To the Editor:

I was distressed to read your article on Wednesday, March 8, about the proposed move of the remains of the early members of the First Presbyterian Church to Oakdale Cemetery.

I walked through the cemetery for the second time on Thursday, and thought of the families of those buried there.

I wondered if those families would welcome the removal of their loved ones to make way for the modern horse and carriage. Would the family of the one-year-old baby girl, who died of Scarlet Fever, welcome her move to the modern cemetery? Would they prefer she remain in the church yard where they probably visited her grave daily?

How very sad that modern technology and our need for convenience would inspire such a move.

Will the removal of these ancestors really afford the church with enough spaces for their future needs? Perhaps the money spent for the removal would be better spent on a shuttle bus that could transport church members for the parking available by the river front.

We moved to Washington for the beauty of the town and the sense of history that the town has embraced. What a shame if that awareness of its history is replaced by our need for convenience.

MARGARET D. MARSH
Washington

Editor’s Note: As reported in the March 7 WDN, building expansion of the First Presbyterian Church necessitates relocating the graves to Oakdale Cemetery, according to pastor Lee Kinney.