Henry County Genealogical Services

    The Knightstown Pioneer Baptist cemetery was established November 22, 1827 on land sold by Jeremiah Groves, for $1.00, to Joseph Watts, Jacob Parkhurst and John Dennis, Trustees of the Blue River Baptist Church. The church was built in 1826 and the first Minister was Rev. Jacob Parkinson. Most of the early pioneers of Knightstown cemeter are buried here. Heaton, who was the first known white family into Henry county in 1816 when they trade with the Indians near blue River next to Raysville, Parkhurst, Dille, Goble and others. In 1838 the cholera epidemic must have hit Knightstown very hard, there are numerous deaths recorded for that year, mostly children. Some families were almost entirely destroyed by it. With this list I have tried to come up with an accounting of all known burials. I referenced Mr. R. Thomas Mayhill's Early Cemetery Records of Wayne Township, an article that was in the Knightstown Banner written by Mldred Leisure Irvin on June 6, 1947, research through family files located at the Henry County Historical Society Museum and other verifiable information from family descendants. There are numerous unmarked burials in the old cemetery, being on the National Road, a lot of early pioneer families incurred death in their family. They didn't have much choice other than to bury their deceased family member and move on west. I have come across cases similar to this, one gentleman's wife died in Knightstown, he buried her in the cemetery, next day married her sister and continued on west.