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On August 15, 2007 Mary Rahr and Delores Miller updated the cemetery records for Zion Lutheran Cemetery. Wayne and Alta Guyant read the original tombstones August 31, 1975. La Verne Siewert, age 77 is the Sexton and has been on the cemetery board since 1963 and knows much of the history of the church and grounds. Balsam trees surround most of the cemetery; many seem to be at least 100 years old. Recently Robert Kiesel donated more trees. The church and cemetery date to 1866, although most of those records seem to be lost. The first church was of log, and the cemetery surrounded it. With a metal curved arch with the Zion Cemetery lettering on top. When the new church was build, the log one was torn down, but a path still shows the old entrance. This was the old part of the cemetery dating from 1866. Many of the original stones were weather worn and dissolving. In 1975 Walter Neuman left money from his estate and the flat stones were fixed and new small stones replaced the originals from the late 1880s. In 1942 more room was needed for the cemetery. An addition was added to the south of the original plat, given by Caroline and Herman Sievert. 20 years later another addition was added to the west by Walter Neuman. The cemetery is about 3 acres in size. Smaller lot sizes have been designated for cremation burials. In 1937 a Perpetual Care Association originated with President Walter Danke. Others at the time on the board were William Danke, Ervin Young, Ewalt Sievert and Albert Kalbus. Robert Schneider, 83, of Hortonville states that his great grandfather Christian Schneider was one of the founding members of Zion Church. The family came from Germany in 1855 and settled near Readfield in Caledonia Township. At that time his name was Riemenschneider which was too clumsy and they shorted it to Schneider.
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