Bear Creek Cemetery is in the unincorporated community of New Dayton in southernmost Franklin Township, Randolph County, Indiana. The cemetery was initially located in Ward Township until 1859, when Franklin Township was created from the west side of Ward Township.[1]

The cemetery has traditionally served residents of the nearby communities of New Dayton, Olive Branch, Mull (a.k.a., Lickskillet), Quaker Hill, and Stone Station. Today, it serves all of Randolph County.

Abraham Roe is regarded as the "founder" of Bear Creek Cemetery. He was born in Fayette County, Ohio on 10 Apr 1819,[2] the seventh of ten children of Ezekiel and Elizabeth Roe, natives of Pennsylvania.[3] The Roes were amongst the earliest settlers of Randolph County. Abraham Roe married Hannah Renbarger, the daughter of Abraham and Rachel (Luellen) Renbarger on 29 Feb 1844 in Randolph County.[4] They were the parents of four children. Abraham purchased a farm near New Dayton on 2 Mar 1847, a portion of which was to later become the original plat of the cemetery.

While the earliest known burial occurred in 1846, the genesis of an organized cemetery began on 12 Jul 1856, when Abraham and Hannah Roe deeded to the Randolph County Commissioners, for $5, one-half acre in the southwest corner of the southeast quarter of the southwest quarter of Section 35, Township 21 North, of Range 13 East, including "the ground now enclosed."[5]  

Abraham Roe sold his property to John Ray on 17 Sep 1863[6]and purchased another nearby farm, where he and his wife remained for the rest of their lives. Abraham and Hannah are interred at Bear Creek Cemetery in graves marked by a substantial nine-foot-tall dark gray granite vaulted obelisk headstone.[7] [8]

The original plat of Bear Creek Cemetery is in the southwestern corner[9] and is approximately 14 lots wide by 10 lots deep, consisting of 140 lots. The original cemetery plat was never recorded. 

John Ray platted three additions to Bear Creek Cemetery between 1872 and 1890. Each lot measures 16' X 10' and consists of four graves each:   

·     The first addition was platted 25 Sep 1872 with 16 lots added to the north and 20 to the east of the original plat.[10] NOTE: The plat shows 35 lots, but lot 10 was duplicated, making an actual number of 36.  

·     The second addition was platted 11 Aug 1877, consisting of 110 lots directly to the east of the first addition.[11] It is immediately adjacent to Randolph County Road 400 North.  

·     The third addition was platted on 13 Feb 1890 with 26 lots added to the north side of the first and second additions.[12]  

The fourth addition was platted on 12 Jul 1940 with 140 lots added to the north and east sides of the second and third additions.[18]

Construction of a new Methodist Episcopal (M.E.) church in New Dayton began in March 1876[13].   The dedication ceremony occurred on 17 Dec 1876[14]. Bear Creek Cemetery is widely associated with this church. However, the cemetery predates the church by at least three decades and was always independent of the church.  

The Bear Creek Cemetery Association was originally formed 11 Aug 1902. On 4 Sep 1916, the Randolph County Board of Commissioners, the deed holder to the cemetery, accepted a petition presented by a majority of lot owners to formally incorporate the Bear Creek Cemetery Association.[15] By doing so, they ceded control of the cemetery to the Association, which was to be controlled by a five-member board of directors.[16]     

On 18 Jul 1940, a fourth addition to the cemetery was platted to the north and east of John Ray's additions. The cemetery acquired this land by trading tracts with the New Dayton Methodist Episcopal Church so it could extend the drive and map 144 additional lots.[17]  

Bear Creek is an active cemetery, with the most recent burials taking place on the easternmost and northernmost sides of the property. Lots are available for purchase by contacting sexton Dean Cunningham at (765) 546-0946.  

Bear Creek Cemetery is designated as CR-68-1 in the Indiana Cemetery & Burial Registry (https://secure.in.gov/apps/dnr/shared/welcome.html), which is maintained by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR). It is also listed in the Indiana Historic Sites and Structures Inventory (IHSSI) as a contributing resource (135-390-10038).        

[1] Tucker, Ebenezer, History of Randolph County, Indiana: with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of its Prominent Men and Pioneers, to Which are Appended Maps of its Several Townships, 1882, Chicago, Illinois: A.L. Kingman, 1882.

[2] The Winchester Journal [Winchester, Indiana], 26 Jan 1910, Page 5, Column 3.

[3] Ibid

[4] Marriage Book 1, Randolph County Clerk's Office, Winchester, Indiana, Page 192.  

[5] Randolph County, Indiana Deed Book X, Page 398, Randolph County Recorder's Office, Winchester, Indiana.

[6] Deed Book 5, Randolph County Recorder's Office, Winchester, Indiana, Page 58.

[7] Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/147757897/abraham-roe: accessed 06 September 2023), memorial page for Abraham "Uncle Abe" Roe (10 Apr 1819–18 Jan 1910), Find a Grave Memorial ID 147757897, citing Bear Creek Cemetery, Franklin Township, Randolph County, Indiana, USA; Maintained by DSON1492 (contributor 46855689).

[8] Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/147757938/hannah-roe: accessed 06 September 2023), memorial page for Hannah Renbarger Roe (15 Sep 1825–5 Aug 1895), Find a Grave Memorial ID 147757938, citing Bear Creek Cemetery, Franklin Township, Randolph County, Indiana, USA; Maintained by DSON1492 (contributor 46855689).

[9] Plat Book 1, Winchester, Indiana, Randolph County Indiana Clerk's Office, Page 40.  

[10] Plat Book 0, Randolph County Recorder's Office, Winchester, Indiana

[11] Ibid

[12] Ibid

[13] The Winchester Journal [Winchester, Indiana], 1 Mar 1876, Page 2, Column 2.

[14] The Winchester Journal [Winchester, Indiana], 6 Dec 1876, Page 3, Column 3.  

[15] Minutes Book of Randolph County Board of Commissioners, 1 Sep 1916, Page 133.

[16] Ibid

[17] The Winchester Journal-Herald [Winchester, Indiana], 19 Apr 1940, Page 6, Column 6. 

[18 ]Deed Book 140, Randolph County Recorder's Office, Winchester, Indiana, Page 56.