History in Stone

Above Ground Burials and Oven Crypts: A Toasty New Orleans Tradition

2019-07-15T13:44:00.001-07:00

When an Ohioan such as myself sets foot in Louisiana, there is little to be done to prepare yourself for the tropical, humid heat that inundates the city in the summer months. The city of New Orleans does not experience the deep freezes that I am used to, nor can you dig a proper Ohio root cellar, due to the extremely high water table. If I were to dig more than a couple of feet into the soil, water would start to fill the hole and ruin my plans. The early settlers of New Orleans experienced the same problems when they tried to bury their dead.

As you can imagine, it is not easy to bury coffins at the proper depth with a high water table. If you were to succeed in getting your loved one entombed in their watery grave, keeping them there was another matter. Even recently, heavy rains and flooding have caused coffins to rise to the surface and float in the rising waters. No one wanted the eternal rest of someone they loved being disturbed, and exposed, rotting human corpses causes quite a health and safety issue, so the community knew something had to be done.

The solution was to change the way people were interred after death. Instead of being placed in the ground, a system of temporary, above ground burials was developed. This system was born from the existing burial traditions in the areas where New Orleans residents had immigrated from, such as Spain, Italy, and France, that were inclusive of above ground burials. Some families purchased tombs that were only for members of their immediate family, such as this one:

You may have done a double take when I mentioned that the burials were temporary, but this was, and still is so, in New Orleans. When a member of the family died, they were placed in a plain casket of simple, easily degradable wood. Then, the casket was placed in the tomb for a year and a day, to firstly ensure that any death-causing diseases were no longer harmful to the living. Also, during his time, temperatures inside the tombs reach an extremely high heat, comparable to the heat level of a modern oven. The heat and insects of New Orleans hasten decomposition in such a manner that only brittle bones, bits of casket wood, and metal pieces affixed to the casket remain when the tomb is opened again after a year and a day. In the early days of New Orleans, the pieces of the casket were removed and burned, while the remains were pushed to the back of the tomb, falling into an underground chamber called a caveau (This is where the phrase, "I wouldn't touch him with a ten-foot pole comes from... the pole being the device used to push remains to the back of the tomb). There, the bones of hundreds of members of this family would mingle in eternity. These family crypts are typically very expensive, and reserved for the wealthy. So, what does a person of average means do when they find themselves dead in New Orleans?

Another option was available in the wall oven crypts that surround many New Orleans cemeteries. This one that is no longer used is located in St. Louis Cemetery #1:

The oven crypts got their name from how they resemble a brick oven used for baking. The only thing baking in these tombs, however, were people who were buried communally. The process was the same for that of a private tomb, except the residents of this tomb may not be related or have a permanent family interface on their exterior. Places of employment or benevolent organizations may have also purchased private tombs for their members and their families to be interred in. This ensured that paupers and princes all received a proper burial. These reusable crypts also saved space since cemeteries can often become overcrowded and unsanitary otherwise.

Today, many of the tombs are no longer used and are slowly falling apart and returning to the soil of New Orleans. The tombs and crypts that are still in use follow different rules, as well, since the caveaus are no longer used. A loved one's remains are collected and moved to a special container that may be pushed to one side of the crypt to allow for another occupant.

My words can only express some of the unique qualities of the captivating cemeteries of New Orleans. Check out this video made by famed death-care advocate, author, and educator Caitlin Doughty about the oven crypts:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A6KX2w-dss

The Voodoo Queen of New Orleans

2019-07-14T22:10:00.002-07:00

The reputed final resting place of Marie Laveau, the “Voodoo Queen of New Orleans”.

She was born a free woman of color around the year 1801. Her reputation as a practitioner of voodoo, or a combination of spiritual practices that include African, Catholic, and Native American traditions, often overshadows the fact that she also was an independently wealthy hairdresser, devoted Catholic (She would not have believed her Catholic faith interfered with her ability to practice voodoo) who prayed with condemned prisoners in their final hours, champion of poor women who she bailed out of jail when they could not afford to, and a willing volunteer who nursed the sick during outbreaks of yellow fever that plagued New Orleans during this era. She was said to walk as though she owned the streets, until she died in 1881, and her daughter and grand daughter carried on her legacy. It was said the females in her family line looked so much like her that a rumor started that she had been made immortal by the deities she served while practicing her voodoo spells and rituals.

Her obituary was published as follows in The Daily Picayune on June 18, 1881:

***

The cemetery where her tomb is located, St. Louis Cemetery #1, is closed to the general public. This closure began a few years ago due to misuse and vandalism occurring within the cemetery. Her tomb was crumbling and covered in symbols, such as the "X", that many people mistakenly engraved when they were led to believe it held meaning to voodoo practitioners. The Catholic Diocese of New Orleans permits people to come through on authorized tours, so don't try to sneak a peek of the voodoo queen when you aren't on a tour!

I'd like to remember Marie Laveau as a woman in control of herself and her destiny, which alone is amazing for a woman born in her time. The mystery and allure of voodoo is interesting, don't get me wrong, but it is her dedication to her community and ability to command the respect of many that makes her incredible!

A Vintage Piece of Our Past

2019-03-18T18:33:00.000-07:00

Today, while perusing the local thrift store, I spotted a book with a white and gold textured cover. Upon picking it up and inspecting it, I discovered that it was something very unique. This book was an unused memorial book from a funeral home called the Pim Funeral Home that once operated in Wooster, Ohio. The illustrations are in pale, pastel colors that are reminiscent of the 1940s or 1950s:

Turning the pages of this book revealed poems by Alfred Tennyson, William Cullen Bryant, John G. Whittier, and other anonymous authors, as well as passages from the Bible. All of these passages focus on the nature of death as a part of life that should not be feared:

An article in the Akron Beacon Journal in the 1970s about the home itself reads as follows:

“Built in 1860 by a Civil War captain, George P. Emrich, this house on N. Market Street in Wooster has retained its basic design over the years. It now is the Pim-Endres Funeral Home and is owned by James and Patricia Endres. The outside walls of the house are 23-inch solid masonry, and the inside walls and partitions are the originals. The third floor was once a ballroom. It is known as the Anna house, named for William and Vinnie Harper Annat, the second owners, who at one time were active in local and state Republican politics.”

The home still stands, and it is a grand, white Victorian mansion that is now home to a law office. I am not sure when the home stopped being a funeral home, but this was a cool discovery that helped me learn about a home in my community that I’ve always been interested in!

The Love-Crazed Maiden of Charlie's Puddle

2017-10-13T12:05:00.000-07:00

The Rittman Historical Society presented an incredibly well-researched, informative, and spine-tingling group of Halloween tales at their monthly meeting last night, held in the old Knupp Church.

My favorite tale was about the Indian maiden who was driven mad after her love was killed in a skirmish with another tribe. It is said that, each year, as the hour grows close to midnight on October 21st, the love-crazed spirt of this woman "... rides a canoe up and down the River Styx and into the center of Charlie’s Puddle... before disappearing (Rolik, 2011)."

The 21st of October is fast approaching, do you think her spirit will emerge for a midnight ride this year?

Here is a full article published by The Daily Record about the maiden, as well as a ghostly train said to recreate its final, fiery ride off of a train trestle not far from the maiden's haunting grounds: http://www.the-daily-record.com/news/20111110/hunting-for-haunted

San Felipe de Neri Church

2017-10-13T11:55:00.001-07:00

Built in 1793 and on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, this church is one of the oldest buildings in the entire city of Albuquerque, New Mexico. It is still a functional Catholic parish. According to the church website, the original church collapsed in a rainstorm in 1792. This earlier church stood to the West of the town's plaza, with a cemetery to the East. In 1869, all of the burials that could be located at this cemetery were moved to the newly founded Mount Calvary Cemetery. There are stories of forgotten burials being found during ongoing construction projects (Source: Ghosts of Old Town Albuquerque by Cody Polston). The site of the cemetery is now a quaint plaza with specialty shops and a fountain. I can't help but wonder if there were coffins under my feet as I browsed...

The Endless Winter: The Short Life of Fort Laurens, Ohio's Only Revolutionary War Fort

2016-09-19T16:46:00.002-07:00

In the 1770s, Ohio was not yet the agricultural, political hub in our nation's heartland as we have come to know it. Ohio was not even a part of the United States because this union did not yet exist. Colonists who longed to govern themselves in a country of their own had turned a decades long dispute with the British monarchy into a physical battle for independence only 3 years earlier. Ohio in the 1770s was a frontier which was populated by many complex groups of people with diverse intentions. Many of the Native Americans in the Ohio Country, such as the Wyandot tribe, aligned themselves with the British and their military stronghold to the Northwest, Fort Detroit. Christian missionaries from Moravia had come to Ohio in the early 1770s and established the first permanent settlement, Schoennbrunn, where converted Delaware natives lived alongside their Moravian brethren and teachers. Schoennbrunn and other subsequent Moravian settlements in the Ohio Country were neutral in the conflict due to their religious beliefs. Fort Laurens came to be because American commanders saw a potential to utilize these natives and their unique relationships with Westerners to make the Ohio Country play a dramatic part in the war. However, Fort Laurens would end up being considered a failed venture.

Fort Laurens was named after the current president of the Continental Congress, Henry Laurens. Laurens was a close friend of the man who would lead the campaign in the Ohio Country, Lachlan McIntosh, who was commander of the Western Department of the Continental Army. McIntosh had successfully defended the Pennsylvania frontier at Fort Pitt, and he believed he could do the same at Fort Laurens. By December of 1778, construction on the fort was complete. Americans hoped Fort Laurens would be able to provide safety for settlers and friendly natives who lived in the Ohio County and Pennsylvania, who were subject to frequent raids by natives who were allied with the British. It was also hoped that a strong American victory might rally neutral natives and settlers to take up arms in the name of patriotism. McIntosh and the Continental Army also hoped the fort would provide a force capable of destroying Fort Detroit and any British presence in the Ohio Country, restoring order, safety, and freedom to everyone who lived there.

However, from the very beginning, Fort Laurens faced numerous challenges. Completing construction on the fort and deciding to attempt to make it livable in the middle of the winter was a foolish idea. McIntosh also decided to wait until spring to launch any attacks against the British, a decision that would come back to haunt him. The Continental soldiers who were coming to serve at this fort rose up against the crude and unforgiving environment created by an Ohio winter. McIntosh had to take most of his men back to Fort Pitt just to keep them from starting a mutiny against him. McIntosh started East towards Fort Pitt with the majority of his men, leaving a little over 100 men under the command of Colonel John Gibson with little supplies or hope. A mutiny was nearly risen against Gibson, because of harsh conditions and lack of supplies. The winter continued to get worse when a British liaison to the natives in the area, Simon Girty, led a band of natives in a reconnaissance mission to Fort Laurens. Girty's men came across a group of soldiers from Fort Laurens as they were hunting. Two of the Continental soldiers were killed, and another was taken captive by Girty. This captive revealed to the British that the men at Fort Laurens were starving, desperate, and had no definitive plans to attack the British until the spring. The British would use this information to their full advantage.

Knowing the men at Fort Laurens were weak in body and spirit, British Captain Henry Bird devised a plan. The fort was surrounded by British soldiers and their native allies. and no one was permitted to leave or enter the fort. Reinforcements from Fort Pitt arrived after the fort had already been surrounded, and these soldiers turned around and went back to Fort Pitt out of fear for their lives. The men in the fort began to starve, eating their own clothing at times. Even the British forces surrounding the fort were also starving because they were quite far from Fort Detroit, and it was the middle of winter.

On Match 20th, 1779, British forces gave in and allowed a relief force to make its way to Fort Laurens. Over the winter, 30 men had died as a result of violent altercations, disease, or starvation. General Washington was informed of the fort's general inadequacy, and he gave orders for soldiers to retreat, and the fort was abandoned. The last of the soldiers left in August of 1779, less than a year after the fort had been built. In reality, the fort was too far from Fort Detroit to attack it with any strength, and waiting an entire season to launch an attack would never have worked to the Continental Army's advantage, anyway. Ohio settlements in Schoennbrunn and Gnadenhutten were too far from the fort to be protected by it, as well. Essentially, Fort Laurens was doomed from the beginning. Building a fort far way from the targets it intended to attack or protect set it up for failure. Starvation and lack of morale were the final nails in Fort Laurens' coffin, and there would never be another attempt to use the Ohio Country as a major playing field in the war. Local militia took the task of protecting citizens unto itself, and any plans to attack Fort Detroit were forgotten.

Eventually, Fort Laurens was dismantled by local farmers looking for sturdy timber. The site was reclaimed by dense Ohio woodlands, and a section of the land that the fort had once sat on became part of the Ohio and Erie Canal. Today, none of the original fort remains above the ground. Archaeological digs have revealed where the fort stood, and an outline is marked in the ground so you can walk the outline of the original fort. Historical markers along the path tell you more about the fort, and point out where various structures in the fort were located. A small museum is also on-site, and holds some artifacts recovered from the site that help paint a picture of what life was like at the fort. 21 of the men who lost their lives at Fort Laurens are entombed in a temperature controlled, above ground crypt, which is located in the museum:

The bodies are stored in this manner to keep the bones preserved. Scientists or historians may need to study the bones, and this gives them the opportuity to do so. Some of the bodies found on the grounds could not be identified. The Tomb of the Unknown Patriot of the American Revolution honors these men who rest without a name:

Here is more information about Fort Laurens:

https://www.ohiohistory.org/visit/museum-and-site-locator/fort-laurens

http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Fort_Laurens?rec=710

The Death of Quentin Roosevelt

2015-12-19T14:47:00.001-08:00

GRAVE OF LIEUT. QUENTIN ROOSEVELT

This lonely grave on a broad plain hard by the little village of Chamery, near the city of Reims, in France, will ever be sacred to American young manhood because it contains the remains of one who embodied in his own person to an eminent degree those qualities of heart and soul which led so many thousands of them to cross the seas and to face for their country's sake death and mutilation in a foreign land.

Quentin Roosevelt, the youngest of Theodore Roosevelt's children, a lieutenant in the 95th American Aero Squadron, First Pursuit Group, fell in single combat with a more experienced adversary, at Chamery, near Reims, on July 14th, 1917. Although new to the flying game he had but three days before won the Croix de Guerre by a daring exploit typical of the man. While scouting over the German lines he became separated from his companies and, on dropping through a patch of cloud, found himself in the rear of six German machines. Prudence dictated an about face and retreat, but it was never Roosevelt's way, to retreat, and he resolved to attack. When within shooting distance he opened on them with his machine gun and had the satisfaction of seeing one of the enemy lurch to a side and fall. Instantly veering in a wide arc he flew for the Allied lines, pursued by the five remaining German planes. Bullets flew overhead and on every side, but fortune was with him that day and he escaped without a wound.

One of our own doughboys, in the cap and ulster we so well remember, stands by Lieutenant Roosevelt's grave in silent tribute to the dead, as many Americans will stand in the years to come.

-Inscription on the back of Keystone View Company's stereopticon card depicting the grave of Quentin Roosevelt (Roosevelt's death date is actually July 14th, 1918)

Quentin Roosevelt's death at the tender age of 20 provides us with a unique glimpse into how Americans viewed not only the Roosevelt family, but World War I as well. As I read this small piece, the first thing I noticed was that the writer lists Quentin as Theodore Roosevelt's youngest child. It was certainly common knowledge that Roosevelt had had a daughter, Alice, with his first wife, Alice Lee, who died shortly after the birth of her daughter in 1884. Perhaps the author meant that Quentin was the youngest of Theodore and Edith Carow Roosevelt's children. Or, could the author have been omitting Alice from his statement because of her keen ability to attract scandal? It is impossible to know...

The writer's statement also glorifies the service of Quentin and other doughboys without giving in to the shocking brutality and seemingly needless loss of life that came with World War I. We aren't given an account of Quentin's death, but his heroism in other instances is documented in detail. Making sense of his death by emphasizing the heroism he had shown, great service he had done for his country, and example he set for other young men to follow was integral for justifying the great loss of life.

The death of Quentin Roosevelt came about after he was shot down by German Fokker Chasse airplanes while he was out on a patrol in his Nieuport 28. The plane in this photo is quite similar to the one Roosevelt flew:

http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/MuseumExhibits/FactSheets/Display/tabid/509/Article/197403/nieuport-28.aspx

Roosevelt was buried where he fell by German soldiers, which is the gravesite that is depicted in the photo (One of his original burial crosses is also displayed at The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, OH). In the 1950s, his body was exhumed so it could be buried next to his brother, Ted, who perished during World War II.

Zoar's Society of Separatists: Equal in Life and Death

2015-11-01T20:42:00.001-08:00

The village of Zoar lies in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, about half-way between Cleveland and Pittsburgh, on a branch of the railroad which connects these two points. It is situated on the bank of the Tuscarawas Creek, which affords at this point valuable water-power. The place is irregularly built, and contains fewer houses than a village of the same number of inhabitants usually has; but the dwellings are mostly quite large, and each accommodates several families. There is a commodious brick church, a large and well-fitted brick schoolhouse, an extensive country tavern or hotel, and a multitude of sheds and barns. There are, besides, several mills and factories; and in the middle of the village a somewhat elaborate, large, square house, which was the residence of the founder and head of the society until his death, and is now used in part as a storehouse.

Zoar is the home of a communistic society who call themselves "Separatists," and who founded the village in 1817, and have here become quite wealthy. They originated in Würtemberg, and, like the Harmony Society, the Inspirationists, and others, were dissenters from the Established Church. The Separatists of southern Germany were equivalent to what in New England are called "Come Outers"—protestants against the prevailing religious faith, or, as they would say, lack of faith.

These German "Come Outers" were for the most part mystics, who had read the writings of Jacob Boehm, Gerhard Terstegen, and Jung Stilling; they cherished different religious or doctrinal beliefs, were stigmatized as fanatics, but were usually, I judge, simple-hearted, pious people, desirous to lead a more spiritual life than they found in the churches.

Taken from The Communistic Societies of the United States by Charles Nordhoff

(Read more here)

***

The community of equals which existed in Zoar from 1817 to 1898 came to be because of a rebellion against the Lutheran church in Germany. The Separatists who came to Zoar found truth in the works of a man named Jakob Bohme. Bohme was a mystic, meaning that he believed that each human being had the capability to communicate with God on a personal level, outside of and independent of the church and its minsters. A quote from Bohme's work The Way to Christ summarizes his beliefs perfectly:

For he that will say, I have a Will, and would willingly do Good, but the earthly Flesh which I carry about me, keepeth me back, so that I cannot; yet I shall be saved by Grace, for the Merits of Christ. I comfort myself with his Merit and Sufferings; who will receive me of mere Grace, without any Merits of my own, and forgive me my Sins. Such a one, I say, is like a Man that knoweth what Food is good for his Health, yet will not eat of it, but eateth Poison instead thereof, from whence Sickness and Death, will certainly follow.

What this passage points out is that a belief in Christ is not enough for a Christian. Humans have the power to realize they have fallen from God's grace, and they can show their struggle against evil through the deeds they do and choices they make. This belief was very different from most German Protestants who believed in the concept of sola fide (Latin for "by faith alone). This concept tells its followers that they have fallen from Christ and nothing they do can save them. Their only salvation is through belief. One could be a model citizen under this belief, but unless they had complete faith in Christ, they were damned. The German Separatists saw value in their deeds and counted them as part of their salvation. Their rejection of sola fide led the Separatists to:

Reject baptism and confirmation (Being a mystic, one had a personal relationship with God that no church or clergy could give to you; it had to be undertaken personally, through personal prayer and your own works and deeds)
Practice pacifism (Killing or fighting another human being was a deed that showed you were against God's Word ; to reject killing was to show that you were personally fighting against the evil and sin brought into the world by Eve)
Celebrate no religious holiday, other then the Sabbath (Simplicity was a hallmark of the Separatist's beliefs, and removing holidays that weren't directly laid out in the Bible from their repertoire allowed for more focus on God)

***

These beliefs led to years of hardship, physical abuse, and uncertainty for the Separatists. When they finally came to settle along the Tuscarawas River in 1817, they became a communal settlement purely through circumstance. As individuals, the roughly 200 settlers could not afford to make a living. They decided to make a community of goods in order to survive. This decision and their choosing of Joseph Bimeler, a charismatic orator and teacher, as their leader, probably saved the community. Every person in the community was an equal, and everyone worked to serve everyone else, and was taken care of by the community in turn. A bakery made loaves of fresh bread for every man, woman, and child. Sugar, cloth, and other goods were passed out according to need. Crops were grown and distributed evenly. The Separatists truly believed in the importance of their daily work in the eyes of God, and made sure that they lived as equals and cared for each other with a spirit of kindness, charity, and forgiveness. This equality they grew to rely on and take solace in extended beyond this life.

When death came for one of the Separatists, the earliest settlers wanted to be as equal in death as they were in life. Zoar Cemetery, which is a short drive from the present day village, has an expanse of seemingly unused burial ground. No headstones or decor of any kind mark this space as being the resting place for any person, but the first to be buried in the cemetery decided to forego any kind of marker. These simple people rest peacefully, all equally decorated by the autumn leaves that have begun to fall.

Zoar Cemetery: Here, in what has been described as "God's Acre", is the final resting place of the members of the Society of Separatists of Zoar (1817-1898) as well as today's descendants and residents. The early Zoarites' simple religion forbade headstones, believing all were equal in death. These early burials, including fifty who perished in an 1834 cholera epidemic, are to your left. The headstone of Zoar leader Joseph Bimeler was erected later

In the 1860s, the Separatists began using wooden markers, now deteriorated, and eventually limestone and marble memorials. The early graves were laid in chronological order, not in family plots. Three additions in 1900, 1925, and 1996 have enlarged the cemetery. The road, which formerly followed the shore of nearby Zoar Lake, was changed to its present location in 1925.

However, the outside world made its way into the community. When the Civil War broke out, young men from the community wanted to fight. They had never known the Germany where their parents and grandparents had seen bitter religious persecution, and could not understand why their parents were heartbroken by their willingness to fight for their country. As more and more of the outside world crept in, the worldly beliefs that were taking a stronger hold in the community began to be reflected in the use of burial markers. The earliest markers were made of wood, and impermanent, but even this small change was evidence of a changing of beliefs in the community (Joseph Bimeler had died in 1853, a decade before the wooden markers went into use. So, it can be said that a lot of the religious zeal of the community died with him).

The grave of Joseph Bimeler. The headstone was erected long after his death. Would he have appreciated having such a huge stone marking his burial place?

An example of one of the several remaining wooden headstone, with no etchings or markings of any kind still visible

Another wooden gravestone

As the 19th century wore on, wooden headstones turn into simple stone markers adorned with both 5 and 8-pointed stars. In Christianity, the 5-pointed star is symbolic of the nativity and the star that marked Christ's birth. The 8-pointed star is symbolic of regeneration and baptism, which could be viewed as a departure from the Separatists initial rejection of baptism.

A 5 and 8-pointed star on a headstone

Another 8-pointed star

Another 5-pointed star

By 1898, the communal nature of the village had fallen apart, and everyone voted to have property and wealth dispersed into private ownership. Today, many of the buildings serve as part of the Zoar Village Historic Memorial and Museum. There are also shops and private residences that house around 75 people in the village. I visited on a rainy fall evening, and it was still beautiful and full of the energy of those who settled it. Zoar has actually been threatened by a failing levee, and if the levee fails, the village will flood. The history that would be compromised and destroyed with the neglect of the levee is frightening, and I encourage you to read this and inform yourself on the subject:

http://historiczoarvillage.com/save-historic-zoar/

The Last Journey of Abraham Lincoln, and The 2015 Lincoln Funeral Train

2015-10-05T19:41:00.003-07:00

The death of Abraham Lincoln came at twenty-two minutes past seven in the morning on April 15th, 1865. He had been shot by John Wilkes Booth on the evening of April 14th as he enjoyed the play My American Cousin with his wife, Mary, and companions Clara Harris and Henry Rathbone. When the president drew his last breath in a simple lodging house near Ford's Theatre, plans to honor the dead president went into action. America had just emerged from a horrendous civil war, and the death of the man who had reunited the country was almost unimaginable.

What did the American people feel when they learned that they had lost their president? We had never lost a president to assassination before, and Lincoln had become so much more than an elected official. Lincoln was the final casualty of a bloody civil war, a war that brought about "... a new birth of freedom" (In the words of Lincoln himself), and upheld the belief that all men are created equal. The ideas Lincoln stood for took root in the hearts of many Americans. The peace that Lincoln had worked to create was now uncertain, especially for African Americans, who had looked to Lincoln to protect and progress their cause. No one knew what would happen now that the Great Emancipator was gone. Before anything else could be done or thought of, Americans wanted to pay their respects to the fallen president.

After a period of visitation and state mourning in Washington, Lincoln's body departed the capital on April 21st. He was to be carried by train on a nearly 2 week long journey that would take him home to Springfield, Illinois. The route the train was to take was very similar to the trip he took upon his inauguration:

The route of Lincoln's funeral train procession

(Lincoln's inaugural route is in black, while the funeral train procession is a dashed line)

A funeral of this scale and grandeur was unprecedented in the U.S. The funeral train that bore the president home consisted of 9 cars, one of them being a personal car constructed for Lincoln that he never used in life. In death, the car was transformed to hold not only Lincoln's casket, but that of his 11 year-old son Willie; they were to be interred together (Willie died in 1862 at the age of 11). The car underwent a transformation, and was covered in black bunting and draping. It is said that a light shone upon the casket in darkness so it was constantly illuminated. A lone engine steamed ahead of the funeral train to ensure that the track was clear, and the funeral train never went over 20 mph to avoid accidents.

Schedules, such as this one, were distributed ahead of time so mourners could gather to see the train pass by:

Schedule for funeral train between Cleveland and Columbus

Crowds gathered along the tracks for a glimpse of the train as it passed by. People from all walks of life were brought to the tracks by crude and sturdy roads alike. They built huge bonfires to illuminate the night and better see the funeral train pass. When the funeral car stopped in large cities, Lincoln's body was seen by hundreds of thousands of Americans. An embalmer traveled with the funeral procession in order to keep Lincoln's body as presentable as possible. It must have been a moving experience, waiting in the night while making fellowship with neighbors. Then, the sound of a steam engine would over power the crackling of the bonfire and harmony of the hymns being sang...

After Lincoln was laid to rest, the train car that had taken him on his final journey was not preserved. The car saw many different owners, and eventually was destroyed in a fire in 1911. A replica of the car has been built, to nearly 85% accuracy to the original. The car is truly amazing, and the men who built it over a four year period are very proud of their creation. No plans or photos of the interior of the car exist, so it took great care and hard work for the car to be rebuilt. The car has been travelling the country in honor of the 150th anniversary of the president's death. If you have not yet seen the car, the schedule and information can be found on this website:

The 2015 Lincoln Funeral Train

Endeavors such as this one bring history to life! When you think of history as it was lived and as though it is still happening, that's when you gain a real appreciation for it. A tangible link to the past helps people appreciate history as being a part of our present instead of one dimensional facts and figures in a dusty textbook. As you enter the car, a replica of Lincoln's casket lay inside, just as it would have in 1865. Seeing even a replica of the casket moved me, and made me consider how the hopes and dreams of the America of the 1860s could have been reduced to this black box... or were they? Lincoln's death, to me, showed that his dedication to freedom, truth, and the preservation of the Union did not die with him, and lived on in others who read his words and lived his principles.

I thank the Warther Carving Museum and everyone who helped bring the train to Dover. The only thing better than seeing the train was seeing children get excited to learn about Lincoln and history in general!

Jonas “Der Weiss” Stutzman: Jan. 31st 1788-Oct. 18th 1871

2015-07-11T07:07:00.003-07:00

Jonas Stutzman was the first settler and Amish person to come to Holmes County, Ohio. He came from Pennsylvania and settled in present day Walnut Creek in 1809. Stutzman built one of the first sawmills in the area and had a crossing bridge in Walnut Creek named after him in 2009. It was not until later in his life that he gained the eccentric reputation that he is known for today.

It was in 1849 that Stutzman had a revelation and wrote a manifesto about the second coming of Jesus Christ. He felt that the second coming was upon us, and would occur at some point in 1853, in Holmes County! Stutzman wanted people to repent and adhere closely to the Amish interpretation of Christianity; he specifically wanted Catholics to give up communion. A huge wooden chair was built by Stutzman because he knew that Christ would need a special chair, befitting of His holiness, to sit in while He judged souls. Stutzman kept the chair with him at all times, just in case. The chair now resides at the Amish & Mennonite Heritage Center (Behalt):

http://www.ucg.org/files/images/articleimages/stutzman_chair.jpg.crop_display.jpg

Stutzman also began dressing all in white, and he is the only Amish person to ever do this. He wanted Christ to be able to tell how pure and holy he was just by looking at him. This is how Stutzman gained the nickname “Der Weiss”, or “The White”. Stutzman preached to his friends, family, and neighbors about the urgency and imminence of the second coming until the day he died. The Amish church did not see Stutzman or his message as a threat, since he never gained any followers, and was allowed to stay a member of the church throughout his life.

Upon his death in 1871, “Der Weiss” was buried in a family plot on a parcel of farmland in Walnut Creek. Unfortunately, in 1964, ownership of this farmland changed and the cemetery was razed. Some of the markers and remains were moved to the Walnut Creek Mennonite Cemetery (As you travel along 39 through Walnut Creek, towards Sugar Creek, it’s located on a large hill on the left hand side of the road, just behind Walnut Creek Cheese), but it is impossible to know how many headstones and graves were not relocated. The location of Jonas Stutzman’s remains is unknown, but a new head stone was erected for him at the Walnut Creek Mennonite Cemetery. A historical marker was also erected in his honor on CR 114 in Walnut Creek.

His newly erected headstone says:

"Der Weiss"

Jonas Stutzman

Born 1788 Died Oct. 18 1871

Jonas Stutzman was the first white settler in Eastern Holmes County. He arrived in the Indian territory during spring of 1809. He provided the first sawmill, was a teacher, and in his later years, dressed in white (weiss) clothes. In 1849, he wrote a booklet predicting the Lord's return in four years, then built an oversize chair for the Lord. Jonas was buried in a hillside family cemetery south of Walnut Creek. That cemetery was razed in 1964 and some remains and markers were relocated to this cemetery.

Sponsored by German Culture Museum Board 1994

Saltillo's Headless Angel of "Death"

2015-04-19T18:13:00.002-07:00

Nestled in a peaceful pocket amidst the quiet hills and forgotten back roads of Ohio's Amish country lies a small, rural cemetery. The cemetery itself would seem unremarkable to most, except that it is home to what you could call a local legend. As you approach the cemetery, it comes into your field of vision atop a hill, alongside a country road that is mostly marked by Amish buggy tracks. The sign for Salem Cemetery is worn from years of Northeastern Ohio weather:

As your gaze meets the cemetery, most of the stones are small and humble, a hallmark of rural Holmes County cemeteries. Soon you will see a most out of place, prominent pillar, a memorial for the Conrad family, on which a ruined but glorious angel rests. The angel's head, wings, and hands have been smashed; she is zigzagged with green spray paint as well:

A flurry of legends surround the angel, who is often referred to as "The Angel of Death". If one is brave enough to gaze upon her at the stroke of midnight, she is said to turn her head and look in the eyes of the unfortunate person who is fated to die next. After her head was broken off, the story evolved to say her head materialized to give you the stare of death. A full story can be read here:

The Angel of Death in The Daily Record

On my visit, I noticed nothing out of the ordinary. The wind whistling through the pine trees may have been a little eerie, but there was no angel flying to greet me on that gusting breeze! An addition has been made to the original marker to depict how the angel originally looked:

The whole cemetery is in sorry shape, with a large tree having toppled over most of it and been left to lie on broken tombstones:

Feel free to make your own visit to the cemetery and the angel of Saltillo, and make your own conclusions.

A Tuesday which dawned like any other...

2015-03-01T13:30:00.001-08:00

... however, March 1st, 1692, would see the beginning machinations of the Salem Witch Trials, a gruesome catalyst in early American history. The day began by examining Sarah Osborn, Tituba, and Sarah Good for supposed witch marks. These marks could be any sort of mole, birth mark, or other physical abnormality. Sarah Good's own husband, William, actually sought out Goody Hannah Ingersoll, who was performing the search for said witch marks, to tell her of a peculiar mole Sarah had near her right shoulder. How had Sarah come to being held as a witch and her fate being further sealed by her own husband?

Sarah Good began life as Sarah Solart on July 21st (July 11th, O.S.), 1653. Her father, John, was a relatively successful innkeeper. Upon his death in 1672, however, Sarah received no sort of inheritance from his estate. At this point, her fall into poverty slowly began. When Sarah married a laborer and former indentured servant named Daniel Poole, they accrued a great deal of debt due to, I would assume, Sarah having no inheritance to contribute to the marriage, and/or Daniel's lack of earning power (I do not know where their debts came from, as I could not find a solid answer in the texts I have seen). When Poole died in 1682, Sarah inherited his debts and her new husband, William Good, became responsible for them, as well. By 1692, the couple was homeless because creditors took what little they owned, including all their land, in order to pay back the debts they inherited from Poole. The people of Salem knew Good as a pushy beggar by the time accusations of witchcraft came about. Her social status sadly made her a likely target for blame when Abigail Williams and Betty Parris were asked to name who afflicted them in the middle of their screams and contortions.

Sarah's fall into poverty, in a society which placed an unhealthy value on self penitence and hard work, was her biggest downfall. Being different from the majority of God fearing, strict, and unyielding Puritans was not easy, and Sarah Good paid with her life, and the life of her infant daughter, Mercy. Mercy was born while Good was in prison, and died shortly before her mother was hanged on July 29th, 1692 (July 19th, O.S.). Even Good's other child, four year-old Dorothy, was imprisoned on suspicion of witchcraft. Sarah maintained her innocence and that of her daughter until her end. We can only hope she found peace after the trauma and utter cruelty that brought about her demise.

Collinwood School Fire

2015-01-17T12:04:00.000-08:00

The shrill bell of a fire alarm and a practice evacuation can be an annoyance during the work or school day for many. However, these precautions save lives, and came about in large part due to the tragedy that was the Collinwood School Fire.

March 4th, 1908, Ash Wednesday, started out like a normal school day for the teachers and students at Lakeview Elementary in Collinwood, which is now a part of Cleveland. Ruddy, smiling children were at their desks, ready to learn, not knowing what would happen next. Around 9:00 am, the building was engulfed in flames when an overheated steam pipe caught a wooden joist on fire (Or when an overheated boiler in the furnace room ignited loose timber... I have read different accounts of what sparked the blaze). Half of the children and teachers escaped, and the other half were trapped inside. Those who were trapped were unable to get out due to a fast spreading fire, large, wooden stairwells fueling the fire, and frightened children who blocked exits that were too small to begin with. Within a half an hour, fire had swept through the school and killed 172 students, teachers, and rescuers. By the time Collinwood's fire department arrived, the building was nothing but charred bricks.

As the ruined building cooled, tender care was taken to remove the bodies of victims to makeshift morgues for identification. 19 of the teachers and children could not be identified, and their remains were buried under a memorial to all who perished at Lakeview Cemetery in Cleveland:

Depending on your perspective, the angel is either comforting the children as the fire approaches, or caring for the souls of the children who perished.

After the disaster, fire codes in schools became top priority across the country. Warning systems, evacuation plans, clear exits, steel fire escapes and frames for buildings, etc., all became required in schools and other buildings.

* * *

One of the makeshift morgues

Burial of unidentified victims of the fire at Lakeview Cemetery

Footage taken of aftermath of fire and burial at Lakeview Cemetery

More information

Plain Dealer piece by Rachel Dissell

The Assassination of President Garfield

2014-11-03T00:00:00.000-08:00

Most American schoolchildren can tell you all about the dastardly John Wilkes Booth and the fatal shot he inflicted upon President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theater... but what do most Americans know about the assassination of President James Garfield? "Not much" is probably a pretty common answer, so I'll share some of the basic facts:

-President Garfield was shot by Charles Guiteau, a delusional man who felt as though Garfield owed him an appointment to a consulship in Paris because of a speech he wrote in support of Garfield during the 1880 election (The speech was never actually given; Guiteau printed copies and handed them out).

-Guiteau put off his shooting of President Garfield at least once because he did not want Mrs. Garfield to witness the shooting, which would further upset her after a recent bout with malaria.

-The shooting took place on July 2nd, 1881, at the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Station (The National Gallery of Art stands here now) in Washington D.C.

-In a heartbreaking turn of events, Secretary of War Robert Lincoln, son of Abraham Lincoln, was at the station to see the President off. The shooting made him think of his father, and he is quoted as saying "How many hours of sorrow I have passed in this town".

-President Garfield was shot from behind at point blank range in the waiting room at the station. One bullet nicked his shoulder, and the other missed his spine and lodged behind his pancreas.

-Although the shooting happened on July 2nd, the President did not pass away until September 19th. During that two and a half month period, the President was bedridden and suffered a great deal. An autopsy revealed that his body was filled with pus, thanks in part to doctors sticking their dirty fingers in his bullet wound; doctors weren't yet aware of the link between cleanliness and infection prevention.

-The trial of Charles Guiteau was a complete spectacle. During the trial, Guiteau: Sang songs, recited poems, passed notes with people in the audience, posted an ad in the New York Herald looking for a wife, and tried to claim he wasn't responsible for the President's death because of the doctor's malpractice towards him. Nevertheless, Guiteau was hanged on June 30, 1882.

-Garfield and his wife Lucretia rest in a crypt under the Garfield Memorial in Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, OH.

The Garfield Memorial

Dedication plaque

Statue of President Garfield (Interior of the Memorial)

Statue from the side

Caskets of the President and his wife, Lucretia (The urns in the background contain the ashes of their daughter and son-in-law)

First White Child Born in Ohio - John Lewis Roth

2014-10-10T20:56:00.001-07:00

The permanent presence of Europeans/whites in Ohio can be traced back to present day Tuscarawas County. On July 4th, 1773, John Lewis Roth's birth in the mission house at Gnadenhutten marked the first time a white child had been born in Ohio. His father was Johann Roth, and his mother was Maria Agnes Roth. Johann was a clergyman who served whites and natives in Ohio and Pennsylvania from roughly 1756 until his death in 1791. Maria served alongside him and gave birth to three or four children (I am confused as to how many children they had because they were all sons, and although they were all given a distinct middle name, they were all given the first name 'John'...). It's hard to imagine how perilous it must have been for a woman to live in relative wilderness while heavily pregnant, never knowing if her survival or that of her child was guaranteed.

Plaque reads:

This tablet marks the birthplace of the

first white child born in the Moravian

mission house at Gnadenhutten

John Lewis Roth

Born July 4, 1773 - Died Sept. 25, 1842

Buried at Bath, PA

Erected by the Ohio Society Daughters of the American Colonists

1934

The reconstructed mission house in the background is the same location where, in 1782, native Christian converts would be massacred. It is hard to consider European/white colonization of the Americas as a triumph when their presence brought such great suffering to the natives they encountered.

Mother and Father of John Lewis Roth on Find a Grave:

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=80143011

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=80143083

Massacre at Gnadenhutten

2014-10-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

Alas! alas! for treachery! the boasting white man came

With weapons of destruction - the sword of lurid flame;

And while the poor defenseless ones together bowed in prayer.

Unpitying they smote them all while kneeling meekly there.

The cry of slaughtered innocence went loudly up to heaven;

And can ye hope, ye murdering bands, ever to be forgiven?

We know not - yet we ween for you the latest lingering prayer

That trembled on your victims lips was, 'God, forgive and spare!'

Taken from a collected history of the Gnadenhutten Massacre, compiled by the Gnadenhutten Monument and Cemetery Association, founded on October 7th, 1843

Obelisk memorial erected on the 100th anniversary of the massacre

The Gnadenhutten Massacre was one of the darkest days in Ohio's history. On March 8th, 1782, nearly 100 Delaware natives, who were Christian converts, were massacred by Pennsylvania militiamen. These men, women, and children had committed no crime; their only fault was to belong to the same tribe as other natives who had committed raids and murders against white settlers in Pennsylvania.

The natives who were massacred had returned to their former village at Gnadenhutten (Meaning "Huts of Grace" in German) for food supplies. The Continental Army had forced the natives living at Gnadenhutten to relocate to the banks of the Sandusky River, for fear that they may conspire with the British. After the natives began to starve at their new settlement, they begged the Continental Army to allow them to return to Gnadenhutten to retrieve the corn crops they had been forced to leave in the fields months earlier when they were relocated. Natives were permitted to return to former settlements in Gnadenhutten, Salem, and Schoenbrunn, to collect food only.

Raids had been perpetrated by other bands of Delaware natives in Pennsylvania during this time. These natives were aligned with the British, and committed horrible crimes towards innocent civilians. The Christian Delaware natives aligned themselves with peace, but supported the Continental Army. However, Pennsylvania militiamen who saw the deaths of their friends and family members were hungry for revenge, and their judgement was severely impacted by their grief (Afterwards, some of the militiamen regretted their involvement, as the slaying did nothing to ease the loss of their loved ones).

The militiamen first came upon Gnadenhutten under the guise of peace. They pretended to offer the struggling natives protection, so as long as they surrendered their weapons and allowed the militiamen to take them to safety in Pennsylvania. The natives did not hesitate to give up their weapons and accept the protection of the militia, under Col. Williamson. What the natives did not know was that other lone natives in the town and surrounding area had already been murdered on sight, so they would not warn others of the militia's coming. As the natives left the fields they had been harvesting to re-enter the town, believing themselves to be rescued of the hunger and upheaval they had been through recently, they did not notice the disorder and blood spatter until it was too late. All of the natives were seized by the relatively few militiamen, who now had an advantage, having taken all of the weapons from the natives earlier.

A reconstruction of the cooper's cabin, one of the "Slaughter Houses", on its original site

Cooper cabin marker

The militiamen voted in the night to kill all of the natives, rather than take them prisoner. The natives had been confined to separate cabins, one for men, the other for women and children. During the last night of their lives, the Christian natives prayed and sang, preparing themselves for death.

On the morning of March 8th, 1782, their prayers were interrupted by militiamen asking them if they were ready to die. This was how the brutal events commenced. The natives were led in pairs to "Slaughter Houses", where they were bludgeoned and scalped in rapid succession. Two teenage boys were able to escape and hide under one of the killing cabins. It was through their survival that the events of this terrible day were made known to others.

Rear view of memorial obelisk and reconstruction of the mission house, where it is believed that the bodies of the natives were burned

View of the obelisk memorial from the corner of the mission house

After the natives had all been killed, their bodies were thrown into the mission house, and the entire town was set ablaze. The bodies of the slain were left in the ruins of their village for nearly 20 years until friendly, loving souls laid them to rest in a burial mound in the village.

Burial site of the slain Delaware natives

Burial mound marker

Historical marker

A visit to Gnadenhutten is a humbling experience. I visited on a rainy day, with little sun and lots of chill in the air. Maybe the weather added to my mood, but the entire area filled me with a great deal of melancholy. Explaining the feeling is difficult, but walking around the cabins and burial area filled me with this unusual heavy feeling, and I was very aware of my surroundings and the state of mind of all of the parties involved, however odd that may sound. As I moved on to the adjoining cemetery, the feeling lifted. When I came back to the murder site, the feeling returned. It was not an overbearing or unpleasant feeling, but it made me appreciate the gravity of this event and the impact it had on history.

Natives who lived in Ohio tortured white captives extensively after Gnadenhutten. Many years later, the great Tecumseh would even remember this event as a day when innocent natives begged for mercy and found none. Natives were wronged and pushed farther and farther from the life they knew, until they lost almost everything that had once been theirs; villages, farmland, hunting ground, culture, etc.

If you get a chance to visit, I highly recommend it. There is a small museum, but it was not open when I visited.

The World of David Zeisberger

2014-09-25T20:01:00.002-07:00

David Zeisberger is by no means a name many people recognize from their history books. Unfortunately, his important role in the founding of Ohio goes largely unnoticed. The late 18th century brought unjust bloodshed to the Native Americans who converted to Christianity and attempted to live peacefully in Ohio. Ohio was considered the frontier at this time, with land ideal for farming and natural resources in abundance. However, the peaceful Christian settlements, consisting of both Native American and European inhabitants, saw little peace or permanence. Zeisberger founded the first settlement in Ohio, and unfortunately had to see the great horrors that came upon the Native Americans he tried to help...

Zeisberger was born in Moravia (Which is now a part of the present day Czech Republic) on April 11th, 1721, and came to the British colonies in the 1730s. Moravian Christians began establishing settlements on the frontier in Pennsylvania, in order to preach to Native Americans in places untouched by Europeans. It was here that Zeisberger found his calling. Before coming to Ohio, he lived with Delaware, Mohawk, Iroquois, and other Native American groups in Pennsylvania. The rights of Native Americans were argued through Zeisberger's tongue, as he became fluent in the languages of different tribes.

Delaware natives and Moravian missionaries first came to Ohio in 1772, due to weakening relations with colonists in Pennsylvania. Colonists were beginning to assert their independence from Britain, and their were also asserting claims on lands that had belonged to tribes for generations. Pennsylvania was becoming more divided, as natives took sides, and it became a dangerous place to live, with frequent raids and conflict. The first Moravian/Delaware settlement in Ohio was Schoenbrunn, meaning 'beautiful spring' in German. Schoenbrunn was home to the first school and church in Ohio, and it began to thrive. At its most populous point, Schoenbrunn was home to nearly 400 men, women, and children. As the American Revolution began, and many Native Americans sided with the British, the soon-to-be Americans began to wonder if the Moravians were plotting against them in their settlement, alongside the Delaware natives they considered their neighbors. Zeisberger and his fellow missionaries and converts left Schoenbrunn in 1777, moving closer to present day Coshocton, in order to quell suspicion that they were conspiring with the British. The British arrested Zeisberger in 1782 at Fort Detroit in Michigan and held him for treason, since he often reported the movements of the British to colonial forces, It seemed that the strife in Pennsylvania had followed them to Ohio, and it was during this time that the Gnadenhutten Massacre occured.

Colonists grew even more suspicious of the Delaware natives Zeisberger converted and lived alongside. Delaware natives who did not live alongside Moravian missionaries often fought against the colonists, and too often there was no differentiation between the Christian natives and other Delaware groups. The Christian Delaware natives were accused of leading raids against settlers in Pennsylvania, which they vehemently denied. Pennsylvania militiamen, angry over the raid led by another group, wanted revenge. They voted to kill the Christian natives (It is rumored that a bloody dress was planted in one of the cabins of the Christian natives, so a guilty verdict could be jusified and achieved). The Delaware natives spent the night before their execution in prayer and sang hymns to soothe their children.

On March 8th, 1782, the Delaware natives were led to their deaths in present day Gnadenhutten. Two "killing cabins" had been set aside; one for men, and one for women and children. Death was brought to nearly 100 natives by means of blunt force trauma and scalping. After the murders, their corpses were piled in the cabins and set on fire. Relations between natives and Europeans was never the same, with much killing taking place on both sides.

After Zeisberger was released from British custody, he took many of his native converts to Michigan to start new settlements, since Ohio was now a place of massacre and fear. Ohio continued to call to Zeisberger, and he eventually came back and established a new mission near present day New Philadephia/Goshen Township. It was here that Zeisberger died, on November 17th, 1808. As he lay on his death bed, witnesses stated in their diaries that native converts sang hymns to Zeisberger, bringing him comfort in his final hours. He was laid to rest by European and native settlers who had a feast in his honor after his death.

The cemetery in which David Zeisberger was laid to rest is modest and peaceful. Delawares and Europeans rest side by side, and Zeisberger himself rests next to Chief Killbuck, who has a small town in Holmes County named after him.

Schoenbrunn Village is just a few miles away from the cemetery, as is Gnadenhutten. I encourage you to learn more about this incredibly interesting and perilous time in our history!

David Zeisberger:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=13640377

Schoenbrunn Village:
http://www.ohiosfirstvillage.com/

Gnadenhutten Massacre:
http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Gnadenhutten_Massacre?rec=499

August 19, 1692

2014-08-19T01:35:00.001-07:00

August 19, 1692: 5 innocent people were hung during one of the most horrific days of the Salem Witch Trials. John Willard, George Jacobs, Martha Carrier, George Burroughs, and John Proctor were swept up in the hysteria and hanged for their supposed status as a witch compacted with Satan.

John Willard

A constable in Salem village, responsible for ensuring that the accused were brought before court. When he expressed doubts about those he brought to trial, he himself was implicated, convicted, and hanged.

George Jacobs, Sr.

Was around 72 years of age when his trial began. One of his accusers was his granddaughter, Margaret Jacobs. His body was reclaimed by family after his hanging and buried on their farm. In the 1860s, a skeleton was discovered in the area where he was rumored to have been buried. When the 300th anniversary of the trials came about in 1992, this body was moved to the Rebecca Nurse Homestead and a headstone was erected in his memory.

Martha Carrier

Cotton Mather referred to her as "Queen of Hell". She was unafraid to challenge the accusers, by claiming they were "out of their wits" when they said she had a "black man" whispering in her ear during her interrogation. Having conceived a child before her marriage to her husband, Thomas, and being accused of using witchcraft to spread a smallpox epidemic to family and neighbors, her fate was sealed.

George Burroughs

As a former minister of Salem village, he was a seemingly very unlikely target for the charge of witchcraft. However, financial woes between he and the Putnam family were not forgotten when Ann Putnam was "bewitched" and unleashing accusations. Many accusers said Burroughs was the leader of the Salem area witches, presiding over their dark work. His ability to correctly recite the Lord's prayer before his hanging led many to doubt his guilt (Since it was thought a witch was unable to recite the Lord's prayer correctly), but Cotton Mather urged the crowd not to doubt his guilt, and his hanging went on as scheduled.

John Proctor

A respected businessman and neighbor about Salem. Initially, the charges were only against his wife, Elizabeth. As he questioned the validity of spectral evidence (The evidence that a person's spirit left their body and caused harm to other and their property) and its role in the trials, he also found himself accused.

***

There are many aspects of the turmoil in Salem that I am sure I have neglected to mention. A complex web of financial, religious, land-based, and incredibly personal issues were at play, which caused neighbor to turn against neighbor.

We can say that if we had been there, none of this would have happened... but how can we be so sure? With our 21st century methods and reasoning, we find ourselves to be above the now laughable spectral evidence. However, if we were given the knowledge and approach of a 17th century dweller of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, would we have seen through the hysteria? Or would we have been caught up in it?

Wounded at Shiloh

2014-06-21T19:28:00.002-07:00

Shiloh was one of the most bloody, devastating battles fought during a civil war encapsulated by an unprecedented loss of life and carnage. On April 6th and 7th, 1862, battle raged near a country church named Shiloh, the Hebrew word for "peace". Casualties at Shiloh alone proved to be greater than all previous American wars combined. At the tender age of 23, this young man was wounded during the battle, languished for a month, and later died in Newport, Kentucky. As a member of the 15th, Shiloh was the first major battle seen by the regiment. The 15th arrived at Shiloh on April 7th as a member The Army of the Ohio, Second Division, Sixth Brigade. They emerged into battle in the early morning hours, and engaged in battle with Confederate forces near the Corinth Road and Sherman's headquarters. Young Joseph received his mortal wound in this area of the battlefield, and was no doubt subjected to the unclean methods of 19th century battlefield medicine. No attention was paid to sanitation or disinfection. Wounds were prodded with dirty hands, left uncovered to fester in the hot sun, and men died slowly and in agony. I can only hope this young man found peace and rests easily.

June 2nd, 1692: A Guilty Verdict for Bridget Bishop

2014-06-01T19:48:00.001-07:00

On June 2nd, 1692, the Court of Oyer and Terminer (From French, meaning to "hear and determine") convened in Salem to decide the fates of those who were suspected of witchcraft. Bridget Bishop was the first to receive a guilty verdict. Bishop was seen as less Puritanical than the rest of those in the community, as she was outspoken and frequently quarreled with her husband. 12 years before, she had been tried and acquitted of witchcraft. This made her an easy, obvious target for the "afflicted" to accuse her of tormenting them. As she was questioned in front of the court, the girls who accused her squirmed and screamed, claiming to be tormented by her spectre. Spectral evidence, or proof that the spirit left the body to seek out new victims to torment by various means, so they would become conscripts to Satan, was taken seriously by the court until very late in the trials. As more and more were executed or left to languish in prison, officials began to consider that Satan was using the form of Godly people to do his work, without them being in line with the Satan (It is important to note that those presiding over the trial did not cease to believe that spectres existed; they simply came to the conclusion that Satan could be creating the spectres in the form of those they knew and trusted, without their knowledge, in order to delude the community and drive them away from God). A confession was never given by Bishop, who maintained her innocence until the moment she died. After she was found guilty, she was hanged on June 10th, 1692.

Cawnpore Massacre

2014-04-06T22:16:00.002-07:00

Rev. D. E. Campbell,

Maria Irvine Bigham,

His Wife,

Fanny and William,

Their Children,

Were Slain By The Sepoys,

At Cawnpore, India,

June A.D. 1857.

_____________

Rev. E.D. Campbell,

Only Survivor Of The Family,

From The Massacre At Cawnpore,

Died At Monmouth, Illinois,

Aug. 15th A.D. 1885, Aged 32 Years,

Rev. v11 14th.

The bloody events that occurred in Cawnpore, India were a result of tumultuous relations between the British and native Indians. Nearly all of the men, women, and children who were situated in this town with The East India Company, which controlled trade relations with India, perished. The following newspaper article from the period states that Rev. Campbell and his family were acting with others as Presbyterian missionaries to the Indian people. Fanny and William Campbell were only 4 and 2 at the time of their deaths. The entire account is quite bloody and horrible...

http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=TC18580430.2.20

Presumably, their final resting place is in India. On Wikipedia, it states that many of the bodies were thrown down a dry well after death, but this is disputable. The event gave fervor to the British in their treatment of Indians, with chants of "Remember Cawnpore!" being used in future clashes and battles.

Their memorial is located in Oak Hill Cemetery in Millersburg, OH.

'Memento Mori' & 'Fugit Hora'

2013-10-19T17:58:00.002-07:00

This beaten and battered headstone exemplifies the stark, straightforward relationship that early Americans had with death. Children often did not live past early childhood, disease was not understood or easily prevented, and life was shorter and much more dangerous than it is now. The world was often bleak and hard, and God's judgement was used to explain the tragic randomness of death. With life being so unpredictable, our forebearers were closer to and more realistic about death and dying.

The death's head on the stone is flanked by a pair of angel wings, which is graduated from the more viscerally morbid skull flanked by crossbones. The wings show the promise of heaven amid the brutality of life and death. To the right of the skull and wings is an hourglass, symbolic of our limited amount of time on earth, and the words 'Fugit Hora'. This saying is Latin for 'The hour flies' or 'Time flies'. It asks passersby to think about the brevity of life and how to make it count. When looking at the left side of the headstone, the phrase 'Memento mori' can be seen. At one time, this phrase was highly common on headstones, and it translates to 'Remember that you will die'. It asks the living to always remember that your time is limited, and to live life as best you can, but always be prepared to die. Say what needs to be said, do what needs to be done, and always live with this reminder in the back of your head. The crossbones accompanied by this saying drives this reminder home.

As American religious, funereal, medical, philosophical, and personal views evolved, the focus on bodily mortality disappeared, and the focus on the importance of the life lived and memories left behind became the prominent mode of mourning. We can learn from our forebearers, though: We all will die, and we should live while we are alive.

George Jacobs: Victim of the Salem Witch Hysteria

2013-09-14T18:02:00.001-07:00

The hanging victims of the Salem Witchcraft Hysteria suffered in death as they did in life. As if hanging was not a punishment enough, the families of the executed were not allowed to recover the bodies of their loved ones. The "witches" were not allowed a Christian burial, so their bodies were thrown in a mass grave with little fanfare. It is rumored that families risked severe punishment so they could recover the bodies of their loved ones and give them a proper burial.

One of the accused "witches" was named George Jacobs, Sr. He was an elderly man when he was accused, nearly crippled but armed with a fiery tongue. He was hanged on August 19th, 1692. It is rumored that the relatives of George Jacobs, Sr. went, in the black of some night, to the hanging grave and brought his body home to be buried on the family farm.

Fast forward hundreds of years, and the Jacobs farm has been sold and the story of George Jacobs' reburial has passed into legend. As unassuming farmer uncovered a body in the area where Jacobs was always rumored to have been buried. The bones are assumed to be his, although there is really no way to tell.

The body was moved to the Rebecca Nurse Homestead cemetery. Rebecca Nurse was a fellow victim of the Witchcraft Hysteria who was executed on the same day as Jacobs, and is also rumored to be buried on her family farm. A new headstone was carved for Jacobs in 1992 to mark his new and hopefully final resting place.

The body in this grave may not belong to George Jacobs. I would almost have to say that it probably does not. This is a matter of small importance, though, in the eyes of those who suffered and those who empathize with the victims today. The victims of the Hysteria were unfairly murdered in the throes of religious zealotry, and their families were not even given the simple peace of being able to bury their beloved remains. The fact that one of the victims was able to be given at least a headstone and a voice to scream across the ages is more than was able to be done for the rest of the victims. The voice of George Jacobs, Sr. still stands in the face of the injustice that took place:

"Well! Burn me or hang me. I will stand in the truth of Christ"

The Ceely Rose Tragedy

2013-07-16T21:08:00.003-07:00

In 1896, a case of love misunderstood in the seemingly misnamed Pleasant Valley area of Ohio led to the tragic murder of 3 innocent people. A young woman named Ceely Rose was the catalyst and culprit for these murders. By today's standards, she was severely learning disabled and could not do many tasks on her own. While she matured physically, she remained mentally immature. Nearly everyone made fun of her.

With the onset of physical maturity, she naturally fell in love with a local farmer named Guy Berry, who was one of the few people who treated her with any degree of respect. However, she did not understand that he was just being kind to her, and did not love her or want to marry her. Ceely began telling everyone that would listen that she and Guy were soon to be married! Guy did not want to hurt Ceely's feelings, so he told her that they could not be married because Ceely's family did not approve of him. This revelation sent Ceely into a rage that would prove to be deadly.

Accounts differ, but Ceely either soaked fly paper in water and poured it over cottage cheese, or she laced coffee with rat poison. Either way, she killer her father (David Rose), mother (Rebecca Rose), and brother (Walter Rose). Mr. Rose succumbed almost immediately, on June 30th. Walter lingered for a few weeks and later died on July 4th. Apparently, Mrs. Rose figured out what Ceely had done, and tried to protect her from authorities, but Ceely gave her another dose of arsenic and she died on July 19th.

Ceely eventually confessed to a neighbor, after being heartbroken when Guy Berry left town to avoid blame and scrutiny. She spent the rest of her life in a mental institution, and died at the age of 83. Ceely is buried on the grounds of the Lima State Mental Hospital (or so I have heard).

The Rose Home can be found on the grounds of Malabar Farm State Park, and the Rose family was laid to rest in a small cemetery just up the road, called Pleasant Valley Cemetery.

The Rose Family Home at Malabar Farm:

http://www.ohiodnr.com/parks-blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Ceely-Rose-House-003.jpg

Ceely, shortly after her arrest:

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn254/fairweatherlewis/paintings/Archives/CeelyRose.jpg

Quit Harping On Me

2013-07-02T21:34:00.000-07:00

What is a harp indicative of when it is located on a gravestone? Sometimes, it is a nod to the Irish heritage of the deceased. The harp has become associated with Ireland because of the prominence of harp use among musicians and poets in the Celtic and Gaelic cultures. Harps are also a symbol of praise to God, in the Christian tradition. The angels and saints are often portrayed playing a harp for God, since they are the most holy and able to sing Gods praises. On a gravestone, a harp may suggest that a person was very active in the church.