The original burial records and plot maps for Ward Cemetery were lost in a fire and do not exist in any form in any other location. The current Ward Cemetery records were created by mapping the cemetery off into grids and recording the information from the headstones and funeral home markers. Plot numbers were assigned to the burials based on their location on the grid map. For this reason, burials in Ward Cemetery can be located by plot number only if there is an existing, readable headstone or funeral home marker on the grave. There are many burials in Ward Cemetery that are unmarked. It is not possible to identify persons in the unmarked graves without the original records and plot maps.

 

This GRID MAP is the only official map that exists of Ward Cemetery. The digitized map is based on the original grid map created by Lee Roy Smith, a former caretaker of Ward Cemetery, and corresponds to the 1999 inventory list of MARKED graves. There have been some minor landscape changes over the years, and some trees/bushes may no longer be present in some locations as shown on the map, and there may be new trees/bushes growing in other areas of the cemetery.

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You will need a plot number to locate a marked burial using the grid map. All plot numbers of burials in our records correspond to this grid map. If you need a look-up of a plot number or need help locating a marked burial, please send the request using the CONTACT FORM on this website or email info@wardcemetery.com, or phone (304) 981-1116 for burial records information BEFORE visiting the cemetery. Ward Cemetery has no office on the cemetery grounds and is cared for by volunteers who donate their spare time to help care for the cemetery, so they may not be immediately available to assist you. Please be patient and someone will get back to you as soon as possible.