By GRACE GREEN
grace@readthereporter.com
A plaque dedication for Revolutionary War patriots was held at Veterans Memorial in Noblesville last Saturday. The event was sponsored by the Horseshoe Prairie and Jonathan Jennings Chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).
Stephen Wood, superintendent of Hamilton County buildings and grounds, said the dedication was suggested by the county commissioners.
“We are doing everything we can to have plaques added onto the memorial, so this was brought to us from the county commissioners,” Wood said.
Sharon McMahon of the Horseshoe Prairie Chapter speaks to the crowd. (Reporter photo by Grace Green)
Wood encouraged the public to continue visiting the memorial site throughout the year.
“It’s open around the clock, and we welcome everybody to visit and take a look at it,” Wood said. “The heritage of the county is very important to the county commissioners.”
Descendants of the patriots honored were in attendance, including Kelly Burk, a six-times-great-granddaughter and direct descendant of honored patriot Jon Burk.
“Capt. John Burk has been a well-known figure in our family for many generations, and when I was younger, I took an interest in discovering more about him,” Burk said.
Burk traveled from Iowa to Indiana to research her ancestor. Her discovery highlights how meaningful dedicated plaques can be to the descendants of those honored.
“I came to Indiana in May and discovered his headstone and where he lived. I discovered that just by walking around and seeing the plaque,” Burk said.
After contacting DAR, Burk found out about the event.
“They told me that this event was happening, so I thought I’d be here to represent him,” Burk said. “It’s very special.”
Reporter photos by Grace Green