The Descendants of William and Isabella Mooreland Ponton decided at this year's family reunion as a special project we will be restoring this cemetery. These headstones will be repaired and cleaned and the cemetery will be beautified to the best of our ability...if you have any questions, please contact me...

Near the end of the Black Hawk War the Potowattomie Indians, a branch of the Algonquins sold what is now Dundee to Illinois in 1835 and by 1840 almost all of this land had been settled. The first settlers actually arrived in the area in the fall of 1834, seeing the wigwams and campfires along the river. Jesse Newman, his wife and Joseph Russell who were prospectors, built a cabin along the east bank of the river a little more than a mile south of what later became the town of Dundee. The Newmans and Russell stayed only a short time, but staked their claim and returned a year later.

In 1835 the Oatmans arrived and settled on the west side of the river, being one of the first settlers to arrive after the treaty. Reportedly, a drawing was held at the raising of the Oatman house to determine who would have the honor of naming the town. A young Scotsman name Alexander Gardiner won the honor and the town was named Dundee after his hometown in Scotland.

In 1837, Thomas Deweese, the son-in-law to Elder John Oatman, platted most of East Dundee. In 1837 Deweese built a gristmill, and soon after was responsible for the installation of the first bridge. In the 1850s, a large group of Lutheran Germans moved into the area. They erected a church and practiced their own traditions, which separated them from their largely Scottish western neighbors.[4] With the Chicago - Northwestern train line running through the center of town, East Dundee produced dairy and cheese. Prior to the train line all products were moved by horse and wagon to connect with the train which was about 7 miles north and a little west of town.

The Descendants of William and Isabella Mooreland Ponton decided at this year's family reunion as a special project we will be restoring this cemetery. These headstones will be repaired and cleaned and the cemetery will be beautified to the best of our ability...if you have any questions, please contact me...