Potter's field monument at Forest Home Cemetery in Marinette, September 5, 2023. PC: Fox 11 Online
MARINETTE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A new stone remembering those buried at a local graveyard will be dedicated on Sunday.
More than 600 people are laid to rest at Forest Home Cemetery in Marinette, in what’s knows as a potter’s field.
The common ground is set aside for those who were unable to pay for a burial.
Tucked along a shaded area of grass, sections T and U at Forest Home Cemetery are home to what may be surprising to some.
“A potter’s field is is where people that were poor, desolate, unknown, were buried,” said Ann Buscher, Genealogist.
Ann Buscher encountered the field while doing research for her church’s congregation.
“And I came across this area, and was like, well what is this? I don’t get this,” she said.
621 people are buried in the potter’s field, more than three-quarters are children.
“They are not buried in caskets. They’re buried in shrouds, very often side-by-side, mother and child,” said Buscher.
“They date from 1806 is the first burial, to 1979, is the last burial here,” said Joan Pace, Forest Home Cemetery Mausoleum Attendant.
Joan Pace says the field isn’t new. She says cemetery officials kept very good burial records.
“We’ve been able to find these, and finish the story for a lot of families,” she said.
On Sunday, September 10 at 2 p.m., Marinette Genealogy Group members will dedicate the stone, hoping the effort will shed some light to those buried below.
“It’s kind of sad. It makes you reflect on life. But you feel sorry for the people that are here, because like I said, a lot of them don’t have stones, and they’re forgotten. Nobody deserves to be forgotten,” said Pace.
All 621 names will be read. Ann Buscher says she wouldn’t miss it.
“I’m excited. I’m proud. I’ll probably be emotional,” said Buscher.
Cemetery officials say stones mark some of the graves already.
They hope to add more markers, as additional people are identified.
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