Virtual Cemetery Tour: Piatt-Odle Cemetery

This video documents Piatt Cemetery—also historically known as Odel Cemetery, Odell Cemetery, and Odle Creek Cemetery—located off Ohio State Route 125 at Piatt Cemetery Road in West Portsmouth, Ohio (Nile Township, Scioto County).
The purpose of this visit was to record the location, condition, and spatial distribution of grave markers while continuing efforts to build a detailed geospatial record of family relationships within regional burial sites.

Burials at Piatt Cemetery range from the mid-19th century to the present, with the site still active. Markers are composed primarily of limestone, marble, and granite, reflecting material transitions over time. Several limestone markers display exceptional examples of 19th-century hand-carved craftsmanship, while others exhibit biological growth, mechanical wear, and chemical weathering consistent with long-term outdoor exposure.

Documented surnames include Sanborn, Piatt, Nease, Clifford, Shaw, Glenn, O'Dell, Odle, Davis, Frump, and Ray, representing multiple generations of local families. GPS data were collected for individual burials to analyze spatial relationships among family members—for instance, identifying instances where a married daughter (bearing a different surname) is interred alongside her biological parents, with subsequent generations following similar alignment patterns.

This ongoing documentation contributes to a regional study of cemetery preservation and kinship-based spatial organization within southern Scioto County, providing data for understanding how landscape, family, and memory intersect in rural burial traditions.

📍 Site: Piatt (Odel/Odell/Odle Creek) Cemetery, Nile Township, Scioto County, Ohio
📅 Survey Date: November 15, 2025
📅 Burials Documented: Mid-1800s–Present
🔎 Focus Areas: Marker condition and material analysis, GPS mapping of family plots, intergenerational spatial relationships, biological and weathering impacts