Blast from the past

MILTON — The Milton Cemetery Board's Hayride through History and Taste of the Town fundraiser invited guests to take a ride through the Milton Historic Cemetery to learn about the town’s history and eat food from various local vendors.

About a dozen restaurants hosted booths where participants could get a taste of what each vendor has to offer. Guests could then take a hayride through the cemetery where they would make five stops to learn about local history.

The different stations included the grave of Aaron Snowden, the only person buried in the cemetery who fought in the American Revolution. There was also the grave of George Neuman, a ship captain from the Civil War; Aubrey Gainer, a local resident murdered in 1931; Spencer Collins, a local businessman murdered days after the death of Gainer, whom he employed; and Martha Beck, a serial murderer from Milton who was electrocuted in the 1940s.

At each stop, members of the community were dressed in attire relevant to the period the late residents were from, and educated guests about their roles in the history of Milton.

The fundraiser occurred just days after the cemetery was vandalized for the second time in five months and more than a dozen gravestones were broken.

Money raised from the event will go toward fixing damage within the cemetery.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Blast from the past