From 1849 until 1981, a graveyard for the indigent (and sometimes for the expeditious burial of those who perished from contagious diseases) was operated in what is now officially a part of Rapid Run Park in Cincinnati, Ohio. The graves are not all recorded; prior to 1896, no written records were kept. Although it is known that there was a veteran's section in which numerous Civil War veterans are believed interred, there is nothing to identify that area or those in it today. For the most part, there is nothing to identify the cemetery itself; the only formal marker is a small sign and a smaller plaque at the southwest corner of the 25-acre plot. Occasionally, someone still places a wreath at the foot of the sign, but there is no formal entrance evident, and nothing to guide someone who might be searching for the last resting place of an ancestor or other long-deceased relative.
When the cemetery was closed, a dispute arose over ownership between the City of Cincinnati and Hamilton County (with each denying it was theirs), which was finally settled with the decision that Cincinnati held the deed. Neither the city nor the county makes any formal reference to this cemetery in their lists of such facilities in the area today. Having no interest in expending already-scarce funds on the maintenance of the facility, its custody was handed over to the city's Parks Department - and maintenance effectively ended with the decision to "maintain the facility in a natural state". The city's Parks Department map of Rapid Run Park ignores the fact that its northern reaches encompass this historic locale.
Bit by bit, in this manner, pieces of our past get lost. For my part, even though my family lived just three houses away from Potter's Field when I was born, I had no idea that it was present until I returned to the city for my oldest brother's memorial service this year, and decided to see what the former neighborhood looked like today. I had no real memory of it beyond what I had seen in old photos; I was just three years old when we moved to Florida. My remaining brother remembered it, however, and was able to provide numerous details about the nature of the place. Although I can understand the fiscal issues, I find it disquieting that such a site is being so deliberately forgotten, as though no one whose remains lay there matters enough for any effort to be expended at all.
It is often said that a telling comparison between our national predecessor and our current nation is that the British consider one hundred miles to be a long way, while Americans consider one hundred years to be a long time - but neither group agrees about this with the other. Perhaps a more cogent observation is that the British regard history as something that belongs to them, and needs to be preserved, while Americans regard history as a boring subject to be forgotten as soon as the exam has been passed. Certainly in the case of the history of Cincinnati's Potter's Field, that history is being deliberately allowed to slip away - or worse.
Addendum: Although Google maps seems aware that there was a "Potters Field" (apostrophe omission theirs) in this area, they've got entirely the wrong plot of land so designated - and thus far, as of 21 May 2011, all attempts to get them to fix the error have met with failure. It would be less annoying were it not for the fact that what they've mislabeled as Potters Field is actually a group of Jewish cemeteries that are still in operation and actively maintained. Why they haven't fixed the mistake is not apparent.
UPDATE: Google Maps still doesn't have a marker that shows where this cemetery is really located, but as of December 2013, at least they are no longer mislabeling the nearby active Jewish cemeteries as being Potter's Fields.
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