The picturesque cemetery that lies near its namesake, a peaceful, meandering stream called Meadow Branch, began as a burial ground in the early 1800s for the families of John Roop and Peter Royer whose farms adjoined. Known as the Roop-Royer graveyard, it became Meadow Branch Cemetery in 1893 when additional land was given by family members to enlarge and improve the graveyard.
During ensuing years, the cemetery was owned by the Meadow Branch Church of the Brethren and operated by a Board of Directors with members from both Meadow Branch and Westminster Churches of the Brethren.
First-rate operation of the cemetery was and continues to be uppermost in the minds of board members managing it. The first committee members in 1893, with the assistance of others, extended the old stone wall, added iron gates and wire-fenced the other three sides of the cemetery.
The cemetery grounds now include 19.5 acres, some of which is rented for farming and not yet laid off in plots. A handsome marble columbarium was erected in 2006 to meet the growing need for repository of ashes.
