It’s been more than 110 years since the last burial occurred at Messina Springs Cemetery on James Street in DeWitt – and for decades the cemetery looked like what it was: abandoned. During the past few years, however, members of the community and DeWitt town officials have been working to rehabilitate this historic spot and have made great strides this year.
After countless hours of clean-up, the discovery and return of the original cemetery boundary and the installation of a new fence and sign, the town now has applied for a $20,000 state grant to take the renovation work even farther.
“It was certainly an eyesore before all the work,” said community member Pam Dooling, who has been working on the cemetery restoration project from the beginning. “This is a good example of where the town and the community work together.”
“We just feel this is important,” said town Supervisor Ed Michalenko. “It’s about showing reverence and respect for those laid to rest here, as well as for their friends and families.”
Messina Springs was a small community outside the city of Syracuse founded around the minerals spring at the intersection of James Street and Thompson Road. It was once a destination for people seeking to partake of the supposed healing powers of the spring waters, and was at its peak home to a health spa, hotel, casino and race track. The community faded away in the early 20th century and later became today’s community of Eastwood.
The earliest observable burial in Messina Springs Cemetery — which is located adjacent to Mother’s Cupboard restaurant near the intersection with Thompson Road – in 1820, while the last was in 1903. For generations the local community took care of the cemetery but, with the demise of Messina Springs the town, the cemetery became defunct and, ultimately, abandoned.
During the past few decades, the chain-link fence around the cemetery fell apart, the ancient tombstones were vandalized and broken, the area became a catch-all for all sorts of garbage and litter, while Mother Nature reclaimed the area with weeds, trees, unkempt grass and years of accumulated leaves. It became so bad that area community members decided it was time to do something about it.
Dooling, one of the organizers of the restoration efforts, said local volunteers and community organizations were mobilized and last year spent countless hours picking up garbage and otherwise cleaning the cemetery. The town of DeWitt got involved and had its parks department crews help clear away the gathered junk and rake and mow the area.
Last year, the DeWitt town board allocated funding to survey the cemetery, correct its boundary lines and install a new modern fence around the perimeter, and this year built and installed a new cemetery sign, said Michalenko.
But even that took local cooperation. The defunct fence was actually running inside the cemetery boundaries, and historic stones were sitting out unprotected on what was thought to be neighboring lands. The owner of Mother’s Cupboard as well as the Onondaga County Water Authority, both neighbors of the cemetery, were approached and gave their permission without hesitation to let the town rebuild the fence along its original boundary, Dooling said.
The next phase of the restoration means getting the state to grant the town the authority to officially maintain the cemetery, and also includes a funding request of $20,000 to help repair the decades of vandalism.
“We’re hoping that within the next year we’ll hear from the state and get the funding to fix, point and re-engrave the stones, and basically just straighten the cemetery out,” Michalenko said. Future hopes for the project include putting in benches, paths and flowers, and making it a place for community members to enjoy. “An area like this can really be a respite for the neighborhood,” he said.
For now, as the town and the involved community members wait on word from the state on their requests, the town of DeWitt will maintain the cemetery by weeding, mowing and picking up trash, and help to keep the cemetery respected and aesthetically pleasing for the community, Michalenko said.
“Now it’s forever,” he said.
“Thanks to the town of DeWitt, it’s back on track,” Dooling agreed.
