Rogers, Ark. (KFSM) — Strong winds knocked over a tree onto headstones at the Pleasant Grove Cemetery Sunday (Dec. 1) damaging several of the gravestones.
The cemetery that sits at the corner of Dixieland and Pleasant Grove Road has headstones that date back to the early 1800s. During the high winds on Sunday, a tree fell onto some of the headstones, pushing them partially out of the ground. By Tuesday (Dec. 3), no one has been seen out there removing the tree, and no one seems to know who maintains the cemetery.
On the land to the west of the cemetery used to be a church that maintained the graves, but Pleasant Grove Baptist church was demolished about 15 years ago to make way for new construction. The church relocated for a while, but then was dissolved.
Now, the cemetery has buildings and apartments all around it, and no one seems to know who is in charge of making sure that the tree gets moved off the graves. The Benton County assessor’s office records show it’s still owned by the church that used to sit next to it.
A local funeral home told me they held a burial service there this year but were not able to get a hold of anyone to let them know about the service.