Text researched, transcribed and © May 2001 by Trevor Kirkpatrick / photographs and page design © June, 2001 by DistantCousin.com

The old Walling Family Burying Ground is a small plot located off Miller Avenue in Holmdel Township Monmouth County, NJ. The cemetery measures 100 feet North to South by 50 feet East to West and contains roughly 27 known grave markers (3 granite and 24 white marbel). Many of the markers are damaged or knocked over with many of the white marble stones illegible due to weathering. There are thirty-three interments known in this cemetery and all are descendants or relatives of Daniel Dunbar and Helena (Hoff) Walling of Centerville, Middletown Township, Monmouth County, NJ.

The property on which the cemetery is located dates back to 1688 when Gershom Walling, Great Grandfather of Daniel Dunbar Walling received 240 acres of farmland from proprietors of East Jersey. Over the next four generations parts of the farm passed out of the family. The first deed mentioning the cemetery was on March 6, 1850 in which Daniel deeded his ninety-four acre farm to his grandson Jonathan S. Walling, Leonard Bedle and Hendrick Ryder. The deed states "Excepting and reserving therefrom half an acre for a burying ground where the graveyard is now made adjoining to said Stillwell's land, to be a square half acre." Daniel purchased 53 acres of this farm along with his brother, Cornelius, in 1847 from John and Permelia (Holmes) Stillwell of Centerville.

The farm remained in the Walling family for some time. Jonathan sold the property to George Wilson Walling who later sold it to Edgar R. Walling. Edgar sold the property on March 29, 1922 to Charles E. Boyce of Raritan Township who in turn sold it to his son Charles E. Boyce, jr. on August 23, 1924. By this time the cemetery seems to have been shortened from 100x100 to 100x50. It remained in the Boyce family until May 14, 1956 when it was sold to Suburban Development Company for a new housing development called "Harmony Park" which still surrounds the cemetery on the north and southeast sides.

Also adjacent to the west side of the cemetery is an old farm road called John W. Hoff's Lane. the road was set aside on February 8, 1849 by John W. Hoff as a right of way from his farm to Route 35 which was given to him by Richard D. Walling, Amos Walling and John Walling in exchange for an equal 25 acres.

Today the cemetery is in good condition even after years of vandalism and neglect. In the summer of 1991, the Masonic Lodge of Keyport along with two local neighbors of the property, John Belina and Joseph Lucania cleaned up the cemetry. These two men were responsible for the headway made on the restoration of the cemetery in 1991 with the author advising on the genealogy and history of the property. As recently as February, 2001, the Keyport Fire Department has been upkeeping the cemetery and placed a sign identifying the cemetery to the public. It is not clear why the sign was made to read "The James Hoff Cemetery"as there is no evidence that James Hoff ever owned the lot or was interred here.

The first survey of the cemetery was conducted by Henry C. McLeean of red Bank, NJ on April 22, 1928. The resurvey and verification of the lot and plots was performed by the author in July 1986 and again in October, 1991. The following is a nearly complete list of those buried in the Old Walling Family Burying Ground based on genealogical and historical research by the author.