PUBLISHED IN THE NEWS HERALD OF OWENTON KYRediscovering the dead Historical society member hopes to clear overgrown cemeteryBy Molly Haines Wednesday, November 2, 2011 at 12:47 pm At first glance, an acre of land on Claxon Ridge Road looks like any other vacant lot — overgrown with trees and shrubbery — but upon inspection, over 150 years worth of history can be found there. The acre of land was the final resting place of over 100 Owen countians – including the great-great-grandparents of Christina Rice, a member of the Owen County Historical Society who is hoping to clean up the cemetery and preserve its history for generations to come."It sits on approximately one acre of land," Rice said. "If you were standing right next to it, you wouldn't know it's a cemetery. It's covered with small trees, shrub-like plants and brush, and I'm hoping people who are interested in old cemeteries and history will want to participate in the clean-up of the area."About 114 people are buried at the Claxon Ridge Cemetery, many with the Claxon surname. According to "The History of Old Cedar Baptist Church and Community" by Margaret Murphy and Lela Maude Hawkins, Callisthenes Achilles "Killis" Claxon, was the son of William James Claxon, who was born in Ireland or New Castle, England in 1754 and died in 1832. William James Claxon has the earliest birth date of anyone buried in the cemetery and was likely the first to be buried there. Other surnames found in the cemetery include Alexander, Bailey, Ballard, Barnes, Blythe, Clay, Conway, Criswell, Dickerson, Ellis, Firel, Haydon, Johnson, Kendall, Lawrence, Lucas, Marker, McQueen, Milton, New, Obanon, Oliver, Porter, Roberts, Rogers, Sargent, Smith, Towles and Williams. Rice said she's hoping to find enough volunteers to clean up the area and hopes that some of those volunteers will have ancestors buried in the cemetery. Rice has permission to burn the brush on adjacent property after the "no-burn" season ends. The most important thing, Rice said, is that no headstones or foot stones are damaged during the clearing process."As a genealogist, I think it's important to preserve this type of history," Rice said. "There's a lot that can be found in an old cemetery, and a lot of the names are still readable."Donations can be mailed to the Claxon Ridge Cemetery Fund at 1864 Indian Gap Road, Frankfort, Ky. 40601. Those interested in volunteering can contact Rice at (502) 226-1019.About 114 graves are located on one acre of land off Claxon Ridge Road. There is a drive to clean up the overgrown property. Here is a list of the headstones that need attention or repair: Clara S. Blythe (1875-1899) Clarissa Claxon (1841-1871) Durie Claxon (1887-1891) James Claxon (1837-1880) Eddie Conway (1873-1899) Miranda Criswell (1870-1891) Ida Lawrence (1881-1882) Mary S. Lawrence (1852-1891) H. A. Oliver (1862-1891) Sallie Ann Oliver (1859-1889) Thomas S. Smith (1817-1891) Tamar Williams (1857-1862) Joseph Claxon (1823-1895) Parthenia Claxon (1833-1871)