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Cemetery’s founder related to Alexander Hamilton

Photo at left: Elizabeth Hartwell, who founded Hartwell Cemetery with her husband Daniel, was the niece of Alexander Hamilton, a signer of the U.S. Constitution.. More Mystery Place photos in the GALLERY

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Hartwell Cemetery is located on Cobb road in the town of LaFayette. The cemetery began in 1844 on the family farm of the Hartwells with the burial if their infant son.

Hartwell was born Aug. 4, 1801, in Granville, New York. He married Elizabeth Hamilton on Sept. 14, 1826. She was the niece Alexander Hamilton, a co-signer of the U.S. Constitution and first treasury secretary under President George Washington.

The couple came to the area in Nov. 1836, settling in Section 18 with a grant signed by President Andrew Jackson.

In 1842, Daniel Hartwell served on the county jury, and in 1852, he deeded the family plot to the township for $5.

The Hartwells had a son, Wallace, who was born May 25, 1836, according to Beckwith’s History of Walworth County. That son died in 1909. Another son, Smith D. Harwell, was born in 1842.

Daniel’s wife died June 18, 1862, and Hartwell died Feb. 18, 1884.

In 1997, restoration began on the cemetery under the direction of Robert Getzen.

The fence was installed and a circular planter was built around the flagpole.

The monuments were carefully restored to their original look. It is interesting to note that the Hartwell farm remained in the family until 1985 and is now part of Evergreen Golf Course.