City representatives headed to Hilldale Wednesday to investigate a report of a body. (File photograph.)
Police converged at Hilldale Cemetery to investigate a report of a body, but were shocked to discover the person had been dead for over a century.
According to a statement from the Hilldale Cemetery Association, a burial urn from 1910 was accidentally disinterred during a cleanup of the area this week. The urn was discovered around the central portion of the cemetery upon the removal of heavy brush.
The urn belongs to Joshua Ordway, who was buried on Feb. 9, 1910, in the plot of his wife’s family. Ordway fought in the Civil War with Company B’s 48th Mass regiment. In the spring, the area of the plot will be restored and Ordway will be re-buried with military honors. The urn is currently in storage until then.
If any known family descendants of the Ordway, Blake or Sleeper families would like to be kept informed of the progress regarding this matter or would like further information, please contact Thomas Spitalare of the Hilldale Cemetery Association.