Bethel Cemetery, Hymera, Indiana

NATHAN HINKLE

BORN JUNE 7, 1749

DIED DEC. 25, 1848

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NATHAN HINKLE

REVOLUTINARY SOLDIER

ENLISTED IN LANCASTER CO.

PENN APR. 1776 AND SERVED

2YS 9MS UNDER CAPT. HENRY

CRISP — COL. MILES REG AS A PRI-

VATE PARTICIPATED IN THE

BATTLES OF LONG ISLAND

BRANDYWINE AND PAOLI

Facing the highway at the Bethel Cemetery in the little town of Hymera, Indiana, is the statue of Revolutionary solider Nathan Hinkle. The local legend that has grown up around this proud monument is that you can evoke his spirit by walking around his statue three times saying his name with each revolution—then, Nathan comes alive and speaks back.

The limestone statue depicts a Revolutionary War soldier at parade rest, holding his rifle butt down, but unfortunately, most of the rifle is missing, save for the piece he clutches with his hands. The statue to honor Nathan Hinkle was unveiled on a Fall day in October in 1904, with a cluster of local dignitaries, a Knights of Pythias band, and a crowd estimated at seven thousand. Hymera, at the last Census, had 801 residents—it is hard to imagine that many people assembling for the unveiling today.

As the Sullivan County History details. “The ceremonies of the day centered about the unveiling of a monument to Nathan Hinkle, the Revolutionary soldier who was buried in the Hymera cemetery. About a year before the movement had been started to raise funds for such a memorial, and the subscriptions had been gathered and the monument set in place for this occasion. Hon. James S. Barcus, a great-grandson of the patriot, delivered an address, and Miss Mamie Asbury, a great-granddaughter, assisted in the unveiling. The monument is fifteen feet high, representing a Revolutionary soldier at “parade rest.”