Hampshire sophomore organizes cleanup of cemetery where Revolutionary War veteran lies
Emma Best wanted to learn more about the Revolutionary War, a topic she hadn’t studied yet in school.
In what turned out to be a pleasant surprise for all involved, Best, a sophomore at Hampshire High School, learned about the God’s Little Acre cemetery in Campton Hills that serves as the resting place for Revolutionary War soldier William Bennett and ancestors.
Best took this personal discovery to another level when informing the Campton Township Cemetery Association that she wanted to organize a cleanup at the cemetery, including planting new trees, fixing the rotting fence around it, and sanding and coating the cemetery sign with fresh stain.
Such an effort would go toward earning an Eagle Scout badge as a member of Girl Scout Troop 946 in Lily Lake, with help from Boy Scout Troop 46.
The timing was good for the project, which unfolded on Oct. 27. It was like a tribute to a Revolutionary War veteran in our area occurring close to Veteran’s Day.
“I was glad I did this because I wanted to learn about the cemetery’s history, as well as the Revolutionary War,” Best said. “And basically, I just wanted to help those who try to keep all of the cemeteries clean, as well as the communities around it.”
That’s an important factor in bringing new life to God’s Little Acre. For decades, this cemetery sat in a vast field off Corron Road, west of St. Charles. Now it is surrounded by Corron Glen subdivision.
No one knows more about God’s Little Acre than Christine Johnson Brauer of Campton Hills, a descendant of the Ward family of which William Bennett married into after moving with the family into Kane County.
Brauer deeded the cemetery to the Campton Township Cemetery Association in 1996, resulting in a large celebration with the Elias Kent Kane and Elgin chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution. More than 200 people attended, including Revolutionary War reenactors.
Brauer, 75, had learned prior to that shift to the cemetery association that descendants would meet each year at the cemetery to clean it up and spend time together.
“All of the relatives would come back in Model T cars years ago and have a picnic every year to clean up the cemetery because it was just in the middle of a field,” Brauer said.
“Eventually, my dad and his younger cousin decided to dig to make sure, and found William Bennett’s skull, and they reburied it to establish the cemetery and gravestone,” she added.
In learning that one of Bennett’s roles was to train younger soldiers, the kids at the family get-togethers would reenact Revolutionary War battles, Brauer noted.
Brauer provided some history behind the cemetery, noting that Bennett was born May 9, 1758, in New Hampshire and enlisted in the battle for America’s independence at age 18 in August of 1776. He had four enlistments, including one in the Battle of Fort Anne and the retreat from Fort Ticonderoga.
In 1836, he moved with the James Ward family to Kane County. During that time, he married his second wife, Sally Ward. They lived with the James Ward family until Bennett’s death on Feb. 15, 1846. The privately owned cemetery was active from 1841 to 1850.
The burial site of God's Little Acre was deeded from the government to the Ward family. Others buried at God’s Little Acre are Sally Ward Bennett, Hannibal Ward, Laura Ann Morgan and Amos Haskins.
In addition to learning that history and having 32 people show up to help tackle the cemetery project, the experienced reinforced in Best’s mind what Scouting is all about.
“I have a few more merit badges to finish up and I will work on those during winter break from school,” Best said. “I can stay in Scouts until I am 18, which I am going to do because it is fun.”
That fun honored past generations, while also making Brauer even more proud of her ancestors with Veteran’s Day approaching and leaving a positive impression of the young helpers.
“It was a really neat thing that Emma Best wanted to do this with her Scout troop at the cemetery and for this Revolutionary War veteran,” Brauer said. “She’s a nice lady and spent a lot of time and money doing this.
“The transformation at the cemetery is amazing,” she added. “We used to have to try to keep it (the cemetery location) quiet because we didn’t want anyone messing around with it.
“But with what the Scouts did, and that there is a subdivision around it with people who care about it, that makes it really nice,” Brauer said.
Youths making a difference
When you understand what the Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley does in the arena of youth development, you can’t help but feel we’re in good hands with our younger generations.
Most recently, the foundation recruited 41 students from 12 high schools across the region to volunteer as members of the Youth Engagement in Philanthropy program. It is fitting that, for short, it’s called the YEP program.
Basically, these students will learn about fundraising and seeking grants for youth-related causes.
On average, they raise $25,000 and distribute it to local social service agencies that provide support to youths.
Obviously, the list of students and their sponsors and supporters is quite long. For local readers of this column, I can mention Camila Calatayud, a senior at St. Charles East; Regan Konen, a junior at Marmion Academy; Julia Maisonet, a freshman at Kaneland High School; Caroline Thavong and Caroline Escobedo, seniors at St. Charles North; and Zoe Zawacki, a North Aurora junior at West Aurora High School.
A fashion statement
Since 2019, Patrick and Anyssa Nerja have taken their product line of secondhand ‘90s vintage and modern clothing from a dream to now bringing fashion, nostalgia and affordability into the Neighborsgrid Shop on Third Street in Geneva.
The name of the store has longer roots, coming from when Patrick and Anyssa first met 13 years ago (they lived in the same neighborhood) and had similar interests in fashion. Neighborsgrid became the name of their fashion blog in high school.
Fast forward to last week, when the Geneva Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon cutting to open Neighborsgrid Shop at 207 S. Third St., in the retail space above the Livia Restaurant. At this time, it marks the second retail spot for the Nerjas, as they also have operated out of the Boardwalk Shops in Batavia.
On the shop’s website, Patrick states, “We are promoting a zero-waste model. By re-wearing and recycling clothing, we preserve precious natural resources and keep textiles and waste out of the landfills.”
It should also be noted that there seems to be plenty of Chicago sportswear in the shop. That’s a piece of nostalgia to add to the fashion.
O’Brien holiday shows
As a follow up to my note a couple of weeks ago about local musician Dennis O’Brien and how long he has been singing and playing guitar in the St. Charles area, here’s a chance to see him in action.
O'Brien is scheduled to perform holiday shows on Dec. 14 and 15 at The Venue in Aurora.
This would be a good time to catch O’Brien, especially if you have never been to The Venue, the music space operated through the Fox Valley Music Foundation, a non-profit organization staffed by community volunteers.
This nightclub setting at 21 S. Broadway Avenue in downtown Aurora is funded through donations and grants from the Fox Valley Music Foundation.
If those dates don’t work, O’Brien also is scheduled to play at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22, at the FoxFire restaurant in Geneva.
Nothing definitive on site
For those wondering what type of work might be going on at the former Old Towne Pub site on State Street in Geneva, it appears the only permits the city has issued are for roof replacement and rooftop HVAC unit replacement.
So far, no permit applications have come in for interior work at the 201 W. State St. site.
I tried to contact the listed property owner, James East, to see what else might be in store for that once popular corner of Geneva. But I didn’t have any luck prior to deadline.
As far as progress goes, the city needed the nearby former Sergio’s Cantina site to be redeveloped, and that has happened.
Now, in no particular order, it would be good to see the key spot of the Old Towne Pub site, and the former Little Owl site, a block east, get back into the dining mix in Geneva.
Smash those pumpkins
A sure sign of the aftermath of Halloween is seeing squirrels nibbling on the pumpkins on your doorstep.
I figured animals must enjoy pumpkins. A few years ago, I took a partially eaten pumpkin to a forest preserve to let other creatures enjoy it.
Probably not the best thing to do, which is why I like the “Pumpkin Smash” event idea unfolding from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Nov. 9, at the Geneva’s Community Gardens site at Peck and Bricher roads.
Sponsored by the city’s Natural Resources Committee and the Geneva Park District, the basic premise is to keep rotting pumpkins out of the landfills and put to better use in gardening soil.
Organizers note this is a recycling event, so participants can also bring hard-to-recycle items like propane tanks, strollers and smoke detectors for Flat Can Recycling of Elburn to handle. The firm charges a recycling fee based on each item.
dheun@sbcglobal.net