Showing posts with label cemeteries. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cemeteries. Show all posts

Friday, February 24, 2012

Ivy Covered Graves



Cemeteries abound with flowers, trees and plantings – all manner of living things with which to remember those who have passed.  It is not unusual to come across a grave or two that is covered in ivy.  In older cemeteries, especially Victorian and Rural Garden cemeteries, ivy was a perpetual favorite, blanketing many graves, both carved in stone and living plants. It has been said, "Ivy still mourns when others have forgotten the dead."

Ivy symbolizes many attributes.  Among them are friendship, affection, faithfulness, strength, and immortality.  The Celts viewed ivy as an omen of death and spiritual rebirth. The Druids associated ivy with strength and determination. Ivy grows in twists and turns, providing a strong, durable bond to all that it touches. In the Christian religion, ivy is a symbol of Christmas and rebirth.

The ivy plant is native to Europe and grows naturally in cemeteries throughout England.  Although a pretty vine, ivy has a reputation of causing harm to gravestones, brick walls, and trees. 

Recent studies conducted in Europe indicated that the climbing roots of the ivy did not damage solidly mortared walls.  Research also showed that ivy actually protected walls and cemetery stones from further damage caused by the effects of weathering, drastic temperature changes and pollution.



 In the U.S., problems have proven to be more significant since ivy does not have any natural enemies to control its growth.  American trees are overwhelmed by ivy and die due to disease or aggressive ivy growth.  We Americans transplanted ivy to our cemeteries during the Victorian age as symbols of immortality.  In many cases the ivy has proven to be very durable by taking over tombstones and graveyards. 

Cemetery restoration groups will leave an ivy vine as part of the original planting, as they work to maintain the status of the burial grounds and the tomb stones.  But cemeteries throughout the country have implemented management control procedures to deal with ivy and it’s potential damaging effects on monuments and stones.  Many will no longer allow ivy to be planted.

As intended by those who originally planted it, ivy lends a shot of color onto the otherwise dark and drab winter cemetery grounds, and gives us hope for renewal and immorality.

In 1836, Charles Dickens wrote a poem that appeared in his novel Pickwick Papers about the ivy:


Ivy Green

Oh, a dainty plant is the Ivy green,

That creepeth o'er ruins old!

Of right choice food are his meals, I ween,

In his cell so lone and cold.

The wall must be crumbled, the stone decayed,

To pleasure his dainty whim:

And the mouldering dust that years have made

Is a merry meal for him.

Creeping where no life is seen,

A rare old plant is the Ivy green.




Fast he stealeth on, though he wears no wings,

And a staunch old heart has he.

How closely he twineth, how tight he clings

To his friend the huge Oak Tree!

And slyly he traileth along the ground,

And his leaves he gently waves,

As he joyously hugs and crawleth round

The rich mould of dead men's graves.

Creeping where grim death hath been,

A rare old plant is the Ivy green.



Whole ages have fled and their works decayed,

And nations have scattered been;

But the stout old Ivy shall never fade,

From its hale and hearty green.

The brave old plant, in its lonely days,

Shall fatten upon the past:

For the stateliest building man can raise

Is the Ivy's food at last.

Creeping on where time has been,

A rare old plant is the Ivy green.
                           ~ Charles Dickens

~ Joy



Friday, December 9, 2011

Wreaths Across America – Saturday, December 10th


Wreaths Across America

Tomorrow communities all across America will gather together to honor our fallen veterans during the annual Wreaths Across America Day.






Wreaths at Arlington
Morrill Worcester
Wreaths Across America began 20 years ago when the Morrill Worcester, owner of the Worcester Wreath Company in Harrington, Maine, decided to donate live wreaths and have them placed on the headstones at Arlington National Cemetery.  Military families expressed profound appreciation for this gesture, pointing out how difficult and emotional the holiday season can be for a veteran’s family.


Ceremony Locations for tomorrow
Over 600 ceremonies will be held throughout the country tomorrow, in national cemeteries, public and private graveyards, and in State House ceremonies in all 50 states, all to honor those veterans who have given the ultimate sacrifice. 



Wreaths on the prairie
Fresh evergreen wreaths will be placed to honor of each branch of the service, Army, Marines, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine, and MIA/POW, along with wreaths put on individual graves.  In Arlington Cemetery alone over 100,000 wreaths will be placed.



WAA Poster
The objective of Wreaths Across America is to teach the younger generation about the sacrifices that war can require and offer an appropriate manner to honor those who have served.  “Remember, Honor and Teach” is their motto.  Most ceremony coordinators will offer a short briefing on the proper etiquette of laying a wreath.  Youth organizations and school groups across the country will be taking part.




Truck convoy of wreaths
Parade route down the East Coast
A parade of escorts, friends and trucks started in Maine on Sunday, December 6th, scheduled to arrive at Arlington with fresh wreaths gathered throughout the trip for tomorrow’s ceremonies. During the 5-day journey, the motorcade stopped in communities all along the East Coast, spreading the word and encouraging Americans to “Remember, Honor and Teach.”   The Patriot Guard Riders escorted them to veterans’ homes, schools, and monuments all along the way.

A Veteran remembers
It is expected that over 400,000 wreaths will be placed tomorrow throughout cemeteries in all fifty of the United States.  Over 160,000 volunteers, many veterans, will take part in the events.






Honoring our fallen
If you are interested in attending a ceremony or taking part, check out their website at Wreaths Across America, http://www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/

Or connect with Wreaths Across America on their Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/WAAHQ

~ Joy

(All photos courtesy of Wreaths Across America website and Facebook pages.) 

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Cemeteries Worth the Visit – Highland Lawn Cemetery, Terre Haute, Indiana


Highland Lawn Cemetery
Map of Cemetery Grounds

Highland Lawn Cemetery in Terre Haute, Indiana began in 1884.  The City of Terre Haute purchased 139 acres of “hills and hollows” from Ray and Grace Jenkins for $15,000.  In the true Rural Cemetery style it was designed into well-grouped trees and shrubs, with the artistic placement of lakes, valleys and meandering paths by Joseph Earnshaw.  His goal was to draw attention to the cemetery landscaping instead of the large monuments and mausoleums.  Highland Lawn is the second largest cemetery in Indiana, with Crown Hill in Indianapolis being the largest.


The Chapel
The Chapel in 1914
The cemetery’s chapel, built in 1893, is of the Richardsonian Romanesque style. It was designed by architect Jesse A. Vrydaugh and cost 10-thousand dollars to complete.  It is located on the highest hill in the cemetery.  The Chapel features gabled roofs, a domed brick basement and stained glass throughout.  It was renovated in 1988 at the cost of $65,000.


Highland Lawn Cemetery
The entrance in 1897
The entrance to the cemetery features a Romanesque Revival Bell Tower.  It was constructed of Bedford, Indiana limestone in 1894 by the Heidenreich Company.  The adjoining arch was designed by Paul Leizt of Chicago and constructed by Edward Hazledine. The attached Rest House was built in 1909 as a waiting station for the interurban.  Built by W.H. Floyd in the Colonial style, it is now the cemetery’s offices.

Section 2 where
Samantha McPherson was buried
The first person buried here was Samantha McPherson who died of typhoid and was buried on October 29, 1884.  She was 30 years old. Highland Lawn now has almost 27,000 graves.
Stein Mausoleum






Cummings Mausoleum
Crawford Mausoleum
Highland Lawn has numerous mausoleums located throughout the cemetery. Each is individually owned.  Some hold only two bodies, others hold up to sixteen.  The mausoleums were built mainly from granite and marble. Other markers and stones depict interesting funerary art and sculpture, another way to promote social standing.  In this cemetery, the larger the monument, the more prosperous and well–known the family. 


Blumberg Mausoleum
Davis Mausoleum
Among those mausoleums in the cemetery, two have well-known legends concerning them.









John Heinl
The best know story involves Terre Haute businessman John Hienl and his dog, Stiffy Green from the early part of the 20th century.  Heinl, pipe in hand, and Stiffy Green, so named because of his stiff walking gate and startling greenish colored eyes, would stroll through town, visiting with the folks they met.  Stiffy Green was friendly but ferociously protective of Mr. Heinl and did not allow anyone to get too close to his beloved master.

Heinl Mausloum
When John Heinl passed away on December 31st, 1920, Stiffy was inconsolable.  He sat be the coffin at the funeral and followed the family to the graveyard where he took up post at the mausoleum doors.  There he remained, guarding his master in death as he had guarded him in life.  Family and friends made many trips to the cemetery that winter to retrieve Stiffy and take him home, only for him to return to his master’s crypt doors. 


Stiffy Green
Stiffy mourned himself to death. Heinl’s wife paid tribute to his unwavering love and devotion and had him stuffed in the sitting position he had assumed for so long on those cold mausoleum steps.   Stiffy was then placed inside the tomb, reunited at last with his master. 

An evening walk
But it wasn’t long before visitors began noticing that Stiffy had mysteriously moved from one side of the tomb to the other, and back.  Rumors spread that early in the morning or at twilight you could see an elderly man and his small dog walking near the Heinl crypt, the smell the rich pipe smoke in the air and a low voice talking to his devoted companion who would answer with a happy bark. 


Vigo County HIstorical Society
But all good things must come to an end – even in death.  Vandals would not leave the site alone, damaging doors and windows. In 1985, thugs shot out Stiffy’s right glass eye.  The family decided it was time for Stiffy be moved and the Vigo County Historical Society Museum agreed to take him.  There, the Terre Haute Lions Club built a replica of the Heinl mausoleum. Today, Stiffy Green is still on guard – unless he and John are taking an evening stroll in Highland Lawn Cemetery.

Sheets Family Mausoleum
1920's Style Phone
The second well-known story involves the Sheets family mausoleum, where Martin Sheets, his wife Susan, and baby Ethel are interred.  Born in 1853, Martin lived into his early 70’s, passing in 1926.  He saw many technological changes come about during that time.  One new-fangled invention he found an odd use for was the telephone.  Martin had one installed in the family mausoleum, just in case he was buried unconscious, but alive, and needed to summon help. It was stipulated in his will that a phone line be run from his crypt to the cemetery office.  He set up an account with Indiana Bell Telephone that kept the line paid for and active, just in case. 

Indiana Bell
The story could end here as a very odd but interesting bit of cemetery lore, but it doesn’t.  When Sheets’ wife, Susan died years later, she was found in the kitchen with the phone in her hand.  Many assumed she had been attempting to summon help.  But according to legend, when the mausoleum was unlocked to place Susan’s casket next to her husband, cemetery workers discovered the phone in the crypt was off the hook!

Off the hook
Eighty years after Martin Sheets was placed in the family mausoleum, the phone line was disconnected from the cemetery office, never known to have been physically used.





Debs Political Poster
Eugene Debs
Highland Lawn is also known as the burial place for many famous people, including politicians Eugene Debs, Socialist Presidential candidate who ran for the office five times in the early part of the 20th Century.  



Theodore Hudnut's Grave
Funeral Cortege for Voorhees
Also buried here are Daniel Voorhees, a U.S. Congressman and Senator from the mid-1800’s, and inventor Theodore Hudnut, who developed a way to remove oil from grain, producing Mazoil cooking oil.



Elk's Rest
Highland Lawn Cemetery was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 for its significance in landscaping, one of only two Indiana cemeteries so designated.

Angel at cross
A waiting friend
The cemetery is located at 4420 Wabash Avenue, just east of the city.  It no longer has its own web page.  The Cemetery Superintendent is Lennie Snyder. For assistance with any genealogy questions, contact Roxe Ann Kesner, Cemetery Clerk or her assistant, Helen Kester at (812) 877-2531.  A true Facebook page does not exist.

View of cemetery from southern hill
Bench marker in the snow
Highland Lawn is a cemetery where you can spend a day admiring mausoleums, exquisite artwork and sculptures.  Even in winter, it’s beauty and tranquility shine through!



~ Joy