A Greenwood man spent his Saturday cleaning century-old gravestones at a local cemetery in honor of his great-great-grandfather.
Joseph S. Lehew was sergeant in the United States Civil War. He is buried in Colorado.
“Where he’s buried, they keep it up, so I’m paying it forward by cleaning up somebody else’s,” said Mike Beck, a retired law enforcement trainer and reserve Greenwood police officer.
“It is my duty as the ‘son’ of a Civil War vet,” he said.
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Every year, on the second Saturday in May, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War Benjamin Harrison Camp No. 356 clean gravestones at historic cemeteries around central Indiana. Most members of the organization, whose main focus is educational programming, have ancestors who served in the war.
It’s become a tradition — one that’s lasted more than 10 years now.
The SUVCW is a fraternal organization dedicated to preserving the history and legacy of heroes who fought and worked to save the Union. Organized in 1881 and chartered by Congress in 1954, it is the legal successor to the Grand Army of the Republic.
“We try to instill patriotism,” Beck said. “That’s our goal.”
This year, Beck, a member of the Benjamin Harrison chapter and former state commander, recommended a graveyard minutes from his home — the old Greenwood Cemetery off Main Street, just west of U.S. 31.
He visited the cemetery to check on the condition of two Civil War cannons, and realized many of the gravestones nearby could use some work.
Together, six men in their 40s, 50s and 60s spent much of the day on their hands and knees scrubbing and treating 25 to 40 Civil War gravestones throughout the cemetery. They also had plans to reset one or two that had sunk into the ground or fallen over.
It was chilly, but the sun was shining. Directly above them, an American flag fluttered in the wind. The high grass and weeds that surrounded the gravestones, many of which could no longer be read due to years of built up dirt and grime, indicated it’s been awhile since anyone showed that corner of the cemetery some attention.
Beck thought it might rain, he said, perched on a low-to-the-ground stool he used to clean the stones without hurting his back or knees. But rain or shine, they would have been out there, he said.
“I was watching the weather closely starting on Monday and kept on hoping … It wasn’t supposed to rain today, but then it rained all week, so I wasn’t so sure I believed ‘em,” Beck said.
Most of the men who help clean and restore the gravestones have gone through a Department of Natural Resources course on cemetery and stone restoration, he said. They learn how to clean and reset stones without causing any harm to the historic markers.
“We try to be as gentle as we possibly can,” said Tim Beckman, Department of Indiana commander for the SUVCW.
Using nylon materials — gloves, brushes and scrapers — they removed algae and dirt from the old stones, then rinsed them with D-2, a special solution that’s used in national cemeteries.
“They’ll be shining in no time,” Beck said.
The camp looks for cemeteries that have enough Civil War stones to keep them busy volunteering for about eight hours, he said.
“It’s a good way to continue to honor their sacrifice,” Beckman said.
“It’s a good project for our camp. It’s a good way for us to get out and build camaraderie with other people (members).”
The camp, which meets monthly in Indianapolis, has about 56 members, and they’re always on the hunt for more, Beck said.
If you’re interested, visit the website at benharrisoncamp.org/join.
