Tombstone Tuesday: Dudley W. STEWART

Dudley W. STEWART, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Dudley Wheeler Stewart, my grandfather's brother, was named for his grandfather. I know so little about him, except he served in WWI and was affected by mustard gas. He is buried next to my grandfather and grandmother and their son, my uncle.

on the back side of the Dension monument, Dudley's full birth and death dates

But, I wondered, where is his wife, Stella? Their marriage is recorded in my family Bible. So, I asked my grandmother. 

She said that Dudley was a "black sheep" and she didn't know what happened to the wife. So last summer, I went to Find a Grave and there she was buried with her own family. I contacted Alva VanHouten and she gladly offered all the photos she had of the stone. Now, I can piece this part of the family together.

photo by Alva Van Houten, from Find a Grave, she offers photos freely
Union Cemetery, North Stonington, New London, CT There are more names on the monument today.

Dudley and Stella lived many places in the North Stonington and Westerly area. They had no children. I am still working through what I have found.

The North Stonington Historical Society had this handwritten family group sheet with this intriguing note about Dudley. It says, he was a "singing cop". I can find NOTHING to verify this! I continue to look. But, searching for Dudley this week, I did find a connection to the Westerly Laundry and Victor business that is significant to the history of the business and I will report on that another day. It does verify the statement here that he was in business with his father.