Wise (Old) Cemetery, Rapides Parish Louisiana Submitted by Jane Parker McManus ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** WISE (OLD) CEMETERY Location: Go South of Alexandria on I-49. Continue a short distance past the exit to Woodworth and park on the West side of the road. At the top of a high bank is an old fence that is almost covered with weeds, brush, and overgrowth of trees. On the other side of the fence is an old trail that was once the original road in this area. It will be necessary to climb over or under the fence as there is no gate. At one time this cemetery must have quite large and covered nearly three acres. Although there were only a few tombstones remaining today, there were many depressions that indicated lost graves. The road (or trail) stretched through the center of the burial ground. The first burial for a Mr. Tucker was on the right side of the trail, very near the fence that faced the highway. The next group of burials was approximately 400 feet down the trail, also on the right. Either the burials were scattered throughout the area, or this was a very large cemetery at one time. The property was once part of the Ashford plantation, however, it is now under the care of the LA Forestry Division. The oldest marked burial was in 1849 for Mr. Muir; a few marked burials in 1860's and 1870's; another group during the early 1900's; and the last marked burial in 1918 was for Mr. Fred Neal. Tombstone inscriptions were recorded by Mary Parker Partain and Jane Parker McManus on April 13, 1995, and submitted by Jane P. McManus Section 1 - North of the trail, just inside the fence along I-49: Tucker, Almond G. - near Richmond Virginia - A.D. 1807/29 Sep 1877 [this large stone was broken in two parts across last name & blocks just stacked against each other] Section 2 - North of the trail (across a narrow waterway): Johnson, Robert - 2 Oct 1857/12 Jul 1912 [broken stone inside iron enclosure] [Note: There are quite a few obvious depressions in this area of the woods, but no other marked burials were found on this side of the waterway. The little iron fence is in perfect condition, with a large beech tree growing through the trunk. The gate can be opened & closed.] Section 3 - North of the roadway (south of the waterway): Neal, Fred - 26 Jan 1869/31 Mar 1918 [6' Woodman Of the World obelisk] Roberts, David T. - 28 Dec 1863/13 Mar 1917 [Woodman of the World obelisk, fallen over approximately 25 feet from the Neal tombstone] Neal, John W. P. R. - [no dates], Corp. Co. F 40 AL Inf. CSA [Note: There are depressions in all directions in this vicinity that could represent lost graves.] [Inside an iron fence are 2 burials. A very old tree has grown through the fence & the iron rails have grown into the tree]: Pittman, Claude E. - 16 Sep 1902/26 Oct 1902 [stone off base, but both pieces are intact] Pittman, Mary Paulne [sic] Roberts, wife of S. A. Pittman - 25 Dec 1878/20 Oct 1902 [in this vicinity, a footstone with "1" near an obvious depression - no other information] [Inside largest iron fenced area]: Linzay, Della Rougeou, wife of C. R. Linzay - 20 Feb 1883/10 Oct 1905 [obelisk off its base] Linzay, Infant son of C. L. & D. R. Linzay - b&d 3 Oct 1905 Rougeou, Mary Levenia, daughter of A. C. & J. Rougeou - 14 Jul 1877/2 Oct 1877 Wise, Charles Louis - 23 Jan 1845 Rapides Ph. LA/27 Oct 1867 Wise, Joseph Adam - 6 Oct 1810 St. Mary's Co. MD/12 Oct 1863 Wise, Mary Ann, nee Turner - 24 Feb 1822 Jefferson Co. MS/9 Nov 1903 Rougeou, Josephine Wise, wife of A. C. Rougeou - 4 May 1855/3 Nov 1909 Mother [5' obelisk, intact but off its base] Section 4 - [South of driveway]: Robinson, Eugene - 8 Sep 1901/15 Sep 1901 [broken stone, leaning against tree] [piece of marble, footstone - L.A.S. - no other information] [Note: There are many depressions in this area along with stacks of broken bricks that might represent remnants of tombstones or vaults.] Muir, James - a native of Ayrshire, Scotland who died 28 Aug 1849, 29 yrs Williams, Infant of M&M B. A. Williams - b&d 12 Oct 1905 [this small tombstone is quite a distance from above burials, still on South side, near the trail] [remains of a wooden fence is nearby, plus a pile of bricks which might have been a tomb]