Paradise / Poison Spring Cemetery, Ouachita County, Arkansas
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Submitted by: Jerry McKelvy <jmckelvy@cei.net>
        Date: 3 Jun 2007
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
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PARADISE CEMETERY

This record made December, 1996 by Jerry McKelvy. 

This cemetery is in Section 36 of Township 12 South, Range 19 
West in the NE 1/4 of the SW 1/4.   It is north of Hwy. 76 
about two miles from Hwy. 24.  At the time this record was made, 
an old gate could be found on the trail off the highway.  The 
cemetery is on top of a hill not far from the gate and within 
sight of the highway.  

A sign near the highway identifies this cemetery as Poison 
Spring Cemetery. According to an article in the Ouachita County 
Library, information about this cemetery was obtained from an 
old black gentleman who remembered in being called the Paradise 
Cemetery.  A “sanctified” black church existed here.  He had 
memories of coal being mined in a tunnel which ran underneath 
the present Hwy. 76.  He also remembered many homemade wooden 
markers which marked graves at this location.  This area is 
covered with mature timber at this time and only one grave 
marker was found that could be identified.  Other graves are 
marked with rocks.  There are probably many lost graves at this location.  

S. G. Goodlett –  b. 1815 --- d. 1868