Jim Glasgow and Bill Culbreth have taken upon themselves the responsibility of researching, mapping, and cataloging some 13,000 gravesites at the Elmwood Cemetery, the only public cemetery in Centralia and a historic treasure for the community that holds veterans from the Civil War, Spanish American War, Korean War, World Wars I and II, and the Vietnam War. The cemetery was allowed to fall into disrepair and, after the burial records were destroyed by a fire at City Hall in 1924, the only information left available was held by private mortuaries, individuals, and veterans’ organizations. Jim and Bill systematically pulled together all of this material, comparing it to records found at the Elmwood Cemetery office and, over a period of three years, have reconstructed a working record of all the burial sites at the cemetery. They also spent hours entering this information into a database used by City Hall and to help create a public policy for the purchase and interment of future burial sites.

Through this research and their passion for history, they began taking an interest in the larger history of the cemetery and, through extensive interviews and archival research, developed a complete digital cemetery map complete with historical information about all those interred at the cemetery. They are also planning a future publication of a genealogical record that can be searched by the public. They have also assimilated the data into historical pieces used in local classrooms and given to historical and civic organizations. They have published a DVD of the history of Elmwood Cemetery and plan to compile their information into a book about the cemetery and its ties to the history of Centralia.

Mayor Rebecca Ault noted, "Bill and Jim have given our community the pride and interest in its history that will benefit future generations—a pride that is translate into the active physical and fiscal restoration of one of our community’s natural resources."