Stories From The Cemeteries - An Index

 
I've been meandering through Cemeteries for more than 30 years now.  My love of history, and the resulting research, stemmed from genealogy work.  Between geocaching, and genealogy, my daughter jokes that she was half raised in a cemetery.  Along the way I've discovered so many stories, based on interesting tombstones that caught my attention.  I've marveled over the artistry. The stone masons were so talented, many of our cemeteries have pieces that look more like they belong in a museum than in a remote field.  This is an index of some of the stones, and their stories.  

[As with literally everything, this is in progress!  I have SO much to add here, but am currently just indexing what I already have already posted online]

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Hallowed Ground Repurposed
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Memorial Park in Danville is a cemetery. The stones were merely laid flat, ground added on top of them, and the Park was created.	Ross Park In Williamsport [Old City Hall] Most of the Graves were Removed.
Note to self -  There is mention of the "old burial grounds"  where Watsontown Park stands today.  Find that reference and add it here.	A Curious Dream Was Mark Twain's story inspired by Williamsports Decrepit Cemetery?

Columbia County, Pa

Samuel B. McHenry Brilliant Inventor Arrested for stalking "The Belle Of America"	The Mortsafe, or "Vampire Cage" Graves near Catawissa The Thomas Family were ironmasters
Henry William Melick 1841-1915 Canby Cemetery, Millertown Pa	Conrad Geiger, Died 1828 Along the road near Mt Zion Church in Catawissa

Lycoming County

The Escape Hatch Graves At Wildwood Cemetery	Finding The Forgotten Mike DiRocco's Memorial Project
The Capt. Simon Cool Marker Along the Bike Trail	Michael Sechler George Washington's Body Guard Buried in Montgomery Pa

The Civil War Monument [And list of burials] At the Stone Church Cemetery	Muncy Cemetery & Also -  The John Brady Monument

 Montour County, Pa

  Northumberland County, Pa

"The Largest Monument In Watsontown Cemetery"	Stones at Pomfret In Sunbury Including Jonny Deppen,  the Civil War Drummer Boy
Amos Ritter Was Murdered In This Field Watsontown PA	Where The Bodies Were Buried In Milton A look at the history of some of the  burial grounds there

George Bushar Markle Millionaire Banker [Possible VERY distant relation to Megan Markle] Harmony Cemetery, Milton

Union County Pa

Lewisburg Cemetery Including the tombstone of Harriet Spratt, the stone with the most writing I've ever seen on a stone, her nephew George who worked with the Wright Brothers, The Chauncey Family [Chauncey was a stone mason, his work is incredible - includes tombstones, the Milton Bridge, and the chapel at Lewisburg] The Cameron  "bed" stones, with footstones and a space for flowers in the middle...  and more.

Beneath This Granite Slab Lies A Confederate Rifle Bullet - In Old Alvira

The Delaney Graves At the Stone Church Cemetery Murdered by William Hummel

The Brown Monument Two graves and a monument stand in a field off game lands road, near Elimsport.  Matthew Brown 1732, a member of the first Pennsylvania Constitutional Convention, and his wife Eleanor.

Daniel Shuey, 148th Pa Infantry,  in the old Washington Presbyterian Church Cemetery. Daniel has this marker here, and also a larger monument at Boalsburg.  He died June 3rd 1874, from injuries sustained at Gettysburg.

Mifflinburg Cemetery, 1914

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FURTHER FROM THE WEST BRANCH
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Luzerne County The Forty Fort Cemetery was heavily damaged in the 1972 Flood.  Body parts from the flooded caskets were still being discovered months after the flood.

 

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FROM OUR GENEALOGY

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The tombstone of Sebastian Truckenmiller, Dan's emigrating Truckenmiller ancestor, is located in the backyard of a ranch house, just feet from a swing set.  At least it was, when we visited in 2012.  It's on my to do list to write more about our adventure locating this stone, someday. 

In Watsontown Cemetery

https://heathersgen.blogspot.com/2012/01/our-truckenmiller-genealogy.html

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When wandering through the cemeteries, often for my own genealogical interests, but sometimes for find a grave photo requests, or geocaches, I cannot help but wonder about the stories behind the stones.  Many of the stones are works of art, and some day I would love to learn more about the stone carvers in our area.  But for now, as I come across a marker that catches my attention for any reason - sometimes because I remember the name from some prior research, often just because I was intrigued by the stones design - I take photos, and add notes as time allows.  I have folders full of photos, and there is no rhyme nor reason to which I research on any given week. These are simply some of the stories behind the stones.