Newly set Civil War stone visited by great-great-granddaughter

On Saturday, July 2, 2016, Shelly Degroodt Langston met northwest of Mt. Pleasant, at Old Richwood Cemetery, with Carol Klopfenstein, county historian, and members of the Henry County Pioneer Cemetery Commission (HCPCC), to visit the recently set stone of her great-great grandfather, William Degroodt.

Langston had contacted Klopfenstein to research the death and burial of her ancestor, who served with the 25th Iowa Infantry during the Civil War. Klopfenstein confirmed Degroodt was buried in Old Richwood, but his grave was unmarked. The Pioneer Cemetery Commission applied for and received a granite marker for his grave, and in May, members Allan Barnes and David Gates set the stone.

Shelly, from South Carolina, was accompanied on her cross-country drive to see William Degroodt's stone by her husband and grandson.