Fall 2023: News from Michael Papile, aka Stonewall Tony
Hello Milton Volunteer Wallers!
We have just about hit a milestone in our walling, having completed the first 50′ of rebuild and are about ready to “Turn the Corner” and start work on our curve!
Many thanks to all of you who have contributed to the rebuild. This project has been supported by volunteer labor, corporate sponsors who have provided financial and in kind donations and financial contributions from many of you. These donations of time and money have resulted in great wall progress but have also allowed the Milton Cemetery to pursue beautification projects that would not otherwise get funded. One of these projects is the cleanup of the Leaf Pit area, which gets overrun with compost, stone and other dirt from the day to day operations of the cemetery. The funds raised in this walling project were used to support a team who brought in heavy equipment and labor to sift through, clean up and sort through all of the debris, resulting in clean and usable piles of subsoil, top soil and stones. Yes, lots of stone that needs to be sorted for our wall!
With that said, I am hoping we can recruit some of you to assist in sorting this massive pile of stone that will provide enough stone to work on the upcoming curve and beyond.
At the risk of sounding like Tom Sawyer trying to con his friends into painting the fence for him, this task is an essential aspect of true field walling and honestly a valuable opportunity for wallers to work on their “eye” for stone and develop a discipline for good and swift decisions regarding stone selection when “on the wall”. It is also a great workout!
If you plan to come, please arrive at the start time so we can all hear the plan and the safety briefing as we know this work can come with risks.
We will have the assistance of the Milton Cemetery crew on both days with their heavy equipment.
Please know that once this stone is sorted and cleaned up, we will have more true walling days into the fall and even the winter.
So please let me know if you can join us and know how much we value your involvement and support!
Best regards,
Mike
You can follow this ongoing project on Facebook: the Milton Cemetery.
Hearting 2023 includes an article about this historic rebuild, including the project proposal, which we published as inspiration for others wanting to engage in community-based preservation projects.