Tombstone Tuesday: American Patriot Thomas Bent

Tombstone Tuesday: Thomas and Mary Bent (Revolutionary War Family)

Died Wednesday Morning

Photo of the double grave of Thomas Bent and his wife Mary,
North Cemetery, Wayland, 2012. Collection of Midge Frazel

This double stone lies outside of the cemetery proper, along the road, which is clearly eroding it faster, as you can see when you look at the photo by Bill Boyington (Find a Grave Memorial).  Notice the flags and the SAR flag holders next to the stone. At the top it says, "Memento mori", and the two winged effigies are of different styles considering this stone was carved at the same time. The words, "In Memory of" span both sides of the gravestone. 

It was easy to find information about this couple who died on the same day (buried in the same grave), 26th July, 1775. NEHGS has them in a manuscript collection of cemetery transcriptions (2002) which gives their birth dates and her parents first names. The vital records of death Wayland, list this family and this cemetery (GR#1)

But, when I did  a Google Book search, I came up with this source (1907) and the information about WHY they died on the same day!

Google Books, out of copyright.

Google Books, out of copyright, 1907, page 235

It would have taken me a long time to research this gravestone if it wasn't for the easily found information online. I wonder how many people have stood in front of this grave and wondered why they died on the same day? I would have guessed smallpox.

Tombstone Tuesday: Flora, 94 years old

Tombstone Tuesday: Flora

Flora a photo by Midge Frazel, 5 Oct 2012

Sometimes, an amazing gravestone just catches my eye as I am walking through a cemetery. At the time, I took this photo, I did not try to look it up in the Vital Records to 1850 of Massachusetts.

Since this area is now Wayland and was once Sudbury, I decided to look in the vital records of Wayland first. I immediately went to the last page where many unidentified deaths are recorded and found her. That was easy, I thought. So I went back to the main page and searched and found her listed as Flora "Negroes".

Such a lovely stone. Flora deserves to be remembered for her long life, prior to 1850. Rest in Peace.

Double Weeping Willow

Photo by Midge Frazel, North Cemetery, Wayland, MA

Double Weeping Willow

As you can see, this is an unusual variation on the regular weeping willow motif. The willow is split into two branches, perhaps to symbolize grief for both parents losing this little daughter.

Photo by Midge Frazel, 2012

Notice, that the SAR marker and flag is on the wrong grave. Somewhere along the line, this flag marker was moved from a nearby grave of a Revolutionary War veteran. This is the danger of making an assumption that the grave you are photographing is that of a veteran.

Almira or Almary SMITH was born to Joseph and Polly SMITH on 17 Feb 1822 and died 30 Dec 1823, at one year and 10 months. The Vital record for both birth and death is recorded in Wayland and this gravestone can be found in the North cemetery in Wayland, MA.

Ann, wife of Samuel Graves (1738)

Ann, wife of Samuel Graves (1738), a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Her name is Stone; his name was Graves

An early, well preserved gravestone in the North Cemetery in Wayland, Massachusetts (which was Sudbury at the time she lived).

Ann STONE, daughter of Daniel Stone and his wife Mary Moore was married to Samuel Graves in 1700. She died at age 69 on 14 March 1738 in the 69th year of her age.

Called "the light bulb" head, the teeth are there to warn passerby folks that death comes to all which is why it is called the DEATH HEAD.

Edmund GOODENOW

Edmund GOODENOW, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

 Edmund GOODENOW, immigrant ancestor.

It is quite rare to find the gravestone of an immigrant ancestor for people who came to America in the 1600s. The North Cemetery in Wayland, MA was the site of the original meeting house for the town of Sudbury, MA. Many people are probably buried here but without markers. Some have gravestones put here later when they could be imported from England. 

The Edmund Rice Association erected their own gravestone because Deacon Edmund Rice did not have one but he is probably buried there.

This land was once Sudbury. Many people try to find the graves that are in this cemetery in the nearby Sudbury's Revolutionary War cemetery. (View of this graveyard)

Because it is flat to the ground (almost submerged) and has crudely carved letters, I think this is a marker placed here close to the time of Edmund's death.

This transcription by Leah Craig at Find-a-Grave gives the correct wording on the stone.

FEBY 18, 1691
HEARE LYETH YE PRETIOUS DUST
OF THAT EMINANT SARVANT
OF GOD CAP. EDMUND GOODENOW
WHO DIED YE 77 OF HIS AGE
APRIL YE 6 . 1688

Ancient Graves at North Cemetery

North Cemetery, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

A Good Look at GOODENOW

 

When I took this photo of some of the grouping of gravestones in the North Cemetery in Wayland, MA (used to be East Sudbury), I was there to find the memorial gravestone of Edmund RICE.

We took some great shots with and without the mirror. It is a spectacularly interesting cemetery. Not only are there old gravestones, but there is a ancient Native American section and a lovely Jewish cemetery. I call that one stop shopping for a gravestone photographer and researcher. If someone says, "Hey, let's go to Wayland!", I am so excited. They probably don't mean a trip to the graveyard, huh?

I thought that might be the case this week as I try to add more ancestors to my growing tree of my husband's family. When I followed one line back, I got to a great surname of GOODENOW.

You should see how many ways they spelled this surname! Hubs only had three GOODENOW people so far. The immigrant and his wife, their son and wife, and a granddaughter. (So far....)

I was looking over my source list and it is growing rather rapidly. There is a modern GOODENOW genealogy which is in the GOODENOW library in Sudbury but I think I might not need it!

I discovered the Goodenow Family Association online which carries my hubs family down to exactly what I discovered on my own. Sometimes, it is great to have a "no-brainer" line that has cool old gravestones.

I was looking over my photos of the North cemetery and much to my surprise, I already had taken the gravestones of Edmund GOODENOW and his wife. I admit I remembered the stones but not the name. I just thought they were cool.

I am still learning the Aviary photo editor that Flickr is offering free. I adored Picnik but they were owned by Google and it is rolled into Google+. I thought I'd apply a special effect to this photo for fun. I think it looks like I took this photo in 1958!

Stay tuned for some great photos in the upcoming week!

Tombstone Tuesday: Mrs. Hannah Willard

Hannah Cutler, wife of Daniel Willard [1690], a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

While visiting the North Cemetery in Wayland as part of the bus tour, I was showing Brian Rice the various types of "old" stones nearby to the Edmund Rice memorial stone. I showed him how the winged death head changed to the soul effigy to the urn and willow.

This gravestone caught my eye. The date of 1690 is especially early but I have my doubts about when it was placed here. It is slate but it is thick. The carving at the top is too angelic and the side carving so delicate. It is so clear and easy to read. Most of the ancient stones I have photographed are not this readable. (Compare to Benadam Gallup's stone dated 1727)

It may have been placed here at a later date to mark her passing.  The misspelled month is significant. The zero in the date might indicate the gravestone carver.

I turned to the Find-a-Grave postings for this cemetery as they are very good. I found out Hannah's maiden name of Cutler and that her husband remarried after she died. From that point, I could go to the vital records and find her. This is her death record from the Wayland town records.

This gave me new ideas about the zero in the date. It may mean 1690-1691.

Hannah's daughter, Elizabeth married Phineas RICE. This connection to the Rice family may account for her placement in near the front of the cemetery even if the stone was placed there at a later time.

I get excited by a gravestone with a date like this one but I have learned to look at it with a critical eye. Sadly, her death at 30 years and two months is enough to give us pause and to "shed a tear" for a life cut so short so soon.

At North cemetery

Visiting!

Rice Reunion Weekend

Deacon Edmund Rice, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

We are going on a bus tour this afternoon with the other Rice descendants. One stop will be at North Cemetery in Wayland, MA. We have already been there to find this memorial gravestone.

My husband is the Rice, not me so this should be a new experience for me!

1. Deacon Edmund RICE (c1594-1663) and wife Thomasine FROST (1600-1654) [9th great-grandparents]
2. Deacon Edward RICE (c1622-1712) and wife Agnes BENT (1631-1713) [8th great-grandparents]
3. Daniel RICE (1655-1737) and wife Bethia WARD (1658-1721) [7th great-grandparents]
4. Bethia RICE (1682-1754) and husband Jonathan NEWTON (1679-1753) [6th great-grandparents]
5. Thankful NEWTON (1719-1755) and husband Aaron FAY (1719-1798) [5th great-grandparents]
6. Nathan FAY (1747-1831) and wife Lucy BEMIS (1751-1834) [4th great-grandparents]
7. Rebeckah FAY (1791-1870) and husband Ebenezer HYDE (1785-1882) [3rd great-grandparents]
8. Abraham HYDE (1811-1897) and wife Eleanor Adalaide PARMENTER (1818-1856) [ 2nd great-grandparents]
9. Vergene Ovando HYDE (1844-1909) and wife Frederica Bremer MERROW (1855-1886) [great-grandparents]
10. Linda Edwards HYDE (1881-1949) and husband Phares David FRAZEL (1876-1949) [grandparents]
11. Wilbur Hyde FRAZEL (1913-2011) and wife Ruth Hannah CRAIG (1915-2010) [parents]

Ann, wife of Samuel Graves

Ann, wife of Samuel Graves, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

This beautifully preserved gravestone is of Ann STONE, daughter of Daniel and Mary Stone, and wife of Samuel GRAVES of Sudbury, MA

The Find a Grave page lists her maiden name and her death record.

This is her birth record:
STONE: Ann, d. Daniel and Mary, Jan. 15, 1670. M.R. Birth, Sudbury, MA

Her marriage to Samuel is not recorded but probably took place about 1700.

Her death record lists her as having died in 1739 but you can see if you look closely at this gravestone that it reads 1738. I so wish all gravestones were this easy to read.

This stone caught my eye because of the surname GRAVES. I admit to chuckling when I learned her name was STONE. (Get it? Gravestone)

It is a petite stone and is a lot like my ancestor, Ann Borodell Denison who died in 1712.

Why Me?

Why Me?, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Statue at North Cemetery, Wayland, MA

I like the plaintive look of the woman in this statue. It seems to say "Why me?" I think it is a good thing that no one can hear what I am thinking while I am out taking photos in the cemetery because I realize that I am composing blog posts as I snap certain photos. Of course, she is asking this question because of the finality of death. I just think of this as a block.

Apparently, a mental block is not the same as writer's block. I have a serious mental block. As soon as I get to the "edge of America" and identify the person who was the immigrant of my family, I stop, just as if I am going to fall into the ocean. Until now, I thought of this as a problem with my own identity. I just didn't want to think about my ancestors coming to America. But, since I have been working on my husband's line, I have the same feeling. I am the first to admit that this is weird.

My husband and I are ancestral mirror images. My paternal ancestors came here from Scotland and his maternal ancestors came here from Scotland. My maternal ancestors came here, mostly from England (one was French) on the Mayflower and in the years afterwards and now I am finding that his paternal ancestors are probably mostly of English birth. So far, we have no common ancestors but I do think that is possible.

A discussion has occurred as to how many of us genealogists and family historians are "cousins", finding a common ancestor in our charts. I was already a Facebook member when Thomas MacEntee found me, hiding with the educators. I looked at his blog and said, "I am also a descendant of Robert Austin." Several others have come forward since listing surnames and asking me if they are in my chart. It really is cool.

The problem with this is that I am not fully researched back that far. I worked on my Connecticut ancestors first. They are the furthest away. I have taken hundreds of gravestone photos there.Then, I joined the Rhode Island Genealogical Society and started working on my Rhode Island ancestors. There are not as many gravestones to take in Rhode Island.

I have been successful with these families but I don't seem to be nearing the "edge". My Massachusetts ancestors elude me. Some of these are in New York. I just know it.

Most of the sources for my ancestors have listed the wrong town or city that my immigrant ancestors have come from. I have been shrugging my shoulders and writing just the country name. I just think of them running away from whatever country to be Americans and so they are no different than the ones that are two generations back (instead of ten, twelve or thirteen). I do think that many other fellow ancestral hunters may know more about mine. Should I be paying attention to this?

Well, it is all about the connection. The movement to the Internet for discussion and sharing is astonishing. As a believer in technology, I probably have a stronger sense of this than some of the other genealogists. I expect it to be great.

People seem to know me since I write a lot. So this begs the plaintive whine, "Why me?" Can you help me with my mental block?

Cemetery Information Brochures

Cemetery Information Brochures, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Found inside the box in the North Cemetery in Wayland were these two pamphlets!

I should have examined them on the spot since they told me a lot about the cemetery. Oh, well, guess we'll have to go back.  I am going to love going back. You will see why....

Cemetery Information Box

Cemetery Information Box, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Look! My husband spied this box in the North Cemetery in Wayland, where his ancestor, Deacon Edmund Rice is buried.

I told you this was a great cemetery!

Colonial Dames Flag Holder

Colonial Dames, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

I was so excited to see this flag holder at the gravestone of Deacon Edmund Rice. The National Society of Colonial Dames of America must be involved in the placement of this flag holder.

XVII century. A reason to know your Roman numerals. 13 stars for the thirteen states. 

Tombstone Tuesday: Deacon Edmund Rice

Deacon Edmund Rice, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

This is the clearest photo I took of Deacon Edmund Rice's memorial gravestone. It took several tries with moving around wit the mirror for me to get just the right reflection.

First Meeting House

First Meeting House, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

The plaque, firmly affixed to this large boulder, indicates that part of the cemetery was once the location of the first meeting house in Sudbury. Of course, since it is now in the town of Wayland, I have to say that historians will have trouble finding it in the future.

There it Is!

There it Is!, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

North Cemetery, Wayland, MA.

While my husband (the descendant of Deacon Edmund Rice) moved the car off the road. I stood and survey the "oldest section" of gravestones from the road inside the cemetery.

I knew this was the stone we were looking for, so I took this photo and yelled, "Bring the mirror!). As he approached me, I pointed at the stone. He said, "How do you do that?"

I smiled. Such is the life of the gravestone maven...

First Town Center Sign

First Town Center Sign, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

In front of the North Cemetery is this old (1930) and rusty sign explaining that the spot you are standing on used to be the center of Sudbury. It is a wonder that anyone visiting New England goes crazy trying to find anything!

North Cemetery Sign

North Cemetery Sign, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

North Cemetery, Town of Wayland, MA. Land used to be in Sudbury, MA.

Up ahead we could see just the front of the cemetery and my husband, Steve, quickly turned up the side road and into the cemetery.

He sat in the car while I got out with my camera to explore and photograph the front near the road. This is often a neglected part of the gravestone hunter's adventure, probably because of the excitement of finding an ancestor's grave. I like doing this part first to get a feel for what the cemetery is like. I have had to return to cemeteries later because I missed this important part of the investigation.

I knew that there was a sign but it is NOT the sign that is at the Find-a-Grave site, It must have been recently replaced to be more easily seen from the road. [North Cemetery, Wayland at Find-a-Grave] The photos at Find A Grave were taken in 2009. I enjoyed the plantings around the sign. Did you notice them?

Just so you know, there are a LOT of cemeteries in Massachusetts named North Cemetery! This one is in Middlesex county in the town of Wayland. When Deacon Edmund Rice was buried here, this cemetery was part of Sudbury. Confusing, right?

Notice the vault below the sign. [better photo] It may not be in use any longer. Because of the frozen ground, burials were not performed in the winter until just a few years ago when new equipment became available for rent by town to dig in the winter.

North Cemetery Rice Adventure

Rice, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Seriously folks, this was an adventure that all gravestone lovers dream of....

At 8:10 AM, my husband and I were on our way to the North Cemetery in Wayland, MA to locate the memorial stone of his immigrant ancestor, Deacon Edmund Rice. (this photo is not that stone).

Even with morning (school) traffic, we easily found the graveyard, just past the Wayland Country Club. Some time ago, I looked this graveyard up on the Wayland town Web site and printed a "hand drawn map" that someone had made and posted to that site for my file folder.

Yesterday, I used Find-a-Grave and Google Maps to locate the exact spot of the cemetery and explored the Web site of the Edmund Rice (1628) Association. I could tell that the gravestone was quite large and probably was placed in the "old" section.

It pays to plan your visit to the cemetery and to be ready to roll to get the morning light and while it is cool.