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Select Board reads notice of intent for Brentwood Poor Farm Cemetery to be declared neglected/abandoned
Summary
The Select Board read a cemetery trustees’ notice seeking descendants of those interred at a historic Brentwood Poor Farm Cemetery and said statutory notice requirements have been met; a public cemetery trustees meeting is scheduled.
The Select Board read into the minutes a notice from the cemetery trustees asking that the Brentwood Poor Farm Cemetery be declared neglected/abandoned under state statute and seeking any direct descendants to come forward.
The notice, the board said, was posted at Town Hall and published in the December issue of the Brentwood newsletter and therefore meets the 60-day publication requirement specified in the process. The public notice named the burial ground as the Brentwood Poor Farm Cemetery, gave approximate dates for potential residents (circa 1841 to 1868), and provided GPS coordinates (given in the notice as 43 00 00 37 North, 71 01 18 West) and tax map/lot number 206.090.001. The notice asked direct descendants to contact the Select Board at the phone number provided.
A Select Board member asked whether any additional steps were needed; staff (Jim) said no further action was required that evening. The board noted a cemetery-trustee meeting will be held next Thursday as the formal public hearing for the trustees.
Why it matters: Declaring a burial ground neglected/abandoned can affect ownership, maintenance responsibility and future management of the site, and the statute-driven process gives potential descendants an opportunity to object or provide information.
What’s next: The cemetery trustees will hold the official public hearing; if no descendant claims are presented the trustees will proceed as allowed under the referenced statute.
