A Grave Mistake in Harwinton

Back when the public hearing was held for the reconstruction of Route 72, Route 4 and Woodchuck Lane in Harwinton, the subject of the East Cemetery came up. The audience was assured that everything would be fine. When Route 72 reopened this October, imagine the surprise when our cemetery—well, I’ll describe further.

From the road, you now look down on the cemetery. The small parking area is gone. The driveway down is very steep—I’m talking mountain-goat steep! If you are on Route 72 and look down, way down, you will possibly get vertigo. Unless you have 4-wheel drive, good luck getting out of the cemetery. I guess Route 72 is to be used as the new parking lot.

The East Cemetery, according to the Hale Collection, dates back to the 1830s and still is in use (although maybe that should now be put in the past tense). I don’t know if the powers that be forgot that there are still burials being done there and that plots are still for sale. Try to find burial plots in Harwinton—it’s one-stop shopping. Many of our past selectman, state legislators and other powers that were in town are buried in this cemetery. Maybe there should be more.

Originally the plan was for a gradual driveway, but somehow that disappeared and was replaced with the steep drop. Whoever did the design forgot that the truck with the burial vault has to get in, and so does a hearse and funeral procession. You also normally would have a steady flow of people in and out through the spring and fall, paying their respects to their dearly departed. In the winter, the East Cemetery is closed; that’s the only time there is no activity.

If the cemetery was going to be "closed down" by some power that be, it would have been nice if everyone had been openly advised of this. Then, a new cemetery would be needed in town—otherwise, where else would Harwinton bury its dead?

I contacted a state senator, who has looked into the matter and said that initially the DOT was going to restrict access to the cemetery for safety purposes, but they decided not to. This never came up at the public hearing, but it is an interesting point: who was going to decide who has access to the cemetery? Would this mean only certain funerals, no funerals, only certain days of the week? Would this mean that people might not be allowed to go in and place flowers on their spouses’ graves? Yes, your tax dollars at work!

Letters are being sent by concerned people—including town residents and those who have family buried in the cemetery—to state agencies, the legislature, etc. More are needed. A grave mistake has been made. Our historical landmark and currently used cemetery needs help.