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A cash reward has been offered for information on the vandals who toppled or spray-painted graffiti on about 40 markers at the Viroqua Cemetery sometime before Monday morning.

Some of the 20 overturned markers weighed more than 1,000 pounds. Another 20 were spray painted, some with hate symbols.

The most egregious damage was to the cemetery’s largest marker for former Wisconsin Gov. Jeremiah Rusk, which had graffiti on all four sides.

“In my 30 years of working here, I’ve never seen any vandalism this bad,” said Clair Morrison, a long-time caretaker at the cemetery. “There’s no sense to it. I can’t see what anyone would get out of it.”

Several small markers had been moved or taken out of the ground and then put back upside down. Also, some flags that had been placed by veterans’ graves for Memorial Day were taken out of the ground and reinserted upside down.

A marker for one couple, who died more than three decades ago, was spray painted with the words, “Its dead get over it,” on the front and a swastika on the back.

Viroqua Police Chief Mark Rahr said Tuesday that his department was following a handful of leads. He urged anyone with information to call the department at (608) 637-2121. He said the Crime Stopper’s offer of a cash reward was a significant boost to the investigation.

Vernon County Crime Stoppers also has offered up to $1,000 in cash for information that leads to the arrest of those responsible. Crime Stoppers can be reached at (608) 637-8477 or 1-800-657-6868, or on its Web site at www.vernon crimestoppers.com. Those with information can remain anonymous, officials said.

The cemetery hosted Sunday afternoon the Viroqua Historical Society’s Cemetery Walk, a tour that drew about 40 people while volunteers told stories about the history of residents buried there. The cemetery was undamaged at that point.