Historic Plaque Added to Lakeshore Cemetery, Burial Site of George Washington's Bodyguard

 “What a glorious day we’ve been blessed with,” Catherin Nowak, chairperson of the Avon Lake Historical Preservation Commission (ALHPC) said, welcoming visitors to the May 19 ceremony that unveiled the historic plaque declaring the Lake Shore Cemetery as an Avon Lake historic landmark.

The ceremony’s patriotic tone focused on the veterans buried at the cemetery including 11 documented veterans.

Nowak said that although the first documented burial was 191 years ago in 1822, “local legend passed down through the generations tells us” that two (unnamed) soldiers died on Sept. 10, 1813 in the Battle of 1812 and were buried at the site.

“What a small slice of American History right here on our shore,” Nowak said of the location, also known as Avon Lake Cemetery.

She noted that off the shores of Avon Lake the U.S. Navy defeated and captured six vessels of Great Britain’s Royal Navy in the Battle of 1812.

The cemetery is also the final resting place to one Revolutionary War soldier, Pvt. Joseph H. Moore who is believed to be one of George Washington’s bodyguards and was a member of one of the city’s founding families.

Ohio State Matt Lundy, the keynote speaker, said those buried at the cemetery provide a link of the present to the past, to troubled times when the country was divided. He noted the servicemen  and that “freedom isn’t free.”

“We can best honor them by finding ways to serve,” Lundy said.

Lundy’s father, American Legion Post 211 Chaplain Jake Lundy, opened the ceremony with a prayer.

“With reverence, we hold this sacred shrine where the bodies of our ancestors were placed within the womb of the earth,” Jake Lundy said. “Lord, with reverence we place this Avon Lake historic plaque…adorned with our memories.”

Councilmen David Kos, Martin O'Donnell and John Shondel participated in the ceremony. Also in attendance were Lorain County Commissioner Tom Williams  and Avon Lake Councilwoman Jennifer Fenderbosch. 

ALHPC members Judy Kaminski and Deb Beard had the honor of unveiling the plaque.