Historical Marker

Knight Memorial

Knight Memorial Marker

The original settlers of the area were Jesse and Rebecca Knight who came to the Venice area in 1868 with their children and 300 head of cattle. The Knight family settled south of Shakett Creek and north of this marker. Their cattle grazed freely throughout the entire region. As more settlers came to the area a school was needed and in 1897 Jesse Knight donated a one acre site. The school yard was located 1/8th of a mile east of this marker. The school served as this area’s church on Sundays. Many of the early sermons were delivered by Knight, an un-ordained Methodist Preacher.

Area First Cemetery

As the community grew, Knight saw the need for a separate church building and on October 22, 1903, he donated ½ acre for a Methodist Episcopal Church. The church, a wood frame structure, was located east of this cemetery. Knight donated the one acre cemetery plot to the church. While owned by Knight, this site had served as a cemetery since the 1880’s, in the area then known as Venice. In 1904, the cemetery was known as Knight’s Chapel. The original trustees of both the church and cemetery were Jesse Knight, Alfred Wrede and Charles Curry.

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