Illinois is directing new state funding toward the restoration of abandoned and neglected burial grounds. The first Cemetery Relief Fund grants have been awarded to ten communities, with each eligible for up to $20,000. The money is meant to help repair, preserve, and maintain cemeteries that have fallen into disrepair. Among the recipients is Milton Township, which will use its grant to restore a Civil War-era cemetery site in Wheaton. Bishop Hill also received funding, aimed at honoring Swedish pioneers buried there in unmarked graves. State officials say the program helps protect local history while giving long-overlooked resting places renewed dignity.
“Across Illinois, this program is already delivering meaningful improvements,” said IDFPR Secretary Mario Treto, Jr. “Restored cemeteries mean protected history, safer grounds, and more inviting places for families to gather and remember. These changes help ensure loved ones are honored in beautiful, respectful settings for years to come.”
In Bishop Hill, a small rural community founded by Swedish pioneers in the mid-1800s, a grant program is helping preserve local history at the historic Bishop Hill Cemetery. Village Treasurer Sharon Wexell says crews have repaired broken tombstones, added gravel to an overgrown path, and trimmed trees and bushes around the grounds. The village is also installing a memorial stone honoring early settlers buried in unmarked graves. A QR code on the memorial will connect visitors with more information about those laid to rest there. Wexell says Bishop Hill’s unique Swedish heritage makes preservation work not just important, but necessary…