Jolly Bethel Cemetery
Names found in records: Jolly Bethel Cemetery; Jolly Cemetery; Bethel Cemetery; Bethel Jolly Cemetery [S3, p. 824; S5; S6; S7; S8]
Location
- Capps Creek Township, Barry County, Missouri: Section 12, Township 25 North, Range 29 West. Beside Jolly Bethel Church at Farm Road 2025 and Farm Road 1002 [S11].
- In 1888 the church site was described as "one-fourth mile across the line in Barry County, on Capp's Creek" [S3, p. 285].
- Published coordinates: 36.89523, −94.05980 [S5].
- Jolly Mill lies about two-thirds of a mile to the west-northwest in a straight line. This figure was calculated from the published coordinates of the cemetery [S5] and the mill [S16].
- Obituaries often place the cemetery "southwest of Pierce City" [S6, entry for Paul V. Hale].
Beginnings
According to family tradition, Elizabeth (Rochelle) Hisaw was the first burial here, in July 1840. The same tradition says her husband, Frederick Hisaw, later gave five acres from the corner of his land for a cemetery [S9]. Goodspeed's 1888 history confirms that Elizabeth died in Barry County in July 1840 [S3, p. 1029]. The land gift has not been confirmed by a recorded deed. See History.
The burial record
- Find a Grave listed 374 memorials for the cemetery as of November 11, 2026 [S5]. That is a count of online memorials, not an official burial count.
- MOGenWeb volunteers have built an alphabetical transcription with headstone readings, death-certificate notes and newspaper items [S6; S7; S8].
- These volunteer records are invaluable, but they sometimes disagree with headstones, death certificates and each other. Several entries point out such differences themselves.
Notable burials
The people below are recorded as buried at Jolly Bethel in the sources cited after each name. Volunteer transcriptions are cited as such.
Pioneer families
- Elizabeth H. (Rochelle) Hisaw (1807–1840). Goodspeed gives her death as July 1840 [S3, p. 1029]. A marker is recorded in volunteer transcriptions [S6; S19]. By family tradition she was the cemetery's first burial [S9].
- Frederick Hisaw (born August 13, 1807). He settled on Capps Creek in 1836 [S3, p. 1029] and owned the Jolly Mill site from 1845 to 1848 [S1, PDF p. 9]. Sources differ on his death date. Goodspeed gives September 7, 1872 [S3, p. 1029], while the headstone as transcribed by MOGenWeb reads October 7, 1872 [S6].
- William Hisaw (November 4, 1835 – June 13, 1913). He was Frederick's son and served in the Confederate army in Co. G, 8th Missouri Infantry [S3, p. 1029]. His obituary, as transcribed, says he served on the Barry County Court in the 1880s and gives his burial "in the Jolly Cemetery." A 1906 newspaper item called him "Judge Hisaw" [S6].
- Nancy (Richardson) Hisaw (1836–1905), William's wife [S6].
Public life
- Hiram J. Cummins (1830–1886). Goodspeed reports that he was elected Newton County collector in 1878 and re-elected in 1880. It also says that after his death at Hot Springs on May 18, 1886, he "was buried with the full honors of the Masonic order in Bethel County Cemetery." The phrase "Bethel County" appears to be a printing error for "Bethel" [S3, p. 824]. His marker is recorded in the volunteer transcription [S8].
The Kelly family
- W. R. Kelly (1837–1882). Goodspeed notes that he "died at Jollification in October, 1882" [S3, p. 223]. MOGenWeb lists a William R. Kelly here with dates March 5, 1837 – October 8, 1882 [S7].
- Parizade "Aunt Dutch" (Ferguson) Kelly (1840–1922) [S7]. A family memoir also remembers her as "Aunt Dutch Kelly" [S9].
- Malda (Standlee) Kelly. Her obituary, as transcribed, describes a funeral at "Bethel M. E. Church" and burial "in the Bethel Cemetery" [S7]. The transcription index lists her death year as 1914, but the obituary is dated 1915.
Military service
Volunteer transcriptions record these veterans, among others:
- James H. Chapman (1826–1904). Union soldier; enlisted May 24, 1861 in Co. E, 16th Illinois Infantry, discharged in 1864 [S8].
- William R. G. Crow (1843–1900). Confederate soldier, 22nd Tennessee Infantry [S8].
- Sgt. Lewis Kelly Davis (1913 – April 26, 1945). 158th Infantry, killed in World War II on Luzon [S8].
- Pvt. Thomas J. Davis (1925 – May 26, 1945). 164th Infantry, died in the Philippines in World War II [S8].
- Later service recorded on markers includes Lloyd V. Haase (U.S. Army, World War II), Donald L. Haase (U.S. Air Force, Korea) and William H. Hawkins (U.S. Navy, Vietnam) [S6].
Recent
- Pat Chapman (1942–2026). His obituary records burial at Jolly Bethel Cemetery. It says he "loved Jolly Mill," "served on the board for many years, moved the Chapman school down there, helped begin the restoration of the church and school, and served on the Jolly Bethel Cemetery Board" [S12].
Civil War graves nearby
The Jolly Mill National Register nomination mentions "various unconfirmed reports" of unmarked Civil War soldiers' graves in nearby family cemeteries, including the Davis Ferguson cemetery near the mill [S1, PDF p. 13, note 2]. No source places these graves in Jolly Bethel Cemetery.