Brookton Cemetery (formerly Quick Cemetery) in Brooktondale is a community cemetery with charm and history.

History


The cemetery has been in existence since the Revolutionary War, and was originally called the Cantine Cemetery. John Cantine was a major and left the war as a colonel. He was rather pivotal in advising George Washington on the best routes to follow, as well as on the movement of Native Americans in the area. John Cantine was awarded 3200 acres (the present day town of Caroline) for his service to our country. He and his family are buried in the cemetery. He is often referred to as General John Cantine, but it is not clear if he was ever in fact promoted to general. 

William Mott later purchased a large tract of land from John Cantine which included the Cantine Cemetery. For a period of time, the hamlet now known as Brooktondale was called Mott’s Corners.

In 1864, Johnson Quick purchased 126 acres from William Mott which included the cemetery. In 1909, the name of the cemetery was changed to Quick Cemetery and it was incorporated. The Quick family began oversight of the cemetery in 1864.

In 2018, the cemetery was incorporated as a non-profit with a new name, the Brookton Cemetery. The by-laws were amended and updated in 2019. The board felt a name change was necessary because the name “Quick” could suggest that the cemetery is a family-only cemetery. The Quicks had oversight for 156 years, and it was time for a change.

The name Brookton Cemetery was chosen because the cemetery is located in the hamlet of Brooktondale, which was once Brookton, and the cemetery really belongs to the community. Many people find ultimate peace and serenity here, and family members and friends are able to visit and pay respects in an extremely well-kept cemetery. Others walk and run, share time with their dogs, and sled in the winter. It is a place that we need to keep in the community.

Photographs from a history event at Brookton's Cemetery
put on by the Caroline History Association and Historic Ithaca
​Aug 5th, 2023

Who is buried at Brookton Cemetery?

The following website records the inscriptions on all the headstones, through roughly 2019: https://tompkins.nygenweb.net/Caroline/cemeteries/quickcem.htm