The Barnesville Methodist Episcopal Church was organized on a half-acre property along Barnesville Road according to a deed dated November 17, 1845. The two-story structure was built in 1843 with a burying ground located behind it, of which the first known burial was Isaac Bell in August 1844. The church building is long gone though the last recorded mentions of it were a wedding of James E. Thompson and Anna M. Hodges (Evening Star, Wash, DC November 6, 1893 ) and the election of Messrs. Windsor Hodges and Frank Roberson as the church's Sunday school representatives to the county (Evening Star, Wash., DC, May 19, 1896)

The cemetery was rediscovered in 2008 while searching for family members connected to people buried at Monocacy Cemetery. The condition of the cemetery was disastrous with broken grave markers scattered everywhere. A conversation with the homeowner at the time about cleaning it up was forbidden. For over a decade, the conditions deteriorated as weeds and trees began to make the area inaccessible.

The property changed hands in 2018 and the new homeowner was approached to gain permission to clean it up. This time it was approved. A gathering of volunteers was able to strip away the overgrowth to a point where the burial area could be identified. We thought this would last for a while, but within one year, everything grew back.

A small grant from the Trader Foundation for Maryland Burial Sites was approved to restore the cemetery, map the current location of visible grave markers, and cover the entire area with weed-fabric and gravel to prevent future weeds from returning.

Through multiple phases in late October and early November 2020, volunteers came together to begin the clearing. To our amazement, we discovered many more grave markers that had been toppled and buried. Their random locations, however, made it unclear if they were positioned over the graves they belonged to. Each was mapped, inventoried, and safely carried off the site. When the 50'x50' area was cleared, the ground we leveled and prepared for the gravel bed. Once in place, each of the grave markers were returned to the site and aligned in an orderly way that resembled proper burial rows.

The Barnesville Methodist Episcopal Church was organized on a half-acre property along Barnesville Road according to a deed dated November 17, 1845. The two-story structure was built in 1843 with a burying ground located behind it, of which the first known burial was Isaac Bell in August 1844. The church building is long gone though the last recorded mentions of it were a wedding of James E. Thompson and Anna M. Hodges (Evening Star, Wash, DC November 6, 1893 ) and the election of Messrs. Windsor Hodges and Frank Roberson as the church's Sunday school representatives to the county (Evening Star, Wash., DC, May 19, 1896)

The cemetery was rediscovered in 2008 while searching for family members connected to people buried at Monocacy Cemetery. The condition of the cemetery was disastrous with broken grave markers scattered everywhere. A conversation with the homeowner at the time about cleaning it up was forbidden. For over a decade, the conditions deteriorated as weeds and trees began to make the area inaccessible.

The property changed hands in 2018 and the new homeowner was approached to gain permission to clean it up. This time it was approved. A gathering of volunteers was able to strip away the overgrowth to a point where the burial area could be identified. We thought this would last for a while, but within one year, everything grew back.

A small grant from the Trader Foundation for Maryland Burial Sites was approved to restore the cemetery, map the current location of visible grave markers, and cover the entire area with weed-fabric and gravel to prevent future weeds from returning.

Through multiple phases in late October and early November 2020, volunteers came together to begin the clearing. To our amazement, we discovered many more grave markers that had been toppled and buried. Their random locations, however, made it unclear if they were positioned over the graves they belonged to. Each was mapped, inventoried, and safely carried off the site. When the 50'x50' area was cleared, the ground we leveled and prepared for the gravel bed. Once in place, each of the grave markers were returned to the site and aligned in an orderly way that resembled proper burial rows.