A family cemetery established in 1860 in the hills of Eastern Kentucky.
HISTORY
The Nelson Cemetery was established on a gently rolling pastoral site in Eastern Kentucky in 1860 with the burial of infant Buddy Nelson, first child of William Russell Nelson and Hannah Mirah Hoss Nelson. The second person to be buried there was Hannah Hartsell Nelson, first wife of Orville Perry Nelson, who died June 14, 1861, when her husband and his son William Russell Nelson were both taken prisoner by the Southern Rebel Brigadier General Zollicoffer. Zollicoffer also took all of the family’s cattle and food. (The Nelson family history in this country has been traced back to 1720 in the Colony of Virginia.)
Since the establishment of the cemetery, almost all of the members of that lineage of Nelsons and some members of their extended families have been buried here. They include war heroes, past postmasters, government whiskey inspectors and school teachers. The cemetery is still in use today.
TRUST
In 2005, a Trust was set up by direct Nelson descendants who are residing in the U.S. states of Florida, Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky. The annual cost of maintenance includes mowing and trimming as well as capital expense for fence repair and replacement. The Nelson Cemetery Trust is operated under the direction of the five-member volunteer Board of Trustees. No member of the Trustee Board receives any compensation.
CONTRIBUTIONS
The Cemetery Trust document was approved by the IRS as a tax-exempt cemetery maintenance trust and is a 501 (c) (13) organization. The Cemetery Registration Exemption filing was handled with the Office of the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Kentucky and has been approved as exempt, effective December 7, 2007.
All requirements for both the federal and state governments have been filed and met. Section 170 (c) (5) of the Code provides for the deduction for federal income tax purposes of contributions to cemetery companies of the type described in section 501 (c) (13). To be deductible, the contributions must be voluntary and for the use of a non-profit cemetery. These funds are irrevocably dedicated to the care of the cemetery as a whole. Contributions and gifts are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes.
For more information about the cemetery or to make a donation to the cemetery, please send the correspondence to:
The Nelson Family Perpetual Care Trust
#241
379 Cheney Highway (SR 50)
Titusville, Florida 32780
Checks must be made payable to “The Nelson Family Cemetery Perpetual Care Trust.”
