Little Egypt Heritage Articles Stories of Southern Illinois Bill Oliver 6 April 2003 Vol 2 Issue: #14 ISBN: pending Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen of Little Egypt, Somewhere I read that a cemetery illustrates the story of the people who lived in a community over a certain period of time. Some of them have long histories and some of them have very short histories, yet have been in existence for many decades. Whether they are on a quiet hill overlooking a scenic view of that community or surrounded by modern civilization there are stories told by the silent stones of families and residents. Some of these stories are disappearing and are in such a terrible state. Within laid to rest were the founders of our towns and counties and their burial sites are historical spots. This week the topic for tonight's article has changed several times. And, really, not just the topic. When I get an idea I get a quick introduction down on paper quickly before everything that I think of evaporates from my mind like hydrogen peroxide does on my skin. First, I was going to write about language and accents. I've lived in so many places in my life that I would emulate many dialects of our wonderful King's English ... thus, when I was corrected in my "speech" last week, as to where the accent should be placed, I thought I would write about "speekin' kentucky". Well, it will have to wait for another time. Another topic I began was ghost stories. Well, from the ancient Greeks we have much folklore or mythology about "spirits" of the "dearly departed" ones. These ancient people held that the deceased did not recede into their heaven unless, or until, they were completely forgotten by the living. To keep the memory "alive" in the living, monuments, statuary and eventually tombstones were created. If this be true then it is easy to understand why there are apparitions roaming our graveyards. When I find a new ancestral gravesite, I often feel that a "presence" meets me and welcomes me ... don't you?? But, as said earlier, this is another story for another time. I also received requests from several points of view to speak about graveyard etiquette, so I thought, gee that would be a good topic to explore. That led to some folks talking about restoration of stones ... hey ... another great topic. Someone distracted me wanting to know the laws in my home state for cemeteries and who was responsible for cemeteries. Wow!! Another person came out with just the idea of cleaning up a rather small apparently abandoned cemetery. When someone, quite independent of all the above, from my Father's home state and neighboring county contacted me about abandoned and neglected cemeteries and forming a restoration project, I gave up and decided to concentrate on this last idea. A while back I wrote about a cemetery in Johnson county, Illinois which contained many registered graves of surname kin. I know that those buried there are resting in "peace" because it is off the road, on private land and the site is quite pleasant to wander through. It has a beautiful carpet of myrtle and in all truth is now a "wooded acreage". Most of the stones are lying flat and are covered, plus being made of sandstone are deteriorating rapidly. Though there is a listing of those buried there, there is no "plat-map" that I was able to find to know where anyone is buried. In another part of this same county is another graveyard located within a swamp area. It too is on private property. There a 3rd Great Grandad [sic] is buried. The owner of the property is quite nice and appreciates visitors who check with him and are courteous enough to be respectful of the site. But, the owner does not make a conscious effort to maintain it, and I lay no guilt that direction. Yet, to some of us these sites are very important. The word "sacred" doesn't seem to be applicable, but certainly there is a feeling quite unexplainable when you are standing beside the ground where lies a distinctive ancestor. An example is the feeling of belonging when you discover that you have found an ancestor twelve generations back. A feeling of connecting very distant times together. That was the awe of my oldest granddaughter when I pointed out the stone of her ancestor, buried a century and a half ago outside of Fostoria, Ohio, after attaining the grand age of over eight decades. A woman who might have been born during or just before the forming of our country. One can understand the excitement of archaeologists and historians who discovered a 2000 year old ossuary that bore the inscription "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus" in Aramaic. Like many peoples, our Native Hopi have very strong traditions. If they maintain them, they will sing of "Loved Ones" a thousand or two years from now. If not ......... When I was a tad-of-a-lad there was "Armistice Day". The family would get into the car and make the rounds of the cemeteries and clean up around the graves of our relatives. We would plant flowers and stick flags into the ground. As I grew older, the day changed to "Memorial Day", but the ritual was much the same, only honoring all our relatives, not just those who died in the service of our country. We don't do that so much any more. We depend on Veterans Organizations to plant the flags for a day, and we sit on our couches and watch parades. And, as a result, our graveyards become neglected and abandoned and they virtually disappear. A hundred years from now if the land is still farmed, the farmer will "turn up" stones, maybe pieces of caskets and bones and folks may wonder who, what, where ..... If, instead, urban sprawl has consumed [paved over] the graveyard, our knowledge and our strong traditions will not be discovered again until someone decides that excavation of the ground take place. In our travels around Nebraska, Barb and I have found gravesites out where space is in abundance; where miles would pass before any evident sign of civilization. The "buffalo" grass might be tall enough to envelope the fence around a single or multiple grave site, but the graves would be well tended and neat. The "town" cemeteries all fit into the terrain, none had lush, green grass, except maybe for short periods after a rain. They were neat; taken care of, exhibiting no neglect or abandonment. There are still some strong "traditions" in existence there. In Ohio, a place where I have more first hand experience, the Township Trustees are assisting local groups in reclaiming abandoned cemeteries. Volunteers are doing the manual work, but they are not always doing it alone. There are many websites tolling these efforts. Do a google search. Down near the Ohio River in Massac county, Illinois I suspect lies one of my 3rd Great Grandads [sic]. Frederic R CRENSHAW, by name. A man born about the time of the earthquake at New Madrid as well as in that geographic area; a man born not in the state of Missouri, but in the Louisiana Territory. I very much hope to visit the suspected area between Unionville and Brookport during the month of June and possibly join in some "clean up" work sponsored by the State Comptroller's Office. Maybe, just maybe, that 3rd Great Grandpa will see me out looking for him this June .... and, maybe, just maybe he will guide me to him. What say you?? Wado, Bill -=- http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/SOIL http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index/ILMASSAC http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ne/state/BillsArticles/LittleEgypt/intro.html