Roberts/Jones/Hunley Cemetery, McCreary County, Kentucky This copy contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Kenna Austin - KENNA@highland.net, Oct. 1999. ************************************************************** USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material,must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. ********************************************************************* Robert Ernest Stephens "McCreary County, Kentucky Cemeteries" books would not have been possible without alot of hard work. Robert Ernest Stephens and Beatrice Lawson Stephens have helped make it possible for genealogists to work on their family trees without trapsing through the woods. Although on a beautiful day it's not too hard of work. If any errors are noted please email me and I will correct them. I look forward to reading Mr. Stephens history of McCreary County when it is finished. The book is entitled, "A Lost Heritage for a Changing People." I also would like to thank him again for the permission to copy their work. McCreary County Kentucky Cemeteries Vol. I published 1990 Author, Robert Ernest Stephens Copied as written with permission/Kenna Austin Roberts/Jones/Hunley Cemetery Nearby Town: Marshes Siding Date(s) copied: 7Apr1985 Number of Graves identifiable by inscription: 5 Number of Graves Unidentifiable: 4 Location: From US 27 at Marshes Siding go West on KY 700 to the U. S. Forest Service Boat Launching Ramp at Alum. Park in the Alum picnic area and walk up the East bank of the Big South Fork. Pass the first Branch into the river and just about opposite Rogers Hollow, you'll find the Penitentiary Sink Crater. Look to the right just after passing by two immense boulders and you'll see the cemetery between the rocks and the crater. It is approximately .8 mile from Alum. C. C. 8May1784 25Sep1859 HUNLEY, Silpha E. (No other information) (Commercial type stone) HUNLEY, William (No other information) (Commercial type stone) JONES, Louel F. 21Apr1901 5May1901 Son of L. H. & Sallie Jones. ROBERTS, S. E. 18Feb1832 15Apr/orAug.1856 Note: Monument is inscribed: "B. F. 18, 1832; D. A. 15, 1856." Note: B for born, D for died, F for Feb., A for April or August. SUMMARY This cemetery has been here for at least 130 years, and probably longer, as there are some grave sites marked only with field stones. A unique feature of this graveyard is the presence of a large shield-shaped grave stone about 6 feet long which covers what appears to be an adult grave. This Welsh-type monument is now cracked and all the supporting stones have been removed, and thrown to one side, as if vandals have torn down this stone structured vault which has been so meticulously put together by some pioneer citizen of McCreary County. Close by is a large sink hole approximately 100' in diameter. The little cemetery actually lies between large boulders and the sink hole. The sink hole is known locally as the Penitentiary Hole, because local tradition tells us that Kentucky state prisoners, hired from the state by contractors to dig coal along the Big South Fork, were confined here. There are several old mine openings around Alum. Mr. Noble Tucker who accompanied me on an excursion to the Harrison Jones old fields, where a large double rock chimney still stands, told me that Tom Jones had mined coal on both sides of the river near Alum. He rigged up a cable and bucket to transport the coal to the East side of the river. A look at the Nevelsville topographic map shows a Jones Branch in this area, and before the lake took out the shoals, there was a John Jones Shoals at Alum. Also, prior to the formation of Lake Cumberland, a section of the river ran underground on its way to Alum Shoals; so this would have been a natural crossing place for settlers coming into the area. It is a scenic location, and it would have been a favorite camp site. The large boulders close by are called Penitentiary Rocks. The guards, undoubtedly, had guard posts about these rocks and from atop them, there would have been a good view of the prisoners as they rested from their work in the mines. It is evident that there were burials here as early as 1856, when S. E. Roberts was interned, and probably earlier. The last burials according to inscriptions were on 5 May 1901, when L. H. & Sallie Jones buried a son. This writer believes that the Penitentiary Sink is really a meteorite crater, because of its location high on the East bank of the Big South Fork, its circular formation and bowl shaped basin. Fused stone can be found, and before Lake Cumberland local people tell us that the crater was dry. Water did not run into it, and there was a large stand of timber in the crater. Since the formation of Lake Cumberland, when the lake rises to a certain point water now inundates the crater and the vegetation has dried away. It is, we believe, one of the few meteorite craters in Kentucky. This is an historic spot and should be preserved!