Oak Hill Cemetery

04/05/2026

Wishing everyone a happy and peaceful Easter.

04/03/2026

On this date in 1905, Angeline Widrig Fulmer’s body was found along the Mohawk River flats, 2 miles west of Little Falls.
The body believed to be Mrs. Frederick Fulmer was found by 2 Austrians, John Zweiker and John Szanzkaira at around 2 o’clock in the afternoon while hunting for muskrats. Her body was found high and dry as the waters had been very high with the spring thaw.
Chief Halling of the Little Falls police dept was notified and the body of whom they believed to be Mrs. Fulmer was taken to the undertaker’s Dineen, where the body was kept until Chief Manion and Mr. Fulmer arrived.
Mrs. Fulmer was reported missing on Saturday, April 1st by her husband. She had gone out hunting and left their house in North Herkimer in the morning. She and her husband resided in Middleville Road, just south of the Hydraulic Canal, near the point where it leaves the creek. It was thought at first she had drowned right near that area along the West Canada, as one of her neighbors, William Kirby, had watched her cross the road and the M & M tracks. It was at this point Mr. Kirby had told Mr. Fulmer what he had seen. Mr. Fulmer went to go get her and she has not been seen since.
Mrs. Fulmer was 62 years old and not in the greatest of health. Her mind has been occasionally unbalanced according to the newspaper. Mrs. Fulmer has been reported missing before but has been found either in the woods or hiding in her house.
At the time of her passing, besides her husband she left behind two daughters, Eva Downs and Rose Magadieu and one son, Byron. She was interred at Oak Hill Cemetery

03/30/2026

Little Reginald Harter, aged 7, swept to his death while playing in the hydraulic.
Reginald with his younger brother Kenneth and a companion from Lansing Street, Myron Cristman, were playing in the hydraulic at the basin above the plant of the Herkimer Fibre Company. Reginald was hanging to the chute kicking his feet when he was swept over. He was seen to come up once, however, everyone that was around, did not know how to swim. Kenneth ran back to his house to tell his Mother and Myron started to scream for help. His screams were heard from a neighbor on Willow Lane, Ellis Coward, who attempted to find the young man but was not able to. It would be an hour later that the boy’s body would be found by Joseph Cabelperio and Alfred Bregaogio. They would place his body in the packing room of the mill for the coroner, Dr. Graves to examine.
Reginald was born in 1911 to John and Lillian Harter. Besides his parents, he left his brother Kenneth, and sisters Lillian and Thelma. Reginald passed away on July 24, 1918.

03/28/2026

Ralph Vaughn Adams was found deceased by drowning. On March 30, 1916, two individuals reported Ralph Adams missing. The first report was made by Mrs. Caroline Hunt, who resides at the Riverside Hotel in North Ilion. She witnessed Mr. Adams passing by the hotel at approximately 3 o'clock on the Mohawk River in a flat-bottomed boat. A few hours later, she observed the same boat passing by empty, heading downstream. Sheriff Moon also spotted Mr. Adams navigating the boat upstream that day. Jesse Adams, Ralph's father, reported him missing that evening. Ralph Adams left home on Thursday afternoon to inspect traps he had set for muskrats along the Barge Canal earlier in the day. According to reports, Mr. Adams was wearing a gray cap, a red and black striped sweater, a waterproof tan hunting jacket, and black trousers covered with overalls. Law enforcement conducted a thorough search for Ralph Adams over two weeks, but the search was eventually called off. However, on a Sunday afternoon, four boys fishing in the river discovered two feet protruding from the sand in the riverbank in Fort Herkimer, opposite the lock on the Erie Canal. The body was buried in sand from a spring flood. A funeral service for Ralph Adams was held on April 17, 1916, at 2 o'clock on a Thursday afternoon at his father's residence at 210 S. Bellinger Street. Ralph Adams is survived by his father, Jesse, brother Claire of this village, and a sister, Mrs. Edith Smith of Ithaca. Ralph Adams was 29 years old.

02/16/2026

Thursday, July 25, 1901. George Albert Young, 58 years old, of Ilion was MURDERED!
At 8 am, Mr. Young was in his son’s barber shop on Otsego Street getting ready for the day when Joseph Brown walked in demanding money that George had borrowed from him in December, telling him he would pay him back when he got his pension. George never paid. So when Joseph Brown went into the barber shop that day, he had on him a gun and when he confronted George Young, George had in his right hand a stick of about 3 to 4 feet long. Young came around the barber chair towards Brown and muttered something and swung the stick at Brown, hitting him. Before Young could pick the stick back up, Brown pulled out his revolver and shot Young twice in the chest. Brown went back out into the street and confessed he had shot Young but it was in self defense.
When the trial started, Brown pled not guilty and his attorneys would talk him into pleading for an insanity plea rather than self defense. However, District Attorney George Ward would state that this was premeditated murder and was looking to convict Mr. Brown of first degree murder. Brown bought the gun about a week before from J.M. Smith of Utica. However, when Mr. Brown’s wife took the stand, she had stated her husband was acting very weird that morning and talking to himself. It was also stated by Mr Defense Attorney Conklin that Mr. Brown’s Father died in the Utica State Hospital and he also suffered from sunstroke years ago and has acted strangely ever since.
In April of 1902 the trial commenced with Brown’s plea of second degree murder, which the District Attorney accepted.
Brown was sentenced to life in prison and sent to Auburn. Ten years after the trial, Joseph Brown died of senile dementia.
George Young was 58 years old when he was murdered. He left his wife, Mary and 3 sons. Mr. Young was also a Civil War veteran, joining Co. H 117th New York Infantry in Boonville in 1864 and was discharged in 1865. He is buried at Oak Hill Cemetery. He owed Joseph Brown $16 when he was murdered.

12/25/2025

12/14/2025

Wishing a Happy Hanukkah to all who celebrate.

12/11/2025

William Patterson's life was tragically cut short on September 13, 1930, when he succumbed to injuries sustained in a bus repair accident. Born in Moose River to William and Susan Burt McCabe Patterson, he married Edith Cave from Ohio in 1895, and the couple relocated to Herkimer in 1904.
Mr. Patterson worked at Standard Furniture until 1914, when he established the first bus service in Herkimer County, operating between Herkimer and Cold Brook with stops in Middleville and Newport. In 1921, his nephew Merrill George took over the business.
Although the Pattersons did not have children, their home at 317 E. German St. in Herkimer served as a boarding house.
At 62, Mr. Patterson's life was cut short when a bus fell on him, crushing him after the supporting jack broke.

12/09/2025

While our regular crew has gone home until spring, the winter crew has come on to keep watch over all of your loved ones.

11/28/2025

It’s that time of year again. The signs are up, and the cemetery is now closed to the public for the winter. Anyone entering the cemetery is now doing so at their own risk, and will be held solely responsible for any injuries or property damage.

We would like to thank all visitors and patrons for their continued support which attributed to another successful year. It is an honor to be able to provide such an important service to members of our community and we look forward to continuing to do so for many years to come.

11/28/2025

Seldon Horatio Huyck, a 72-year-old resident of Dorf Street in Herkimer, passed away on July 4, 1929. Born on November 5, 1856, in Mohawk, he was the son of Amos and Margaret King Huyck. Mr. Huyck married Catherine Michels on December 2, 1879, and they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary shortly before his passing. On March 11, 1893, while working at the paper mill, Mr. Huyck suffered a workplace accident involving machinery, which resulted in the loss of a finger. He was also employed on the Erie Canal. At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife and a daughter, Mrs. Fred (Lula) Small. The graves of Mr. Huyck and his wife remain unmarked. Interestingly, his obituary, published in the Evening Telegram on July 5, 1929, mentioned that he was the former 'turkey' of the Herkimer County Jail during the administration of Sheriff Eaton. The question remains: was the term 'turkey' used correctly in this context, or was it a typographical error?