This article, written by Todd Preston, President of the Magoffin County Historical Society, was taken from the August 12, 2010 issue of THE SALYERSVILLE INDEPENDENT newspaper.

            Finally! Revolutionary War soldier Cudberth Stone’s last farm and probable burial site has been found.  Bob Whittaker and his son James spent several days of research digging deep into the Floyd County courthouse records and found that Cudberth owned land in the Bonanza area!  I suppose I’ve visited at least ninety-five percent of all the cemeteries in and around the Abbott watershed, as well as in the Whitaker area of Floyd County in search of this burial site, all to no avail except that I thoroughly enjoyed it.  For some unknown reason I had never visited the cemetery located behind the old Bonanza School.

            My son-in-law Larry Dotson had heard that his great grandfather Dotson was buried in this same cemetery and we were planning to investigate it but Bob beat us to it!  We are thankful that his research determined the probable location of the Stone grave. He found that Cudberth Stone owned that side of the valley and his son-in-law Jesse Spradlin owned the opposite side.

            We asked permission to go up to the cemetery and were told the story of a Dotson family from Michigan who used to come and clean the cemetery.  They finally had the grave of their loved one removed from this cemetery and reburied in Michigan.  Larry would like to learn more about this gravesite removal and the family.

            I used to visit Larry’s maternal grandfather, Columbus Wright on State Road Fork. He would have known this information, if only I had known to ask.

            Joe Skeens had copied this cemetery or “cemeteries” as he copied thirty unmarked and twenty-five marked graves in separate listings. Among those marked were James and Mary Stone, Anna L. Hackworth, Hazel L. Burk, Kelly Spradlin, P. and B. H. Mose (sandstones), Phoebe Patton, S. Patton, Christopher Patton, Susan Akers Patton, Ann Patton, Jackson N. May, L. M. Dotson, Elizabeth Dotson, Marion Collins, John Collins (a Civil War soldier), Mary Collins, 3 sandstones, T. J. Dotson, Biddie Merritt, Robert Frazier, L. H. and Caroline Frazier, John Oscar Merritt, Loulia Merritt, Eva Frazier and another Confederate Civil War soldier, Jarvey Caudill.

            This cemetery seems to be separated by a large section of loose rocks in the middle where graves couldn’t be dug.  The coordinates are North 37-41-436, South 082-51-849, elevation 785 feet with a paved road but kind of skinny in width and a “switch-back” in the road.  I would advise walking, be sure to get permission and close the gate, which is good etiquette whenever visiting a cemetery on private land.

            A military marker for Cudberth Stone has been ordered and another large monument for his wife Sally and their children is in the planning stages and could be set by fall if all goes well. We believe the marker could be seen with the aid of binoculars from the Bonanza valley.

            I might add this is the end of one of my dreams, to have a monument for Cudberth. As far as I know this will almost wrap up our plans to get monuments set for all Revolutionary War soldiers with ties to our county.  Cudberth was not buried here in Magoffin but he left a “bunch” of kinsmen…no, I’m not one of them, to my knowledge.

            Debbie Watson from West Chester, OH and her father from the Louisville area visited here Friday. She was interested in going to see the Tackett Cemetery on Rt. 40 near String Town where her kinsman Clint McFarlan is buried.  I took them to visit the cemetery.

            Clint McFarlan was born in 1868 and died in the 1940s. He married 7 Feb 1899 to Eliza Workman who was born in 1859 and died in 1911. She was a daughter of Henry Workman and Narcissus Lemaster.  Narcissus was a daughter of Ambrose Lemaster and his first wife Nancy McGuire.  Ambrose married secondly to “Granny” Fanny Shaver.  You may remember that a monument was set recently for her and a twin marker is in the planning stage for Ambrose Lemaster and his first wife and children. Ambrose is buried in the Lemaster Cemetery behind the Falcon School and there is no access road except up the Tom Prater hollow.

            Clint McFarlan was a son of Elmore McFarlan b. 1838. Elmore was a son of F. Willman McFarlan b. 1816 Russell Co. VA and a grandson of Christopher McFarlan b. 1790 d. 1830 Russell Co. VA.  Christopher was a son of Alexander McFarlan b. 1727 (a Revolutionary War soldier). Alexander was a son of Duncan McFarland and Ann Porter.

            Clint McFarlan and Eliza Workman’s children were Ressie McFarlan b. 1900, Nannie b. 1906, Ashland b. 1909, Rosalie b. 1911 and Charlie b. 1912.  (Was this the Ashland McFarlan who was known by the nickname of “Goose Eye”?)

            Clint married 2^nd in 1914 to Julia Conley Merrill, daughter of Harlan Conley.  They had these two children: Anna B. b. 1917 and Melvina L. b. 1919.

            Clint McFarlan was a rock mason and evidence of his skill can still be seen, for instance, at my present abode and many more houses.  He lived near Chick Patrick.  Belsey Connelley tells me he laid the foundation of the home of his father Dr. Walter Connelley’s home.

            2010 Magoffin County Founders Days plans are front and foremost in our minds at this time. Opening Ceremony on Tuesday, August 31 will kick off this celebration for our county, our 32^nd.  This year we are honoring all Magoffin County families with a Sesquicentennial theme. 

            A few stories for the Sesquicentennial book have come in this week. We want to urge you to participate in this project. There are a great many people, churches, clubs, businesses, communities, etc. out there that have no mention in this book up to this point. Let’s not let the time pass and miss this opportunity to be part of this printing project.