JOHNSON COUNTY (WTHR) - A road built around several graves has caused traffic problems for years. But after a few months of updates, Johnson County Road 400 South reopened Friday.
Nancy Kerlin Barnett was one of the first settlers in Johnson County, helping establish the town of Edinburgh in 1822-23.
She was buried in 1831, more than 70 years before the county decided to run a road through her gravesite. But because of the way the grave was built, many cars were hitting it, especially ones pulling along farming equipment.
"It's such an important part of early Johnson County history," said David Pfeiffer with the Johnson County Museum. "Nancy was one of the early pioneers of Johnson County. As far as we know, it's the only grave on the road like that in Indiana."
But it was getting in the way.
Anthropologists removed Barnett's remains so crews could make the road safer around it. They re-graded and widened the road, then returned Nancy to her final resting place.
- RELATED: Learn more about the project here
A ceremony was held Friday morning to celebrate the reopening of the road. Six other people from the same era have also been found buried in the area as Barnett's grave.
Forensic archaeologists from the University of Indianapolis were also called in to help.
"So now this story can continue to be told. There's a venue where people can come to see this," said Christopher Schmidt, UIndy professor of anthropology. "Because one thing about history, people talk about 'you're living in the past,' no, these people are here right now. They might not be in a living form, but they're here right now."
Local legend has it that Nancy Kerlin Barnett's last request was to be buried on the grassy hill near Sugar Creek. The county has changed since then, but the hill is still here - and so is the creek - and Nancy will now remain on the spot for many years to come.