Following a years-long effort by several groups and organizations to identify and properly mark Defiance County’s only known historic Black cemetery, an official Ohio Historic Marker for the site has been received and will be installed in the spring, followed by a special dedication ceremony to be held at the site on June 19 (Juneteenth).
Worthington Cemetery is located on Bowman Road in Highland Township, about a quarter mile east of Ohio 15.
Many community members and groups (plus some skilled canines) played a role in securing the marker, including Defiance Public Library System’s (DPLS) Local History Specialist Sarah Marshall; DPLS Reference and Technical Services Manager Renee Hopper; Berne Heilshorn; Kentucky- based KYK9 (Jennifer Jordan Hall, Taylor Bryan, Pocket and Wick); Eric Hubbard and Chris LaMack of the University of Pennsylvania (GPR surveying); the Defiance Area Foundation (grant funding), the Friends of Defiance Public Library (DPL); Jay Budde; Terry Howarth; Defiance Citizens in Action; the Defiance County Commissioners; and Ohio History Connection.
