Violet Hill Cemetery Sexton Richard Steadman called the Perry Police Department Thursday morning with a report of vandalism after “a top of the stone pillar had been pulled off the pillar and broke apart upon making impact on the ground,” according to the police report.
Perry Police Department Det. Laura Deaton responded to Steadman’s call and concluded, after investigating the incident, that the damage probably occurred accidentally.
“Most likely something hooked it and pulled it off,” Deaton said. “Most likely something caught it by accident.”
Steadman speculated the pillar’s capstone was knocked off by a passing farm implement.
“We’re thinking something big had hit it,” he said. “I would have to guess it was some kind of farm machinery was what hit it. It was one of the pillars on the top, but there was no marking to it, and you could tell definitely somebody hit it and drug it a long ways.”
Steadman said each capstone on the cemetery’s numerous pillars appears to be a single large, flat rock but is really loosely assembled atop the pillar from several pieces. He said whoever hit it knew they hit it.
“Somebody knew they had to be on it just because of the way they pulled it and the pieces were scattered,” he said. “From the pillar to the last piece it was 65 feet. They had to hear a heck of a crunch whatever it was.”
Steadman said malicious mischief and vandalism were ruled out in the case.
“It wasn’t no kids or nothing like that,” he said. “If it was, I don’t think they would break it the way it broke, especially the way it was scattered 65 feet.”
Steadman said the time and money will have to be found to fix the broken capstone.
“I doubt if anyone’s going to come forward and say they hit it,” he said. “I’m going to have to run it through the city, but we’re going to end up fixing it. We’re going to have to put the pieces back together with concrete, and it’s going to look funny.”
