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Marietta Daily Journal

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Georgia students help restore historic Alabama Cemetery

Students from The Stonehaven School in Marietta returned to North Alabama from Nov. 5-6 to help restore historic Cornelius Cemetery in Huntsville. The two-day community service project continued a partnership that brought Stonehaven students to Madison County in 2025 for restoration work at Gray Cemetery. Working alongside the Tennessee Valley Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution, the Madison County Cemetery Restoration Authority and Ted Urquhart of the Alabama Cemetery Preservation Alliance, the students helped preserve an important piece of local history. The restoration effort included rebuilding sections of the cemetery’s historic stone wall, straightening displaced headstones, removing debris, cutting overgrown vegetation and clearing the cemetery’s northern grounds. During work breaks, TVCSAR member Kenneth Carpenter shared the cemetery’s history and information about individuals buried there. Chapter President Lawrence Hillis also provided a living-history presentation, wearing a Revolutionary War-era uniform and demonstrating proper musket handling. The chapter thanked Melissa Hobson, Dean of School Life at The Stonehaven School, for organizing the trip, along with adult chaperones Buddy Kelly, Chuck Rickman, Heather Wilkinson and Hannah Hanbury. “We were so excited to work with such a great group of students who worked hard, were very disciplined and displayed a great deal of