Franklin, Indiana - Grave in the Middle of the Road

First stop -- Amity, for the World's Largest Rocking Chair, with nearby picnic tables for those who want to eat their lunch in the shadow of "Big John."

The Grave in the Middle of the Road would be best visited while the sun is high in the sky. The nearby houses don't look too friendly towards strangers, by the number of no trespassing signs that were in the area.

If you're heading down I-65 and have 20 minutes to spare for a small detour, this is well worth it. It'd be even better if it wasn't 20 degrees outside. [Adam Stump, 03/26/2008]

[RA: The grave of Nancy Kerlin Barnett has been in this spot, once a cemetery, since 1831. According to the historical marker: "Daniel G. Doty, 1846-1934, protected his grandmother's grave by staying here with his gun while the county relocated this cemetery in order to build the road. A concrete slab was placed over the grave, to protect the marker, Aug. 8, 1912."]

South of Franklin, a mile east of Highway 31 on County Road 400S is the grave of Nancy Barnett. And I do mean ON the county road, smack dab in the middle of it. At one time her grave was surrounded by other graves, but a path through the family plot eventually became a road and the other graves were moved. Her son refused to let her grave be disturbed, and at that time it wasn�t in the way much. Years later the road was widened and her grave was in the way then, but a relative named Willard Barnett threatened workmen with a shotgun and wouldn't allow the grave to be moved. Today it sits on a little hill in the middle of the road with a historical marker. Each end of the hill is marked by a highway sign for a divided road (a picture of a median), and each has a cross in the center of it. I wonder if these are the only such official highway signs in existence, designating a road with a grave in its middle. [Teresa Fisher, 03/13/1999]

[RA: December 2004 - photo added.]