With a one-gallon sprayer in his hand, Dan Hill isn't after weeds or insects as he enters the cemetery gate.
A sense of honor, respect and an appreciation for his ancestors and history has led the retired teacher to undertake a special project.
Hill, 60, is well-known in his hometown of Doniphan as a member of the Second Missouri Confederate Infantry, a group of Civil War reenactors. Inspired by a natural love of history, he has traveled to numerous battle sites including Gettysburg, Vicksburg and Shiloh. He also has visited Arlington Cemetery and many other national cemeteries.
It was during the annual Doniphan Civil War Days several years ago that he noticed the poor shape of a headstone in the old city cemetery that was placed on a mass grave for Confederate soldiers. Each year a ceremonial wreath is placed on the stone as a memorial.
"We were doing that ceremony here and the stone always looked so mossy and terrible," Hill said.
Through research, he learned the marble headstones could be cleaned fairly easily without the risk of damage. He found a commercial chemical commonly used to clean stainless steel restaurant equipment.
"Most of the time I never touch them with a brush or anything else," he said. "The spray is non-toxic. All it needs is a couple of hours to soak into the stone and every time it rains, it activates it."
About three years ago, Hill started cleaning the headstones of a few ancestors. The first was for a great-uncle who died aboard a ship heading to Belgium during World War I.
The project has taken him to five Ripley County cemeteries including Johnston Chapel, Ponder, Gatewood, Union Grove, and the old Doniphan city cemetery one block south of the courthouse.
But in following his family roots, he began to notice the headstones of other veterans, many of which were no longer readable due to exposure.
At first, he began looking for the markers of other Civil War veterans. Eventually, those who had served in later wars also were included.
" There's military stones for World War I and Korea veterans and I thought they deserved to be treated, too," he said.
His love of history also has led him to research the stories behind the names on the headstones.
At the Ponder Cemetery, he found Pfc. W.C. Moore, who was killed in action in Korea in 1950. Moore was 20 years old.
"I had been to this cemetery many times and I never noticed there was someone here was KIA," Hill said.
Although a southerner by ancestry, Hill has learned of the many Union soldiers who later moved to Ripley County and are buried here.
"I find (and treat) more Union headstones than Confederate. They were all soldiers and deserve it."
It all gives Hill a feeling of peace and comfort, he said.