Never Heard From Again

I didn't purposefully leave this gravestone until last but wouldn't you know that this is the one that a reader emails me about! I would not have thought that this would be the man who left descendants who were interested in their family history!

Capt. Charles H. Gates's family has photos AND a family Bible to share information with me. It is hard to contain my interest and excitement. But, it is summer's end and this project will take some time to work on, so this series on Sea Captain's will not be over with just this summer of 2013. Instead of waiting until we long for the ocean again, I will blog about this as he and I uncover new information.

It will be a lovely winter investigation. So, stay tuned. Sadly, this father and son will never be buried here but we will remember them.

I have enjoyed writing about the men who went to sea and the women and children who were left behind. I hope you enjoyed it too.

The Cabinet Maker and the Sea Captain

Photo by Brian Zoldak, 2013, used with permission

The Cabinet Maker and the Sea Captain

Sea Captain's Row Gravel St., Mystic, CT

Photo by Brian Zoldak, 2013, used with permisson

I would not have expected to discover two people that I have been researching to have lived in the same house! They were not closely related and did not have the same occupation. I am still blown away by the coincidence. (They are both Denison descendants.)

My friend, Brian Zoldak, took these excellent photos for me on his recent adventure to Mystic. I love how the house is all decked out with red, white and blue. Since I just wrote about the sea captain, Gurdon Gates, I think it appropriate for me to take this opportunity to show your Daniel Edgecomb's gravestone for the next Tombstone Tuesday. I love the overcast sky to represent the not so smooth sailing of sea captains. You must also remember that Daniel made coffins in his basement. It doesn't get gloomier that that!

Brian took several great photos of the houses on this street. Many fit into my family tree. Maybe it is not as fun as gravestones but for those readers who have never been to New England, it is with delight that I plan to show you all of them (eventually). 

Tombstone Tuesday: Esther D. MINER

Esther D. MINER, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Esther D. MINER

"Summer of the Sea Captains"
first wife of Capt. Gurdon GATES
"Devoted wife & mother. We loved her"

Esther D. MINER, first wife of Capt. Gurdon Gates was the daughter of Isaac Denison MINER and his wife Esther DENISON, who are buried at Elm Grove Cemetery in nearby Mystic, CT. Her mother was the daughter of Isaac Denison, Sr. and his wife Eunice Williams, who were my fourth great grandparents. 

Esther was born 22 Feb 1821 and was married to Capt. Gurdon Gates when she was eighteen years old by Rev. Erastus Denison. on 13 June 1839 (Barbour Index for Stonington, 5:76). The 1850 census for Gurdon and Esther is the only one in which she is named. In addition to her husband, Gurdon, listed as a "sailor", her unmarried sister Eunice (transcribed as "Bunion Miner") and a 14 year old male child named Gurdon Niles lived in the household. There is a woman who is 21 who might be a housekeeper or nanny for Gurdon and Esther, only child, Henry who is ten years old. His full name is William Henry Gates.

This is significant because Esther dies at the age of 31 years leaving behind her son who was only 12 years old. 

Capt. Gates marries his second wife Martha PHELPS in 1853, so she, as a second "sea captain's wife", becomes William Henry Gates' step-mother. Of course, Martha and Gurdon begin to have more children and the story continues....

Tombstone Tuesday: Capt. GURDON GATES

Capt. GURDON GATES, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Cap't Gurdon Gates
(1814-1892)
Summer of the Sea Captains
Clipper Ship Twilight

Hurd's History of New London County, p. 480 (out of copyright)

http://mystichistory.org/digital_publications/tour_gravel_street.pdf

Capt. Gurdon Gates was the brother of our previous sea captain, Capt. George Washington Gates. His parents, Zebediah Gates and Mercy Denison are also buried in this "Fishtown" or Lower Mystic Cemetery in West Mystic, CT. He and his second wife wife, Martha Phelps are delightfully photographed here.

Amazingly, Gurdon bought a house once owned by Daniel Denison Edgecomb, cabinet and coffin-maker, whose "cherry sewing table" is in my possession. This house is on Sea Captain's Walk, which is Gravel Street in Mystic, CT. It is a wonderful house, isn't it? [Notice that the text under each photo is linked.]

I will leave you to look at this listing for Capt. Gates rather than repeat the information so that you get an idea of what a county history is like. I quickly became entranced with this man despite his rather plain gravestone.

Hurd's History of New London County, p. 480 (out of copyright)

Tombstone Tuesday: Capt. George W. GATES

Capt. George W. GATES, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Tombstone Tuesday:

 Capt. George Washington Gates and his wife Julia Ann Fish

Buried at the Lower Mystic Cemetery in the section on the far right, is this large granite monument, marked Gates. I stood in front of it and wondered if this man was named George Washington Gates and if the wife was related to the Fish family members on the other side of the cemetery. 

Unlike the "Capt.", reference on Horatio N. Fish's gravestone, this one has no anchor on it to tell us if he was a man of the sea or if it is a military title. The monument is typical of the mid-to-late 1800s, as it has a lovely vine and flower motif. I so like it when you get birth and death dates on gravestones, don't you?

After some research, I discover that Julia was indeed one of the daughters of Horatio N. FISH and his wife Lydia Morgan. 

As I guessed, her husband was named George Washington Gates and he was the son of the woman that I ventured to this cemetery to find her gravestone. She was Mercy DENISON and she was married to Zebediah GATES. 

Capt. Gates's life is outlined in the manuscript collection at the Mystic Seaport's archives. It tells me the name of his brother plus a lot about his life as a sailor. It is a different way for me to connect family members together. 

I have identified 5 children born to this couple.

Update: by Jean Evans, a friend from Mystic. Capt. Gates House

N. Stanton Gates, Jr.

N. Stanton Gates, Jr., a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

If little Nathan Stanton Gates had lived to adulthood, I am sure his mother would have wanted him to inherit the Denison Homestead but since he was not of strong constitution and died of appendicitis at age seven, his mother, Ann Borodell Dension Gates gave the Homestead and land to preserve it for all of us descendants so it would not "leave the family".

New England families are like that. They feel the tradition and obligation of ancient family. This spread across the nation and so everyone feels it too.

Nathan Stanton Gates

Nathan Stanton Gates, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

"Stan" Gates

Stan, was the son of Capt. Gurdon Gates and his second wife Martha Phelps. his pedigree charts goes back a long way and includes such surnames as Miner, Packer and Dension.

Without knowing it, I took photos of Stan's parents and grandparents in the Fishtown Cemetery in Lower Mystic, Connecticut in a great cemetery full of sea captains and their families. I haven't blogged about them as yet so we will save them for another time.

As you can see Mr. Gates died some years before his wife. He bought the Denison Homestead from his wife's aunts Sarah and Phoebe and gave it to his wife as a gift.

Mrs. Gates was a nature lover and so part of the bequeathed land was set aside as a preserve and nature center. It was quite the inheritance. I often turn to the Denison genealogy for reliable information about families in the area. Many are listed as they married Denisons or descendants of Denisons. It was a compiled genealogy worth the price.

Tombstone Tuesday: Gates Monument

Gates Monument, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

 Gates Monument

On a hot and sunny day, I took photos in Mystic, CT at the lush and lovely Elm Grove Cemetery. This is a special monument because it is for the family of Ann Boradell Denison, wife of Nathan Stanton Gates. 

Her story is for all of us because it is the story of a woman who gave her legacy of a home and land to her descendants. 

I didn't know where this monument (and the headstones in front of it) was located so I asked my cousin and fellow gravestone photographer, Fred Burdick. As the town historian and a life long community member, Fred is now on the board of the Elm Grove Cemetery. He directed me to this location near the water.

This simple, heavy, granite monument is classic for its time. There are so many of this kind in this cemetery that you get the feeling of permanence that only granite gravestones can bring.