BOONE, Iowa—Boone County has announced a memorial and plaque dedication service to be held Sunday, June 1, 1:30 p.m., at the Boone County Home Cemetery, located on Nature Road north of Boone.

The Boone Ministerial Association will lead a public memorial service to include consecration of the land, a liturgy with reading of the names, and a recommittal liturgy for those buried there. The public is invited to join in honoring the 75 individuals who lived and passed away in the care of the Boone County Poor Farm between 1884 and 1937.

Starting from a lone remaining gravestone, local historian Bea Upah has pored over County and local historical records to determine nearly all the names of those interred in the cemetery. Some of the deaths were quite tragic, including two baby boys born 39 years apart that went unnamed. Upah will provide a historical account of what began as the Boone County Poor Farm in 1867 to the closing of the Boone County Home in 1994.

A bronze plaque identifying all interred there was commissioned by the Boone County Board of Supervisors, custodians of the cemetery, and will be dedicated to the honor of those interred there.

The parking and gathering spot will be Long Memorial Park on the site of the former Boone County Home, a quarter-mile south of the cemetery. Following a historical presentation by Ms. Upah, including the purpose and history of county homes in Iowa, and the Boone County Poor Farm in particular, a bus from the nearby Y-Camp will transport participants to and from the memorial service.

All are invited and encouraged to help honor those among the least of us who relied upon the community both in their life and passing.

(contributed press release, Boone County Supervisors)