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Murphy Historical Society turns archives, cemetery care to city; plans sign and booklet for large cemetery
Summary
Longtime volunteers with the Murphy Historical Society announced they are handing over archives and cemetery care to the city, described a completed 3x4-foot sign and onsite booklet for the largest cemetery (about 300 graves) planned for early May, and thanked city staff for mowing and archive support.
Donna Jenkins, a member of the Murphy Historical Society, used the council’s public‑comment period on April 15 to announce she is stepping down and to summarize more than a decade of volunteer work cataloging the city’s history. Jenkins said the society started with five members in 2011 and obtained 501(c)(3) status by October 2011.
Jenkins told council the society placed 19 state and county historical markers around Murphy (with one exception), commissioned 10 watercolor images of pioneer buildings, and recently commissioned a large photograph of William Andrew Murphy that now hangs at City Hall. She said the group had served as guardians of three historic cemeteries and thanked the city for agreeing to take over mowing and maintenance of all three sites.
Kendra Walden (society member) and a volunteer graphic designer, Julie Johnson, outlined the society’s final gift to the city: a three‑by‑four‑foot, on‑site sign and a companion booklet intended to help visitors find graves and read brief histories. The sign is planned for the Decatur Maxwell Murphy Cemetery and will include a grid and names for roughly 300 graves, Walden said, with a planned installation in early May.
“Starting in January of 2025, Kendra Walden, Frances Peckham, and Leslie Gilbert and I have donated every Wednesday to work on those historical assets and turning the remnants of what we have over to the city,” Jenkins said.
Why it matters
The society’s work preserves local records and physical markers that document the city’s early settlers and veterans; Walden noted the oldest interment in one cemetery dates to the Black Hawk War and that the booklet will record both locations and brief histories. Council members and multiple residents praised the volunteers; Mary Pat Elledge, president of the Murphy Veterans Tribute, thanked the society and invited residents to a veterans‑tribute fundraiser.
What the city will receive and next steps
Jenkins and Walden said the city is now custodian of the society’s archives and the three cemetery sites; staff will maintain mowing and grounds care. The society intends to install the first sign in early May and hopes funds remaining after final bills will allow similar signs and records for the other two cemeteries in the future. Walden said the sign will also note veterans interred in the cemetery and that an on‑site booklet will provide historical context for visitors.
No formal council action was recorded during the public‑comment period; Jenkins publicly thanked city staff and volunteers for assistance with archives and cemetery work.
