Waterford ― Members of the town’s Historic Properties Commission are working with the first selectman to start a group that would document and care for the town’s small historic cemeteries.

Waterford has independent associations which take care of the town’s larger cemeteries, including Jordan Cemetery, West Neck Cemetery and Union Cemetery, but currently does not have any group to looks after the often forgotten historic cemeteries, said John O’Neill, chairman of Waterford’s Historic Properties Commission.

“We’re talking about the other, forgotten ones that are now in somebody’s backyard,” he said.

O’Neill could not say exactly how many of these cemeteries are in town, but pointed to Durfey Hill Cemetery on Rope Ferry Road across from Bayview Health Care; Gorton Cemetery between Waterford Parkway South and Interstate 95 North, across from Lowe’s Home Improvement; and Old Rogers Cemetery, on the corner of Great Neck and Shore Roads, as some that would fall within the cemetery group’s purview.

That group’s first goal would be to find, document and figure out who’s taking care of those cemeteries, he said, adding that often, neighbors are the one’s who maintain the grounds. By helping gather volunteers for the new group, he said he hopes to ease the burden of those neighbors.

O’Neill, who is also a member of the Historic East Lyme Cemeteries Association, met with First Selectman Rob Brule Wednesday to propose the group, which would perform work such as mowing the grass, clearing weeds and putting up fences. They’d also provide better documentation of the inscriptions on grave stones.

His goal was to request a small amount of funding from the town, and seek to become a tax-exempt charitable organization.

After the meeting, O’Neill said he and Brule discussed creating a volunteer organization similar to the town’s Friends of Harkness group, which cares for Harkness Memorial State Park.

O’Neill said Brule supported the project and was particularly interested that the group would be providing special honors for veteran’s graves.

Brule could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

O’Neill, along with other volunteers from Historic East Lyme Cemeteries Association, place flags on veterans’ graves each year after Memorial Day and collect them after Veterans Day.

O’Neill said he hoped that he and others lobbying for the group, including Town Historian Robert Nye and fellow Historic Properties Commission members Pat Crotty and Eileen Olynciw, would be able to formally establish the group after the holiday season.

O’Neill said the cemetery group’s first meeting, in whatever form the town decides to sanction it, will be at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 17 in the Appleby Room of Town Hall.

Catching up with surrounding towns

Most surrounding towns have an association or committee that takes care of small, historic cemeteries, O’Neill said Monday.

A Niantic resident, he said he has served on the Historic East Lyme Cemeteries Association since it was founded about 30 years ago.

According to East Lyme Town Historian Liz Kuchta, who serves as secretary of the Historic East Lyme Cemeteries Association, the group’s work involves documenting and photographing the stones that are there.

“We then continue to care for the stones, clean them as necessary and maintain the grounds,” Kuchta said, “If they have walls around them we might repair the walls, we might remove trees that are threatening to fall into the cemetery and damage the stones, mow the grass, rake leaves.”

Kuchta said the nonprofit association receives an annual stipend from the town and cares for 16 of East Lyme’s 19 known cemeteries.

“Most of these cemeteries had been neglected in the past ― they’re in the woods,” she added.

Kuchta said she believes every town should have a group to care for, locate and learn about these cemeteries, which can house stones that date back to the 18th and 19th centuries and are an important part of local history.

“They’re the people who created our town,” Kuchta said. “And we need to honor them and care for them.”

d.drainville@theday.com