Peter Breakbill (also spelled Brakebill), Sr. was born 4 April 1760 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Enlisted in Pennsylvania in July 1776. Married in 1784 in Maryland to Katherine Thomas. Received Pension in 1832, Monroe County, Tennessee, and moved to Blount County where his son lived. Died 22 Jan 1844, in Blount County. His wife applied for his pension in Blount County in 1844. The grave was marked in 1958 by the DAR with a government marker.
The Breakbill Family Cemetery is located on the north side of Nail’s Creek Road, approximately one mile from Cedar Grove Baptist Church in Blount County north of Nail’s Creek, on the property line of the McCammon and Cunningham farms, on a hill near Bay Mountain. The public access road is no longer in existence. The cemetery is on private property and the owner’s permission must be obtained before visiting. There are old cedar trees at three of the four corners of the cemetery. There are about 11 marked graves and over 40 unmarked graves. The cemetery was fenced, but became very overgrown.
In the spring of 2016, the old cemetery was grown up with trees and could not be located. Eventually, it was found and 14 Boy Scouts from local Troop 87 with local volunteers from the Mary Blount Chapter, the Blount County Genealogical and Historical Society and other groups began the task of clearing and restoring. Thanks to their efforts, many family grave markers were found and a new fence was erected. On May 17, 2016 the Mary Blount Chapter DAR, the Stephen Holston Chapter SAR, Brakebill descendants and Boy Scout Troop 87 rededicated the memorial marker of Peter Breakbill, Sr. To get to the remote cemetery site, participants rode on tractor-drawn hay wagons or 4-wheel drive vehicles.
