UPDATE: Vandals Toppled Grave Headstones at Historic Erie St. Cemetery

Update: Of the 33 monuments that were vandalized at Erie St. Cemetery over Labor day Weekend, 22 have been raised and reset by Cemetery employees, said a city of Cleveland spokesman.

The Daughters of the American Revolution and the Early Settlers Association have collaborated to raise the funding necessary to restore the 11  remaining monuments.

The total cost of the effort is $2,350.00. The city spokesman said both groups must seek approval from their respective boards before they can move forward with the project, and as such a completion date for the restoration of the additional headstones has not yet been set.

Original story 9/7/2016: 
Over Labor Day weekend, vandals knocked over grave headstones at the historic Erie St. Cemetery, across from Progressive Field downtown.

Though the Cleveland Police aren’t pursuing an investigation — the original call was cancelled, police told Cleveland.com, so no police report exists — the City of Cleveland is pursuing repair and rehabilitation options. 

A city spokesman told Scene Wednesday afternoon that the city’s cemeteries director intends to bring a monument specialist to the site to assess the damage. 

“Some of [the headstones] just need to be reset, and that’s simple enough,” said Dan Ball, from the city’s media relations department. “Those that require more significant repairs, we’ll have to decide how to move forward.” 

The Erie St. Cemetery (retaining E. 9th Street’s original name) is inactive, meaning there are no new burials there. It is the second-oldest of the city’s 12 maintained public cemeteries, established in 1826. 

The cemetery was not without its controversy back in the 19th century, but was unique in that it buried people of all religious faiths. Joc-o-Sot, the famous 19th Century Native American Chief, and John Wheelock Willey, Cleveland’s first Mayor, are both buried there alongside other notables. 

This article appears in Sep 7-13, 2016.