Hugh Nelson (1821-1884), a native of Tennessee, donated the original two acres of this burial ground. The earliest dated stone marks the grave of his infant son Hugh, who died in 1864. Earlier burials were marked only with field-stones. A number of children's graves date from a dysentery epidemic in 1884. Known at one time as Walnut Creek Cemetery, this is the burial place of many area pioneers, including members of the Cruse, Helm, Nix, Osburn, Parker, and Peden families. Nelson Cemetery contains over 700 known graves. (1985)