Save Historic Mt. Moriah Cemetery, Blount Cty. TN

Wanted to thank all of the donors again. In addition to the amount shown on GoFundMe, we collected $1000. The initial cleanup has been completed for $1000. There was a lot of work done. The two photos sent by Karen Kidd of Maryville show the cemetery to be in as good of shape as I have ever seen it.

I believe the remaining funds will carry us through this year.

We have made some progress on a permanent solution in that we believe we have determined that the cemetery is owned by the Holsten (East Tennessee) Methodist Conference and we are working to see if they may be willing to take on the responsibility. Things move slowly when you can't meet with people face to face.

Nina and I plan to attend the annual family reunion in June and have added a couple of days for meeting with 2 or 3 organizations including the Methodist Conference Administrator. Once again, thank you and I will keep you posted.

I'm David Kidd. I hope you can join our Kidd family all over the U.S. to save a very special cemetery in Blount County Tennessee. Our focus is on our extended family (descendants of Lewis and Sarah Kidd comprise 25/350 graves located on that hill so far).

I send this appeal to you because we think that many of you are part of that line.

But I will be looking to include other families who may find they are part of this story too.

Mt. Moriah Cemetery, on Singleton Station Road in Louisville, is the resting place for direct descendants of 18th-century settlers to the wilderness of Eastern Tennessee.

When in 2001 we Kidds discovered our relatives' graves there, the wilderness was threatening to overtake the cemetery again.

In 2018 Blount County Historian Ken Cornett and volunteers finished cleaning the stones and grooming the grounds. That summer we led a memorial service and set stones for three of our great-great Kidd uncles lost in the Civil War.

However, just three years later, the wilderness had begun to creep in again.

As Mt. Moriah has reconnected us with living Kidd cousins all over the country, we realize that, for our children's and history's sake, we must see to the ongoing care of Mount Moriah.

In January of 2023, a family member fronted $1,000 for a new restoration effort, enough for an initial clearing of the hill.

To cover that, and to care for Mt. Moriah through the rest of this year, we are asking family and friends for a total of $2,500. That will give us time to approach local government agencies and nonprofits to arrange for real, permanent support for our cemetery.

You will receive a thank-you note for your donations. Also, you'll get news, at least quarterly, as events unfold. We hope you will donate and bring your family to visit Mount Moriah!

Visit the Lewis and Sarah Kidd Family website www.lewiskiddfamily.com for an extensive genealogy and stories of our family, and a listing of Kidd burials at Mount Moriah curated by Kenneth Kidd, Waco, TX.

NEWS -- February 2023: Our contractor has completed an initial cleanup of Mount Moriah!