When Mt. Pleasant resident Fergus Glenn found the tombstone of an eight-month old boy from the 1800’s in his shed at the start of June, he was compelled to return it to where it was supposed to lay. Weeks later, he has finally located where it belongs.
Glenn found that the tombstone belongs at Hinman Cemetery, located in Berrien Springs.
“They had a child who was born and died the same dates and parents with names that fit the initials,” he said. “Every site I tried pointed to the Hinman cemetery in Berrien Springs.”
All of the gravestones at the cemetery were replaced, but he said he has a few ideas of what to do with the headstone.
Glenn said, “I’m going to take a relative the stone, give it to the geological society of Central Michigan University or to whoever can benefit from it.”
Glenn called over 100 counties in 10 states in order to bring the stone home.
“I owe most of the work to Mt. Pleasant townies,” he said
He and six other members of the Mt. Pleasant community were able to determine where to take the headstone by using several genealogy websites, such as Ancestry. He credits Douglas Davis Jr. with helping him out with most of the research.
One of those who helped in the search, Jan Johnson, said that the fact that Glenn cares enough to start a search for the home of a tombstone he found in a shed is wonderful.
“Why would anyone not want to help, if they have the ability to do so?” She said, “That’s one of the best attributes we can have, the willingness to help others.”
She also said that the fact that he is willing to sell things to pay for the trip instead of soliciting donations shows his integrity.
Currently, Glenn is hosting a garage sale on Wednesday in order to pay for transportation to Hinman Cemetery. It will be held at his home at 65 S. Chippewa Road. He also said that he is willing to take odd jobs or donations.
The stone read: “Son of M.A. and J. Walton, died Aug. 19 1863, aged 8 mos.”
According to Glenn, the name of the child was William Hall Walton the parents were James and Mary Ann Walton. Willam Walton had eight other siblings.
“The Walton name turns into Pennell later on in the 1930s,” he said.
Glenn found the stone when he moved into his current residence in the beginning of June. His landlord asked him to clean out the shed on the property, which lead to the discovery of the 155-year-old stone.
After Glenn found it, he reached out on social media to aid him in his quest to return the tombstone. Since then, he has received a wide amount of attention on social media and traditional media.
Glenn said that he has always taken the easy way out, but the stone gave him a chance to do the right thing, He felt like William Walton reached out to him through the stone.
“This one thing changed my whole life,” Glenn said, “This stone was meant for me to find so that i could see that there are good people out there who do care.”