Man Unearths Great-Grandfather’s Lost Gravestone in Family Cemetery

HINTON, W.Va. (Hinton News) — While tending to his family cemetery, a local man, John Maddy, made an emotional discovery, unearthing the long-lost gravestone of his great-grandfather, a constable killed in the line of duty a century ago.

The discovery on Friday, April 4, came as the man was performing routine spring maintenance at the cemetery, including straightening existing grave markers. He had previously worked to identify unmarked graves in the cemetery using ground-penetrating radar (GPR), a process detailed in a previous Hinton News article.

According to Maddy, persistent rain had delayed his work. Once at the cemetery, he was adjusting several markers when he encountered resistance while trying to deepen the placement of one stone at the top of the burial ground. Probing the ground with a long screwdriver, he repeatedly struck a solid object over a significant area, initially assuming it was a large rock common to the region.

Deciding to investigate further, he began digging by hand. Just inches below the surface, he unearthed a well-preserved gravestone. The inscription revealed it to be the marker of his great-grandfather, the constable whose 100-year anniversary of his death was previously covered by the Hinton News.

Maddy expressed his shock and gratitude at the unexpected find, noting he had resigned himself to the possibility that his great-grandfather’s final resting place was unmarked. The gravestone also included the inscription included the word “wife,” which he believes refers to his great-grandfather’s first wife, Mary Fuller, who reportedly passed away in 1909 during childbirth.

The man credits the prior GPR work for ultimately leading to the discovery. The GPR mapping, conducted by Matt Turner of GeoModel Cemetery Mapping, had identified the location of the grave, allowing him to place a temporary marker nearby. He noted that he had missed the original gravestone by only about two inches when setting the temporary marker last year.

He stated that he had never seen a photograph of the original gravestone and was unaware of anyone who had. He believes the discovery was a result of “divine intervention.”