868	Elizabeth Clark	David & Margaret (Mann) Carnahan
CARNAHAN, Clara	03 Jul 1836	23 Dec 1867	.	Allen & Elizabeth (Clark) Carnahan
CARNAHAN, David	22 Mar 1838	14 May 1866	.	Allen & Elizabeth (Clark) Carnahan
CARNAHAN, Elizabeth F. (Clark)	18 Jul 1811	04 Mar 1885	Allen Mann Carnahan	.
CARNAHAN, Elizabeth	16 Aug 1841	03 Jun 1873	.	Allen & Elizabeth (Clark) Carnahan
CARNAHAN, Jasper	24 Jun 1862	26 Oct 1877	.	Allen & Elizabeth (Clark) Carnahan
CARNAHAN, Perry	11 May 1831	23 Jul 1874	.	.
CARNAHAN, Roy Obituary	12 Oct 1885	31 Jul 1953	.	.
CARNAHAN, Wilson	30 Oct 1851	12 Aug 1872	.	.
CHRISTEANCE, Mary Jane	31 Jul 1841	31 Jan 1864	Wm. Christeance	.
CHRISTEANCE, William H.	1831	09 May 1865	Mary Jane	Civil War Death
CLEMONS, Nancy Obituary	04 Mar 1874	06 Jul 1955	Ernest Clemons	.
CLEMONS, Otis Obituary	08 Jun 1868	25 Aug 1906	Alice Holdren	.
DOCTOR, Harriet E. (Atkinson)	08 Jul 1845	28 Oct 1865	Valentine Doctor	Wm. & Mary (Ross) Atkinson
FAIRCHILD, Clara (Holdren) Obituary	24 Jul 1863	06 Jun 1945	Zina Samuel Fairchild	Mathias & Eliza (Melugin) Holdren
FAIRCHILD, Frankie A.	18 Aug 1885	18 Oct 1885	.	Zina & Clara (Holdren) Fairchild
FAIRCHILD, Ira Reuben Obituary	17 Jul 1888	29 Jul 1936	.	Zina & Clara (Holdren) Fairchild
FAIRCHILD, Lydia Mae	12 Jan 1884	05 Mar 1884	.	Zina & Clara (Holdren) Fairchild
FAIRCHILD, Zina Samuel Obituary	09 Oct 1859	04 Aug 1927	Clara Holdren	Lewis & Elizabeth (Edmonds) Fairchild
GILMORE, Florence (Krebs) Obituary	03 Nov 1871	09 Jan 1951	Fred P. Gilmore	.
GUTHRIE, Matilda (Ross)	01 Mar 1817	09 May 1886	Wm. Guthrie	Joseph & Mary (Hunt) Ross
HILLS, Elizabeth Elmira	19 Feb 1833	14 Aug 1855	.	Ira/Dylan ?
HILLS, Ira Henry	03 Nov 1852	09 Oct 1854	.	J.N. & N.M. Hills
HOLDREN, David Obituary	04 Aug 1827	07 Aug 1889	Lucretia J. McCoy	Adron & Abigail (Demott) Holdren
JOHNSON, Frankie C.	10 Apr 1871	11 Nov 1872	.	C.C. & A.M. Johnson
MADDEN, Elizabeth	21 May 1799	17 Oct 1855	Joseph Madden	.
MADDEN, Joseph	10 Jun 1793	06 Mar 1855	Elizabeth	.
MELUGIN, George W.	22 May 1837	20 Sep 1838		Zachariah & Mary (Ross) Melugin
MELUGIN, John N	13 May 1848	18 May 1849		Jonathan & Margaret (Madden) Melugin
MELUGIN, Margaret (Madden)	16 Aug 1828	22 Jan 1855	Jonathan Jefferson Melugin	Joseph & Eliz. (Carnahan) Madden
MELUGIN, Margaret	15 Jan 1855	28 Oct 1855		Jonathan & Margaret (Madden) Melugin
MELUGIN, Mary (Ross)	14 Feb 1814	13 Apr 1880	Zachariah Melugin	Joseph & Rhoda Ross
MELUGIN, Nancy E.	24 Jan 1849	24 Apr 1859		Jonathan & Susan J. Melugin
MELUGIN, Susan J.	31 Oct 1833	14 Jan 1864	Jonathan Jefferson Melugin
MELUGIN, Zachariah	29 Aug 1806	19 Jan 1842	Mary Ross	Jonathan & Sarah (Mitchell) Melugin
MOORE, James	1822	16 May 1851	.	.
STOUT, Charles M. Obituary	18 Mar 1867	04 Dec 1946	Mary E. Stainbrook	Wm. & Christina
SWEET, Amos Erwin	17 Dec 1836	02 May 1904	Wilmot Melinda Fairchild Ellen McKinney	.
SWEET, Wilmot (Fairchild)	10 Feb 1845	30 Nov 1893	Amos Edwin Sweet	Samuel & Wilmot (Ogden) Fairchild
WAGNER, Ronald Obituary	30 Sep 1939	14 Mar 2009	Judy Huggins	Glen and Loreta (Hubbard) Wagner
WOLFORD, Joshua Franklin Obituary	.	21 Nov 1951	Krebs/Williams	.

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