The Hutchings Cemetery is in the northern part of the TNT area. This hike does involve GPS coordinates, but anyone with a compass and good sense of direction will have an enjoyable walk.
Park in the Missouri Conservation Department lot on the south side of the road, .35 miles east of the junction of Highways D and 94. The trail goes to the southeast; it is the old road that eventually ended at the ferry on the Missouri River. As you follow the trail, in .5 miles, you will approach the crest of a hill. At this point you must leave the old road and walk toward the south-southwest. After walking .33 miles, you will approach the tree line. The cemetery is about one hundred feet into the trees (699736 4285452). It is clearly visible from the tree line.
This cemetery contains approximately thirty graves with unmarked stones, and two with marked headstones, those of Christopher and Rachel Hutchings, both of whom died before the Civil War. According to records, a third marked headstone was noted here in the 1930’s but was missing by the 1980’s. It also marked a pre-Civil War burial. The enclosure consisting of four stone walls no doubt designates someone’s grave, but no one knows for certain. The same is true for the smaller stone structure a few yards away. Next to this second, smaller stone structure is a grave marked with two very large flat stones. The grave, approximately seven feet long, is thought to be the grave of William Pitman. It is clear from the number of graves that this cemetery was a major burying ground for this area in the nineteenth century.
This hike is easily combined with the Daniel Cemetery Hike.
