The first known burials at Tolman Cemetery were Revolutionary War Patriot Jacob Keen, Sr. and an infant child of Capt. William Spear, both buried in 1788.

Sat, 05/28/2016 - 9:30am

Sarah Thompson

A headstone lies flat against the earth at Rockland’s Tolman Cemetery. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Plaque honoring 21 Revolutionary War soldiers. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Tolman Cemetery, Lake Street in Rockland. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

(Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Compare to Achorn Cemetery just down the street. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Achorn Cemetery. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

(Photo by Sarah Thompson)

A headstone lies flat against the earth at Rockland’s Tolman Cemetery. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Plaque honoring 21 Revolutionary War soldiers. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Tolman Cemetery, Lake Street in Rockland. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

(Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Compare to Achorn Cemetery just down the street. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

Achorn Cemetery. (Photo by Sarah Thompson)

(Photo by Sarah Thompson)

ROCKLAND — Twenty-four Revolutionary War patriots permanently reside in a remote graveyard in Rockland. Tolman Cemetery, located at a bend in the road on Lake Street, is quiet.

For some, including the Lady Knox chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the cemetery has become a little too remote, a little too quiet.

DAR members from California and Nevada, along with a local Vietnam-era veteran, are helping the group’s goal of restoring and preserving the graves.

Many of the 208 headstones in the one-acre plot ought to stand upright, forever giving credence to each soul, yet are angled askew, unreadable, or missing altogether.

“We are working to find a service or a stone person who can do the right thing and fix the ones that need to be fixed and straighten the ones that need straightening,” Lady Knox DAR regent Suzy Shaub said.

Since 1947, a plaque honoring 21 Revolutionary War soldiers has provided welcome to visitors of the site. However, three more patriots have been identified.

Thomaston blacksmith Isaiah Tolman gifted the land on September 11, 1783 “in the consideration of the necessity proprietary and conveniency of having a suitable and convenient place to bury the dead...for all...persons who may have occasion and desire to make use of the same,” according to documentation presented this spring to the City of Rockland, which owns the site.

The first known burials at the cemetery were Revolutionary War Patriot Jacob Keen, Sr. and an infant child of Capt. William Spear, both buried in 1788.

Because Isaiah Tolman is buried on Matinicus Island, his revolutionary service, including treasurer, moderator, selectman, and committee of safety member, is not recognized on the plaque. Neither is the service of Constant Rankin, who is interred on the grounds.

This spring, the Rockland City Council pledged a matching grant, dollar for dollar, up to $5,000, toward the ultimate $20,000 goal needed for restoration of Tolman Cemetery. This, however, leaves the DAR to continue seeking equivalent funds on their own.

A major fundraising campaign is in the works for the project, which includes resetting the original plaque on a base to add stability, recording GPS coordinates for the 208 grave sites, placing flag holders on the graves of the Revolutionary War patriots, identifying a complete list of War of 1812 soldiers buried on the site, and placing flag holders beside those headstones.

Some aspects of this project have already been completed.

For more information about the project, or to donate, contact Suzy Shaub at P.O. Box 415, Union, ME, 04862;

Or, Incoming Regent and Tolman Project Manager Mary Kay Felton at feltonmk@gmail.com.

Below is the list of Revolutionary War Patriots buried in Rockland, Maine, Tolman Cemetery:

Achorn, Jacob 1741 - 1836 m. Margaret Ulmer

Barrows, Comfort 1759 - 1791 m . Sabra Robbins

Blackington , Benjami n 1750 - 1821 m . Eunice Woodcock

Brewster, Darius 1764 - 1846 m. Esther Soule, Sarah Fales

Brewster, Zadoc 1742 - 1811 (father of Darius) m . Lois Brewster, Lucy Knight

Fales, James 1745 - 1824 m . Sybel Robbins

Gregory, William 1731 - 1824 m . Experience Robbins

Healey, Eliphaz 1755 - 1833 m . Lucy Robinson