News

Cemetery maintenance class offered on Oct. 25

By Lightning Reports, Published: October 16, 2025

A cemetery maintenance class will take place from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 25, at the historic St. John Baptist Church Cemetery, 67 St. John Road, in Fletcher.

Hosted by the Henderson County Cemetery Advisory Committee, the training focuses on the cleaning and repair of gravestones. Gravestone conservators Warren Scott and Tom Fugate will teach the proper and careful methods to preserve and repair gravestones.

The cemetery contains graves of former slaves, including Sambo Collington (1848-1930), a veteran of the 135th U.S. Colored Infantry, Co. D.

This site was the location of one of the earliest black churches in the county formed after the Civil War.

Old Salem Baptist Church, now Fletcher First Baptist Church, aided newly freed slaves in organizing the church by 1873. The worshippers met under brush arbors and in tents until 1922, when the first building was constructed.

The grave site of William “Bowser” Collington (1885-1933), who died in the limestone quarry tragedy of 1933, is also located within the cemetery. Surnames of families with graves in the cemetery include Blake, Hawkins, Summey, Darity, Lynch, Pea, Logan, Collington, Fletcher, Collins, Copney, Lance, Williams, Pinner, McDaniel, Wilson, Underwood, Prince and more.

The work is wet and dirty. Please dress accordingly

Registration is requested as class size is limited. To register or for more information, contact Toby Linville at 828-694-6627 or tlinville@hendersoncountync.gov