Thursday, June 20, 2013

Martha PHELPS

Martha PHELPS by midgefrazel
Martha PHELPS, a photo by midgefrazel on Flickr.

Martha A. PHELPS
Wife of Sea Captain Gurdon Gates
"Our Dear Mother"

Martha, daughter of Jonathan PHELPS and his wife Nancy BROWN has this lovely flower on her gravestone. It could be a pitcher plant or a morning glory. I looked up both flowers and there are a lot of varieties of each. Generally, flowers on gravestones are a symbol of love lost since flowers are glorious for only a short time. Martha lived to be only 55. 

Martha was Capt. Gurdon Gates second wife and the mother of all but one of Capt. Gates's children. I have identified 7 children born to this couple. She was the mother of Nathan Stanton Gates, whose wife was Ann Borodell Denison, founder of the Denison Society and lived in the Denison Homestead.



1 comment:

Heather Wilkinson Rojo said...

Midge, where is this gravestone? I have PHELPS from Andover, MA I am trying to trace, but its a real brickwall.