The McFarren Cemetery Association, a non-profit organization of descendants and plot owners, incorporated in 1979, continues to work to ensure that the final resting place of many Wells County pioneers and residents is a peaceful, well maintained setting.
Some of Liberty Township's (Wells County, Indiana) first pioneers lay at rest in the small McFarren Family Cemetery in Liberty Township, literally in the middle of a cornfield. The cemetery is a small piece of land carved originally from Joseph Mendenhall's farm that later belonged to Jacob McFarren, who himself is buried there. Burials in the McFarren Cemetery reach back over 150 years into the earliest parts of Liberty Township history.
The Board of Directors is responsible for maintaining the cemetery. The annual meeting is held in April of each year. Friends and family may contact the Board at [email protected].

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

Some of Liberty Township's first pioneers lay at rest in the small McFarren Family Cemetery in Liberty Township, literally in the middle of a cornfield. The cemetery is a small piece of land carved originally from Joseph Mendenhall's farm that later belonged to Jacob McFarren, who himself is buried there. Burials in McFarren reach back over 150 years into the earliest parts of Liberty Township history.

An early history of Wells County describes the first election that took place in April 1849. There were nine voters, and election rules required that the "polls" be held open until 4:00 p.m. Voting concluded quickly with the voters putting their ballots in a hat that was covered with a handkerchief, preserving the "secrecy" of the ballot box. Not an idle lot, the men spent the rest of the day rolling logs at Johnson King's home where the election was held. Five of these first nine Liberty Township voters are buried in McFarren Cemetery: Gabriel H. King and his son, Johnson King; James Jackson; Jacob First; and John Muncie (later spelled Mounsey). The earliest recorded McFarren burial is that of Rachael Jackson in 1843.

The Murray-McFarren and the First-Jackson Family genealogies (both located in the Bluffton/Wells County library) compiled by Sharon and Stan Merrill in 1996 contain additional information on some of those buried in McFarren Cemetery. That compilation cites an old family legend recounting that Jacob McFarren's father, John McFarren, walked into the Huntington/Wells County area with a gun over his shoulder, then built a three-sided shack to survive the winter. John McFarren filed for a Wells County Land Patent in 1839. Then the McFarren family moved westward to Wells County, Indiana by 1840. Although John McFarren, who died in 1874, is buried in the Batson Cemetery in Jackson Township, many of the McFarren descendants are in the McFarren Cemetery.

The Jackson Family genealogy includes James Jackson and his son Hiram who are both also in McFarren Cemetery. James Jackson was one of the earliest pioneers to settle in Liberty Township—perhaps the first white man to permanently establish a residence there.

The cemetery is located at 1300 West 500 South, Bluffton, Indiana.

The McFarren Cemetery Association, a non-profit organization of descendants and plot owners, incorporated in 1979, continues to work to ensure that the final resting place of many Wells County pioneers and residents is a peaceful, well maintained setting.
Some of Liberty Township's (Wells County, Indiana) first pioneers lay at rest in the small McFarren Family Cemetery in Liberty Township, literally in the middle of a cornfield. The cemetery is a small piece of land carved originally from Joseph Mendenhall's farm that later belonged to Jacob McFarren, who himself is buried there. Burials in the McFarren Cemetery reach back over 150 years into the earliest parts of Liberty Township history.
The Board of Directors is responsible for maintaining the cemetery. The annual meeting is held in April of each year. Friends and family may contact the Board at [email protected].

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

Some of Liberty Township's first pioneers lay at rest in the small McFarren Family Cemetery in Liberty Township, literally in the middle of a cornfield. The cemetery is a small piece of land carved originally from Joseph Mendenhall's farm that later belonged to Jacob McFarren, who himself is buried there. Burials in McFarren reach back over 150 years into the earliest parts of Liberty Township history.

An early history of Wells County describes the first election that took place in April 1849. There were nine voters, and election rules required that the "polls" be held open until 4:00 p.m. Voting concluded quickly with the voters putting their ballots in a hat that was covered with a handkerchief, preserving the "secrecy" of the ballot box. Not an idle lot, the men spent the rest of the day rolling logs at Johnson King's home where the election was held. Five of these first nine Liberty Township voters are buried in McFarren Cemetery: Gabriel H. King and his son, Johnson King; James Jackson; Jacob First; and John Muncie (later spelled Mounsey). The earliest recorded McFarren burial is that of Rachael Jackson in 1843.

The Murray-McFarren and the First-Jackson Family genealogies (both located in the Bluffton/Wells County library) compiled by Sharon and Stan Merrill in 1996 contain additional information on some of those buried in McFarren Cemetery. That compilation cites an old family legend recounting that Jacob McFarren's father, John McFarren, walked into the Huntington/Wells County area with a gun over his shoulder, then built a three-sided shack to survive the winter. John McFarren filed for a Wells County Land Patent in 1839. Then the McFarren family moved westward to Wells County, Indiana by 1840. Although John McFarren, who died in 1874, is buried in the Batson Cemetery in Jackson Township, many of the McFarren descendants are in the McFarren Cemetery.

The Jackson Family genealogy includes James Jackson and his son Hiram who are both also in McFarren Cemetery. James Jackson was one of the earliest pioneers to settle in Liberty Township—perhaps the first white man to permanently establish a residence there.

The cemetery is located at 1300 West 500 South, Bluffton, Indiana.