Garbuttsville Cemetery
Why it's listed
Garbuttsville Cemetery is a one-acre burial ground on Union Street in the hamlet of Garbutt, in the Town of Wheatland, Monroe County. It began in 1827, when John Garbutt gave land for a Presbyterian church and cemetery. The church building was short-lived and was demolished in 1856, after which the cemetery expanded toward the street. The terraced grounds hold about 570 graves, arranged in north-south rows with stones facing west. Markers include marble stones carved with willows and urns, obelisks, and later granite monuments. Many of the area's earliest settlers are buried here, among them Revolutionary War veteran Rufus Cady, War of 1812 veterans, and mill owner John Garbutt himself. The cemetery also contains the largest African-American section in the town, linked to families who came from Virginia after the Civil War, and the graves of abolitionists from the McVean family. It was listed for its association with the hamlet's settlement and milling history and for its representative monuments.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues it is an intact early country cemetery that reflects the history of the former milling and industrial hamlet of Garbuttsville and shows the development of small vernacular cemeteries. It contains the graves of many early settlers, including a Revolutionary War veteran and War of 1812 veterans, and a large African-American section tied to post-Civil War migration from Virginia. Its monuments illustrate modest and middle-class grave markers of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 06001077, listed November 29, 2006. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Union St., Garbutt |
|---|---|
| County | Monroe County |
| Listed | November 29, 2006 |
| Reference number | 06001077 |
| Resource type | Site |
| Period of significance | 1827-1956 |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Exploration/Settlement, Art, Black |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use as a cemetery, with gravestones dating from the early nineteenth century to the present. |
| Acreage | 1.2 |
| Coordinates | 43.01500, -77.79113 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
Sites (archaeological sites, battlefields, landscapes) are often listed with a restricted address to protect them from looting or disturbance. Listing is honorary for private owners; federal undertakings on or near the site go through Section 106 review, and state laws may protect burials and artefacts regardless of listing.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 06001077.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5522048
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.