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History Lives in Mayfield
Wooldridge Monuments Rededicated
by Matt Schorr The Mayfield Messenger
October 21, 2010 "Thank you for all your efforts in maintaining the history of our area." Colonel Henry G. Wooldridge made a special appearance this morning at the rededication of his final resting place,
the Wooldridge Monuments in Maplewood Cemetery. Tom Tuck, a Graves County native, took on the role of Mayfield's most
recognizable historic figure, riding in to the cemetery on a horse named Missy as part of a ceremony finalizing the restoration
of the monuments. Five of Wooldridge's descendants also returned to Mayfield for the rededication.
Chris Wooldridge, a Murray resident working at Murray State University, told everyone gathered he visited the site just days
after it was demolished by a 300-year old red oak tree that fell in the 2009 ice storm. He was awestruck by the damage,
he said, and moved by the people who came together to restore the monuments. Another descendant,
Mary Ellen Turner-Sellhorn, commented, "We're overwhelmed. It's beautiful." She
was joined at the site by her parents, Edgar Wooldridge Turner, Jr. and Barbara Turner. Julia Wooldridge was another
descendant in attendance. Contractors from Monument Conservation Collaborative in Norfolk, Conneticut
spent much of the past year restoring the monuments after they were destroyed in the 2009 Ice Storm. For more than a
year, only the statues of Wooldridge's sisters and a dog remained standing while the city sought funds from FEMA to cover
repairs. Mayfield Mayor Arthur Byrn said it took roughly 21 months and approximately $100,000
to restore the fallen statues. FEMA is expected to cover approximately 75 percent of the total cost. The state
is covering another 12 percent, leaving the city with roughly 13 percent of the overall repair cost. The
monuments were built for Colonel Wooldridge to commemorate family members and other loved ones of his life. Wooldridge
is the only one buried at the site, which is sometimes called "The Strange Procession That Does Not Move." In total, there are 18 life-size statues grouped around Wooldridge's tomb, a Mayfield horse trader who commissioned
them and died in 1899. He also included sculptures of a fox, a deer, his horse and his favorite dogs.
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