Friday, January 13, 2012

Graveyard Poets for Friday the 13th


2012 ushered in not only a new year – but also a year full of Friday the 13th’s – three in all, the most any year can have!  So what better time to take a look at the Graveyard Poets and their fascination with death and melancholy than on a day filled with mystery and dread?







The Graveyard Poets were a group of over a dozen Neo-classical poets who wrote from the 1740’s to 1790’s.  These writers dwelled on mortality, religion and death, writing about coffins, skulls, the solitude of death, bereavement, and man’s ‘despair of the human condition,’ hoping to evoke feelings of fear and horror.  Sixteen poets fit this mournful, melancholy description; their poems were laments for the dead.  The Graveyard Poets created a form of poetry that became the predecessor to the Gothic and Romanticism genres; hence they are sometimes called the ‘pre-Romantics.’

William Collins
Thomas Warton
The Graveyard Poets included the better known Thomas Gray, Robert Blair, and Edward Young, along with Thomas Percy, Thomas Warton, Thomas Parnell, Thomas Chatterton, Oliver Goldsmith, Christopher Smart, James MacPherson, William Cowper, William Collins, Joseph Warton, James Thompson, Henry Kirke White, and Mark Akjenside.

Most graveyard poems are similar to two styles of poems, an ode – a lyrical poem dedicated to someone or something, and an English Ballad, which is sung.  They are descriptive, especially concerning the physical horrors of death and the ache of bereavement.






Thomas Gray
His most famous poem
The most well known of the Graveyard poets was Thomas Gray who wrote “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard.”   Gray wrote the poem in 1750 after the death of a family member and the near death of a friend.  The combination of events caused him to begin an introspective study of mortality. Made up of 128 rhyming lines, the poem begins with the writer noticing the rich details in the churchyard around him and ends with him contemplating his own death, complete with epitaph.


The Poem "The Grave"
Another well-known Graveyard Poet was Scottish writer Robert Blair. His poem “The Grave” consists of 767 lines of blank verse, dealing with death and the graveyard.








Edward Young
Edward Young’s nine-volume poem “The Complaint, or Night Thoughts on Life, Death and Immortality,” became immensely popular and was transcribed into several languages.

All of the Graveyard Poets were able to catch the public’s attention through thoughtful, albeit morbid prose that made each person take a closer look at life - and possibly appreciate the inevitability of death.

~ Joy

 "ELEGY WRITTEN IN
A COUNTRY CHURCH-YARD"

The curfew tolls the knell of parting day,
The lowing herd winds slowly o'er the lea,
The ploughman homeward plods his weary way,
And leaves the world to darkness and to me.

Now fades the glimmering landscape on the sight,
And all the air a solemn stillness holds,
Save where the beetle wheels his droning flight,
And drowsy tinklings lull the distant folds:

Save that from yonder ivy-mantled tower
The moping owl does to the moon complain
Of such as, wandering near her secret bower,
Molest her ancient solitary reign.

Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-tree's shade,
Where heaves the turf in many a mouldering heap,
Each in his narrow cell for ever laid,
The rude Forefathers of the hamlet sleep.

The breezy call of incense-breathing morn,
The swallow twittering from the straw-built shed,
The cock's shrill clarion, or the echoing horn,
No more shall rouse them from their lowly bed.

For them no more the blazing hearth shall burn,
Or busy housewife ply her evening care:
No children run to lisp their sire's return,
Or climb his knees the envied kiss to share,

Oft did the harvest to their sickle yield,
Their furrow oft the stubborn glebe has broke;
How jocund did they drive their team afield!
How bow'd the woods beneath their sturdy stroke!

Let not Ambition mock their useful toil,
Their homely joys, and destiny obscure;
Nor Grandeur hear with a disdainful smile
The short and simple annals of the Poor.

The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,
And all that beauty, all that wealth e'er gave,
Awaits alike th' inevitable hour:-
The paths of glory lead but to the grave.

Nor you, ye Proud, impute to these the fault
If Memory o'er their tomb no trophies raise,
Where through the long-drawn aisle and fretted vault
The pealing anthem swells the note of praise.

Can storied urn or animated bust
Back to its mansion call the fleeting breath?
Can Honour's voice provoke the silent dust,
Or Flattery soothe the dull cold ear of Death?

Perhaps in this neglected spot is laid
Some heart once pregnant with celestial fire;
Hands, that the rod of empire might have sway'd,
Or waked to ecstasy the living lyre:

But Knowledge to their eyes her ample page,
Rich with the spoils of time, did ne'er unroll;
Chill Penury repress'd their noble rage,
And froze the genial current of the soul.

Full many a gem of purest ray serene
The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear:
Full many a flower is born to blush unseen,
And waste its sweetness on the desert air.

Some village-Hampden, that with dauntless breast
The little tyrant of his fields withstood,
Some mute inglorious Milton here may rest,
Some Cromwell, guiltless of his country's blood.

Th' applause of list'ning senates to command,
The threats of pain and ruin to despise,
To scatter plenty o'er a smiling land,
And read their history in a nation's eyes,

Their lot forbad: nor circumscribed alone
Their growing virtues, but their crimes confined;
Forbad to wade through slaughter to a throne,
And shut the gates of mercy on mankind,

The struggling pangs of conscious truth to hide,
To quench the blushes of ingenuous shame,
Or heap the shrine of Luxury and Pride
With incense kindled at the Muse's flame.

Far from the madding crowd's ignoble strife,
Their sober wishes never learn'd to stray;
Along the cool sequester'd vale of life
They kept the noiseless tenour of their way.

Yet e'en these bones from insult to protect
Some frail memorial still erected nigh,
With uncouth rhymes and shapeless sculpture deck'd,
Implores the passing tribute of a sigh.

Their name, their years, spelt by th' unletter'd Muse,
The place of fame and elegy supply:
And many a holy text around she strews,
That teach the rustic moralist to die.

For who, to dumb forgetfulness a prey,
This pleasing anxious being e'er resign'd,
Left the warm precincts of the cheerful day,
Nor cast one longing lingering look behind?

On some fond breast the parting soul relies,
Some pious drops the closing eye requires;
E'en from the tomb the voice of Nature cries,
E'en in our ashes live their wonted fires.

For thee, who, mindful of th' unhonour'd dead,
Dost in these lines their artless tale relate;
If chance, by lonely contemplation led,
Some kindred spirit shall inquire thy fate, --

Haply some hoary-headed swain may say,
Oft have we seen him at the peep of dawn
Brushing with hasty steps the dews away,
To meet the sun upon the upland lawn;

'There at the foot of yonder nodding beech
That wreathes its old fantastic roots so high.
His listless length at noontide would he stretch,
And pore upon the brook that babbles by.

'Hard by yon wood, now smiling as in scorn,
Muttering his wayward fancies he would rove;
Now drooping, woeful wan, like one forlorn,
Or crazed with care, or cross'd in hopeless love.

'One morn I miss'd him on the custom'd hill,
Along the heath, and near his favourite tree;
Another came; nor yet beside the rill,
Nor up the lawn, nor at the wood was he;

'The next with dirges due in sad array
Slow through the church-way path we saw him borne,-
Approach and read (for thou canst read) the lay
Graved on the stone beneath yon aged thorn.'

The Epitaph
Here rests his head upon the lap of Earth
A youth to Fortune and to Fame unknown.
Fair Science frowned not on his humble birth,
And Melacholy marked him for her own.

Large was his bounty, and his soul sincere,
Heaven did a recompense as largely send:
He gave to Misery all he had, a tear,
He gained from Heaven ('twas all he wish'd) a friend.

No farther seek his merits to disclose,
Or draw his frailties from their dread abode
(There they alike in trembling hope repose),
The bosom of his Father and his God.

                                    ~ Thomas Gray (1716-71)

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Cemeteries Worth the Visit– Frankfort, Kentucky




View of Frankfort from
the cemetery


Cemetery Gates
The Frankfort Cemetery, in Frankfort, Kentucky is visible from anywhere in the town.  Located on a bluff, it overlooks the City of Frankfort, with views of the State Capitol building, and Kentucky River. The rolling lands and vistas are gorgeous, no matter what time of year you visit.

Ambrose Dudley's
Grave
Judge Mason Brown, Edmund Taylor, A.G. Hodges, Henry Wingate, Jacob Swigert, A.P. Cox, Philip Swigert, Orlando Brown and M.R. Stealey incorporated the cemetery on February 27th, 1844.  Approval for incorporation was granted by the Kentucky General Assembly.   In 1845 thirty-two acres were purchased from Ambrose and Eliza Dudley for $3,801.  The land, at the time was known as Hunter’s Garden.  In 1858 and again in 1911, more land was purchased, to account for the current total of 100 acres in the cemetery. The Frankfort Cemetery was the second cemetery to be incorporated in the United States.


Frankfort Cemetery
Early View from Cemetery
Scottish landscape architect Robert Carmichael was hired to design the cemetery in the Romanesque style similar to Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston.  Carmichael designed curving lanes and incorporated flowers not usually found in the region to create a garden style cemetery.  He terraced certain areas to overlook the gorgeous views of the Kentucky River.  Carmichael died in 1858 and is buried here.



In 1848, $15,000 was appropriated to build a monument to those who died in defense of the country during the Civil War. The State Mound designed by Russian-American sculptor Robert E. Launitz.  Most of the intricate carving was done in Italy and then shipped to Frankfort up the Mississippi. The military memorial is located on a twenty feet square granite base in the center of the cemetery.  The Statue of Victory tops the monument and four eagles guard each of the four corners.

Cemetery Chapel
In 1890 a Romanesque Revival chapel was built on a hill overlooking the Kentucky River and Frankfort.  Painted a pale mauve, it blends in with its surroundings, regardless of the time of year.




Daniel Boone

Boone's Monument
The most visited gravesite is that of frontiersman Daniel Boone, but the infamous question is if Daniel Boone is actually buried here?  Boone died in Missouri on September 26, 1820.  He was buried next to Rebecca, his wife, at what is now Marthasville, Missouri.  The Boone’s remains were supposedly disinterred by family in 1845 and moved to the new Frankfort, Kentucky Cemetery.  But Boone’s relatives in Missouri were not pleased when Kentucky kinfolk came to take the remains South. Legend has it that they allowed them to exhume the wrong bodies to take back to the Bluegrass State.  It has never been proven if Boone and his wife were really moved back to Kentucky, or if they remain in Missouri.



Boone killing Indians
Rebecca Boone
Regardless, a large monument stands in the Frankfort Cemetery with four panels that depict Boone’s life in Kentucky.  The southern panel depicts Boone in a fight with Indians, one has been killed and one is ready to attack.  The panel on the eastern side shows Rebecca Boone milking a cow.  



Boone & boy
Boone at Cabin

On the northern panel stand a man and boy, said to represent Boone
 telling the boy where he wanted to be buried.  And the panel on the western side shows Boone sitting by his cabin with a slaughtered deer at his feet.





Grave of Theodore O'Hara
Grave of Paul Sawyier
Other notable people buried here include Impressionist artist, Paul Sawyier, Vice President Richard M. Johnson, and Theodore O’Hara, poet of The Bivouac of the Dead which is quoted in numerous cemeteries at war memorials.




The cemetery also contains the graves of seventeen state governors, those massacred at River Raisin during the War of 1812, three national poets, and many military officers and soldiers from the Civil War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War and numerous other conflicts.



Tree Replacement Program
Memorial Plaque
Wind and storm damage on this high bluff over the years, has damaged or destroyed many of the huge, older trees.  The Frankfort Cemetery completed a tree and garden replacement program in 2010, where over 500 trees were planted.  Over eighty-five different tree varieties were selected, with 60 of those being native Kentucky species.  The donation cost to sponsor a replacement trees ranges from $300 to $600, and a memorial plaque is included.

The Frankfort Cemetery is located at 215 East Main Street.  The cemetery is open from 7:30 to sunset.  The phone number is (502) 227-2403.


Bivouac of the Dead

With the gorgeous views, ample history, and beautiful landscapes, the Frankfort Cemetery is well worth the afternoon of any Tombstone Tourist!

~ Joy






Friday, January 6, 2012

Grave Problems at Arlington National Cemetery


Welcome Sign to ANC
Arlington House during
theCivil War
What began as a burial ground during the Civil War in 1864 has become one of our most revered national cemeteries, Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) in Virginia.  But all is not tranquil there. 

Arlington Graves
Extensive paperwork
ANC began making news in 2008 when questions were raised about cemetery management.  Then in 2010 it was discovered that there were problems with some of the paperwork corresponding with burial locations.  An investigative audit was scheduled.  Two weeks ago, the findings of this audit concerning improperly marked graves at Arlington made news.   It was reported that almost 65,0000 graves at ANC may have discrepancies, including graves being improperly marked, gravesites not found where indicated, and graves left unmarked. Rectifying the problem will be troublesome since much of the cemetery paperwork is inaccurate or missing.
Last December the Army announced that a criminal investigation had been launched into the misplacement of remains at Arlington.  Then in June 2011 the FBI was requested to assist in the investigation.





Thurman Higginbotham
Higginbotham at ANC
The cemetery’s administrative personnel have been investigated numerous times by the U.S. Army in the past twenty years.  No major actions were taken because, reports indicate that a plan of disciplinary action was never agreed upon.  But enough finally became enough. In May 2009, an Army Criminal Investigative Command investigation announced that Deputy Cemetery Superintendent Thurman Higginbotham had lied under oath, had lied to Army investigators about accessing employee’s files, and had engaged in sexual harassment. Higginbotham was placed on administrative leave.


John C. Metzler, Jr.
Metzler with President Bush
Higginbotham and Cemetery Superintendent, John C. Metzler, Jr. were also charged with being negligent in refusing to use a computerized database that would have “triple verified” burial records at Arlington.  Metzler was fired from his position for improper management of the cemetery. He had held the title of Cemetery Superintendent for nineteen of those twenty years it was under scrutiny. Both Metzler and Higginbotham retired with full benefits.


A 'problem' grave
  The Army’s ANC Gravesite Accountability Task Force announced on December 22, 2011, that they had discovered that 211 graves were unmarked or improperly named.  After reviewing almost 260,000 graves and comparing information to 510,000 records, only 196,000 graves were validated. A count of 64,230 have been discovered to have problems ranging from minor paperwork errors, to misspelled names on gravestones, to mislaid bodies, according to their report. That’s about 25% of the burial sites located in Arlington.


Arlington Graves & Flags
The Arlington National Cemetery Gravesite Accountability Task Force is now trying to reconcile records and conducting a physical identification of each grave in the cemetery.  Every marker will be counted and each headstone will be photographed so that all of Arlington’s records will be available on one database and act as a reliable record of the cemetery.  That would account for over 320,000 remains in the 624 acres cemetery.  The Task Force expects to have the situation resolved by summer.  While progress is being made in the Arlington case, it appears that these situations are becoming too prevalent.  We must begin holding those accountable for these “problems” that continue to plague our deceased service men and women.

~ Joy