Restoration Ongoing For Vernon 1700s Grave Damaged In DUI Case

VERNON, CT — Meticulous efforts to restore a circa 1750s gravestone damaged in a drunken driving case have dragged into their third month and town officials are vowing to have the driver pick up the tab.

The stone dates back to 1751 and is the oldest grave marker in the historic Dobson Road Cemetery, also known as Southwest Cemetery, according t0 Vernon Cemetery Superintendent Travis Clark. The cemetery is known for its historic graves.

The names on the 1751 marker are David and Mary Forbes, who were originally from East Hartford, Clark said. How they wound up with a Vernon cemetery as their final resting place is not clear, he said.

"It's a mystery about how they got to Dobson," Clark said. "We do not know much about them. but we do know it's the oldest headstone there."

According to a Vernon Police Department crash report obtained by Patch, the gravestone was wrecked at about 7 p.m. Nov. 30. That's when a black, 1999 Toyota 4Runner driven by a 42-year-old Manchester woman was heading north in the right lane on Talcottville Road, a well-traveled street also known as state Route 83.

The cemetery is located at 173 Talcottville Road on the local map.

According to the crash report, the sport utility vehicle veered off the pavement, sprung up a grassy knoll, plowed over a protective stone and crashed into the historic grave.

The Toyota wound up between 240 and 255 feet into the cemetery, the crash report indicates.

A neighbor who heard the crash but did not see the vehicle in motion was the first to arrive at the scene and, according to a crash report, was asked by the driver for help exiting the vehicle. The report noted that police noticed signs of impairment on the driver and she eventually registered the presence of "a Central Nervous System Depressant" in her system after consenting to a biological sobriety test through a police "drug recognition expert."

The report cited a conclusion that the driver was "unable to operate a motor vehicle safely."

She was charged with third-degree criminal mischief and driving under the influence, police said.

The Forbes gravestone is currently at a restoration company, Clark said. The intent is the bring the marker back "fully," Clark said.

Vernon Town Administrator Michael Purcaro declined to offer a restoration cost estimate, citing ongoing negotiations in the case. Part of those negotiations involve a claim against the driver's insurance company, he said.

"This is a precious piece of Vernon," he said. "It's history. It's sacred ground. We will get this piece of history preserved, but at no cost to the town. The taxpayers will not pay for this one."

Clark was unsure how much longer the restoration process would take.

Several years ago, a chain link fence was removed from the perimeter of cemetery for both historic and aesthetic reasons. Clark said he did not know if it would have stopped the SUV from entering the property.