Farm Horizons Farm Horizons 10/16 | Page 30

Farm Horizons • Oct. 10, 2016 • Page 30 Piper Cemetery hidden in Lester Prairie By Caleb Sebora Located on the edge of town, behind a building and hiding in the overgrowth of trees and grass, is perched a small, almost unnoticeable fence line. It’s bent and rusting, with a small tree growing right in the center of its encapsulation. A person wouldn’t know it was there, unless they were looking for it. But, if a person were looking for it, they might know that inside that little bent-up and rusty fence lies a cemetery. Piper Cemetery is small burial site, encompassing 13 graves and even fewer headstones to mark them. Located on the eastern side of Lester Prairie, the graveyard is right off of County Road 9, along the south side of Central Avenue. It lies directly behind Jerry’s Transmission Services, and right across the street from Casey’s General Store. Piper Cemetery does not have an official creation date. The unofficial start of the cemetery began with the death of John Piper, who was born in 1796, and died in 1857 – and who the cemetery is named after. While there is no official affiliation with any church, most of the members of the small graveyard w