The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1909-09-16
Famous Knapp Monuments
in Kenosha City Cemetery
To Be Removed Soon
RELATIVES GIVE THEIR CONSENT
Monuments Have Stood for Many
Years as One of the Most Unique
Spectacles for Visitors and as Mem
orial to Old Spiritualist.

The famous Knapp monuments erect
ed in the Kenosha City cemetery by
the late Lewis Knapp as testimonial
to his disbelief in the Christian reli-
gion, are to be removed from the GENE
terry by the Kenosha Cemetery Asso-
citation and with their removal the city
of Kenosha will lose one of the most
unique spectacles which it had to of
fer to visitors from other places. The
monuments with the inscriptions up
on them have become famous and it is
doubtful if there is any other set of
monuments in the world which have
attracted such wide attention They
have been the mecca for free thinkers
who shared the beliefs of Knapp and
they have been an eye sore to the
Christian people of Kenosha who have
always felt that something should be
done to have them removed from so
public a place in the resting place of
the Kenosha dead.
Lewis Knapp, the builder of the
monuments, was laid at rest under
them many years ago, but no concert
ed move was ever made to have them
removed. Now it is admitted that the
relatives Of Knapp who reside in Chi
cago are not only willing to give their
to the removal of the monu-
ments, but they are anxious that they
be taken from the place where they
have stood SO long. The memory of
Knapp will not be allowed to die out,
but in place of the long line Of iron
and marble shafts with their long list
of inscriptions a simple monument will
be erected to- mark the resting place
Of the famous old infdel.
President Gonnermann of the Keno
sha Cemetery Association was in Chi
cago on Tuesday and had long con
ference with the relatives of Knapp
and at that time consent was given
for the removal of the monuments. It
is not known what will be done with
them but the relatives of Knapp have
suggested that they be buried SO that
they will forever be hidden. For
years the notoriety attracted by the
monuments has been decidedly objec-
tionable to the members of the Knapp
family and some Of the members of the
family do not share the views express
ed on them by the deceased Kenosha
pioneer. The cemetery association
has taken no steps to force the re-
moval Of the monuments and the only
suggestion that was made to the rela-
tives was that the removal of them
would be change acceptable to the
association and to the great number
of lot owners in Kenosha.
The monuments for the most part
were erected between fifteen and
twenty years ago. Knapp after the
erection of the first two marble slabs
decided that he would have the other
monuments made of iron and they
were cast in a foundry in New York.
The inscriptions on the monuments
were all prepared by Knapp himself
and they include one of the most bit
ter arraignments of the Christian re-
ligion ever penned by any man.
Knapp was a great student of the
Bible and in these inscriptions he
sought to show all Of the inconsis-
fences that could be found in the vari-
Gus books of Holy Writ. The in
scriptions have often been published
in papers, but no book containing
them has ever been issued. Now that
it is decided that they are to be re-
moved 1T is probable that steps will
be taken to have the inscriptions pub
lished in book form in order that they
may be preserved for coming genera
tons as one of the most unique chap
tiers of the historical "reminiscences of
Kenosha.
President Charles Fl. Gonnermann in
speaking of the removal of the smonu-
ments today said: eve shall do the
work Of removing the Knapp monu-
ments and we hope to have the
work completed within few weeks.
| took this matter up with the
members of the Knapp family
without any order from the Board
of Directors and I was highly
gratifed at the manner in which they
received the proposition for the re-
moval Of the monuments. For a long
time I have felt that these monuments
were not thing to be read by the