More Gifts! Cemetery Santa, Part Two

Last week, I wrote about my “Cemetery Santa.” I knew that I would have the opportunity to work with him further, but I had no idea just what he had in his bag of gifts!

I discovered him, and his assistant, working one the headstone of Jennie Carter. They were already into the process, but I was able to watch, learn and ask questions of them both as they went about their work.

Jennie’s marker had started to lean, and was sitting about 11 degrees off, towards the grave. Simply put, the earth and gravity work together to apply force to the stone, which then of course, makes it move. The task of the day was to give the marker enough of its own stability so that it could sit upright once again – plumb. (This is where that handy Bubble Level app I mentioned last time comes in. Download it now. Really.)

Some of the photos I took during the next three hours tell the story better than I could, so I will share a few of them here. When I joined the party, they had already dug out the earth from in front of the marker enough to accomplish the task. They were inserting pieces of stone underneath the marker (very carefully, I might add) so that it was level in all directions. As they worked through that process, they measured and calculated, and determined that this marker and base combined were probably around 800 pounds. They quizzed me and at some point must have made the determination that I was worthy of more education, so eventually, I was asked to come back.



Above: This is where I walked into the process. They are lifting the approximately 800 pound stone marker and base with a central fulcrum point, just a little at a time. As Cemetery Santa (he looks like Santa, doesn't he?) lifts, his assistant cleans out underneath the grave any loose debris and inserts carefully shaped pieces of stone, to build a platform for the marker to sit on top of.



Above: After the inserted the correct amount of stones to bring the marker back to plumb, they filled in some of the dirt and loose sand. Once the sand had been poured in, they added water, so that it would filter down underneath the marker and around the new platform. It works its way into the small gaps and other places, providing an even more stable base. After this picture, they also used a soft brush to clean the front of the base – the part that had worked its way underground during the last 100 years or so. This area would now be visible, so they made sure it was as clean as the rest of the area. Note the difference in the pictures below.




Above: They had carefully removed the sod from around the front of the stone before I arrived, and had done so in a particular order, placing everything on the tarp. Once the loose dirt was back in, they moved the tarp close and put those sod blocks back, in the same order. The objective was to leave as little disturbance as possible, it was very clear they wanted it to look like they had never even been there when they were done.



After putting all the dirt and sod back in, this is what the disturbed area looked like.



Above: A bit more work to get it just right. We stripped old branches of dead pine needles to add the duff back to the grave site.



Above: The project is complete! The headstone is standing erect, and you can hardly tell any work was done at all. It’s been a couple of days since this work has happened, so I’m sure it looks even more natural now. I think Jennie would be very happy with it.


I am excited to say that I will be joining them once again this coming week, and will be much more actively involved in what Cemetery Santa called, “easy re-setting.” I’m very much looking forward to getting a hands-on lesson in preserving the cemetery I care so much about. The opportunity really has been incredible.
I hope you are enjoying my journey as well! Please comment or ask questions here on the blog, I can perhaps get an answer!

The Cemetery Santa

The meeting had been planned for some time. I had weeks to prepare a list, the task deceptively simple: compile a list of the headstones in Valley Brook Cemetery most in need of attention, repair, conservation or other work.

Sure. I can do that. 

I walked the grounds, reviewed previous notes, flipped through the hundreds of photos I have taken there. I even started to plot the damaged stones on a map. I spent several hours, really, as I wanted to be sure that I was really getting to the most important memorials. My list at the beginning of this walk about at the cemetery started with about twenty names. It ended with so many more.

I was so completely unprepared. 

When I got home, I put this simple statement on my Facebook page:

"Every - and I mean EVERY - genealogist should walk a cemetery with a professional headstone preservationist. I had the pleasure of doing just that this morning, and I learned SO MUCH. Fantastic opportunity, and I am looking forward to working with them more in the next couple of weeks."

And I meant it. His name is David Via, and he is a preservation professional. He travels the country, logging around 20,000 miles a year, traveling from cemetery to cemetery. He is, as he himself stated it, engrossed in the cemetery preservation community. You can see one of the many stories of his work here, on progress-index.com, from August, 2012.  (I've posted this article, as he does not have a website of his own.)

He's been working on Valley Brook Cemetery off and on for the past ten years, starting after a large storm did severe damage in 1997. He has an outstanding memory, considering the number of memorials he touches each year. Remember Bertha's story from earlier this summer? When her headstone disappeared? He knew exactly who she was and where her site was on the grounds, and that was before we even walked away from our vehicles.

As we walked the grounds, he was able to provide commentary on what makes our cemetery unique, the types of stone used to create the markers, and more. We actually came to realize - there were five of us altogether - that our entire cemetery has shifted to the east. When you look at where the markers are from the original plotting process and where the roads are now... they are all off of the original design. We had one of each of us stand at the markers of a corner, and one in the center, and you could physically see the way the landscape had changed.

He was as excited as I was about my newest discovery here, these wooden posts that are inscribed with the various sections of the cemetery. The one pictured clearly states I.O.O.F. and I.O.R.M. on two sides, marking two of our fraternal sections (International Order of Odd Fellows and Improved Order of Red Men). Anything fraternal usually gets me excited, so to have someone else share that with me was a great moment. These markers were not necessarily unknown, but are not included in the vast majority of documentation available on the cemetery, so for many in our local community, this is new information. It was an incredible moment for me to realize that Mr. Via not only shared my passion for the historical significance of these posts, but also for the cemetery itself.

One of the seven section markers I have
been able to locate in the cemetery.
©Ancestral Journeys, 2013.

The post, labelled "I.O.O.F." on one side
and "I.O.R.M." on the other, indicating
the sections for fraternal societies.
©Ancestral Journeys, 2013

Have you heard of the pinky finger test? 

I learned so much from David Via, including the pinky test.  He showed me, quite literally, how an unstable monument can be tilted over with just the force of his pinky finger. The things he taught me to look for in terms of identifying a potentially unstable headstone were truly priceless. He described how to spot those that have had work done to them, and those that need work immediately. The lesson even included a new app on my phone, "Bubble Level." This is a digital version of the classic level, which will tell you what angle the headstone is sitting at. Anything more than 10 degrees, and the headstone needs attention.

The three hours we walked the twenty acres provided, as he put it, a "truckload of information." 

I did my best to soak it up. 

Interior of the sexton house shed walls.
©Ancestral Journeys, 2013.

He gave me suggestions on "properly" photographing a headstone for preservation purposes; because maybe the marker is ok for now, maybe it will last for several more years... but if it has to be rebuilt in ten years, will they still be able to tell what the exact dimensions were?  We had conversations on cemetery folk art and why its important. We discussed the "graffiti" on the interior walls of the sexton house shed. We talked about why Masons follow the customs they do, and how to get our local chapter engaged in the cemetery preservation effort we have put forth (he's a Mason himself). 

I can tell you, membership in the Association of Graveyard Studies has risen to the highest priority on my list. Absolutely. 

My day with David Via, preservation professional, is one I'll be thinking about for some time. I'm looking forward to working with him further, as we'll both be in and out of the cemetery in the coming days. I told my daughter he looked a bit like Santa Claus - and he does - with a long white beard, white hair and the right stature to play the part. I would have to say, he has become my "cemetery Santa." 

The Kokomo Cemetery

The town of Kokomo was abandoned by the time the Climax Molybdenum operation took over the property it sat on. Every once in a while, I run across a new piece of information or a photo from Kokomo, and I'm always intrigued. The town was known as a "wild west" sort of place, the opposite of its tamer neighbor, Robinson. Located high above what we know now as the Copper Mountain Resort, it was once the home of the "highest" Masonic Lodge (in elevation) in the United States.

Big enough to maintain its own cemetery, but not big enough to survive the ups and downs of a mining based economy. In the sixties, the Climax operation wanted to use the land as a reservoir, and what was left of the town was covered with water. Thankfully, they moved the bodies from the cemetery to other nearby locations, and Breckenridge's Valley Brook got most of the deceased buried there.  Today, I stumbled across a record indicating who was transferred to Breckenridge, and who was buried in other locations. It indicated what I thought to be true; that Valley Brook was indeed the designated cemetery.

A Map of A Portion of Valley Brook Cemetery
Image ©Jen Baldwin, Ancestral Journeys, 2013

One of the great benefits from this piece was that it also listed the next of kin for each person that was being moved!

Here's a transcription of the body of the document:

Page 1:

"IN THE DISTRICT COURT IN AND FOR

THE COUNTY OF SUMMIT AND STATE OF COLORADO

Civil Action NO. 2299

IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION OF THE

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF THE 

COUNTY OF SUMMIT, STATE OF COLORADO, 

ACTING AS A BOARD OF HEALTH, FOR THE 

VACATION OF KOKOMO CEMETERY, SUMMIT

COUNTY, STATE OF COLORADO.

Received for filing in the office of the County Clerk and Recorder of the County of Summit and State of Colorado, a statement of the names of deceased persons who are buried in other than the Kokomo plot of the Breckenridge Cemetery, and a copy of the map showing the place of burial of deceased persons in the Kokomo plot of the Breckenridge Cemetery. 

Signed

Zelda C. Ashlock

County Clerk and Recorder"

Page 2

"IN THE DISTRICT COURT IN AND FOR

THE COUNTY OF SUMMIT AND STATE OF COLORADO

Civil Action No. 2299

IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION OF THE
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF THE
COUNTY OF SUMMIT, STATE OF COLORADO,
ACTING AS A BOARD OF HEALTH, FOR THE
VACATION OF KOKOMO CEMETERY, SUMMIT
COUNTY, STATE OF COLORADO.

STATEMENT OF LOCATION OF BURIAL OF
DECEASED PERSONS

A statement of the names of deceased persons who were buried in any other cemeteries except the "Kokomo Plot" in the Breckenridge Cemetery, the location of the burial , and the name or names of the next of kin requesting the same, are as follows: "

The names listed are:
Pomeroy, Henry
Olson, Carl
Olson, Carl Jr.
Bryant, Joe
Bryant, Elizabeth
Colcord: Daniel, Catherine, Elizabeth, Willson, Clifford, Aurilla
Lindsey: William M., Sarah A., Jesse M., Samuel
Taylor, Margaret E.
Williams, O.E.
Anderson: Gustave, Carrie, Hilma, Harrison

"Respectfully submitted

Andrew F. Cassidy

Licensed Mortician

Leadville, Colo."

The map, also found with these documents, includes a list as well. A list of who was buried in the "Kokomo Section" at Valley Brook; this is information that many have told me is "unknown," and is just one of the reason's why this find is so exciting for me. Among the many "Unknowns" on the list are the following:

Farnham, Edward C.
Farnham, WM and Frank
LaFontaine, E.S.J.
LaFontaine, Katrina
Swanson, Carrie
Swanson, Gustaf
Winters, Anna, Andrew, John, Andrew
Mattson, Andrew
Sullivan, Son of M/M G.W.
Sullivan, DA of M/M G.W.
Lawrence, Winfield
Morison, R.
Swallow, William Penn
Chevan, Mr.
Chevan, Catherine
Anderson, Anna S.
Anderson, Axel
Thomson, C.R.
Thomson, W.A.
Cook, Baby
Pflum, Thos. F.
Walsh, Peter
Johnson, Anna
Recen, Katy
Creiner, Lt. Chas.
Hauser, Leo Frank
Hauser, Ida
Colcord, Blanche
Dowd, Mary
Dowd, James Wm
Dowd, Catherine
Colcord, Rose, Laura & Son, Josephine
Bush, Hazel
Colcord, Chas.
Dowd, Mary M.
Recen, Henry A., Catherine, Lilly, Katy

R.I.P. Bertha: I Got This

Yesterday I had the unique opportunity to appear on CBS4 News out of Denver to tell the story of Bertha's missing grave marker. 

You may remember I first posted about the situation earlier this month. As the local community and historical organizations have been working with police and the Town officials on this situation, I have  been doing what I can to get the word out on social media. Thankfully, CBS4 picked up the story, and decided to conduct an interview with me at Valley Brook Cemetery.

If you missed the newscast, here's the link.

Although I am hopeful that the marker will magically reappear at the cemetery, I am also too much of a realist to think we will ever see it again. It is a loss to our historical community and a travesty against humanity. Having said all of that, here is what I am hoping will happen now.

Someone will come forward who has the skills and ability to donate their time and energy and will make Bertha a replica marker. An exact match to the one she had. The one placed by her friends in the community. The one that I have been watching over for three years. The one that I was so overjoyed to find in the first place, because it was still legible.

If there is a kind soul out there, please feel free to contact me via this blog.

Let's make sure that Bertha's story can always be told, shall we?

This will continue. I am currently researching Bertha, her family, and descendants. I hope to be able to track living relatives and not only notify them of the situation, but be able to tell them that we are correcting it.

R.I.P. Bertha. I got this.

We Lost One

During the summer months, I am pleased to serve as a tour guide for the Breckenridge Heritage Alliance. We offer historical tours of town, mining sites, museums, and my personal favorite and area of expertise, the Valley Brook Cemetery.

From the day we moved here, I have loved Valley Brook. It is peaceful, beautiful and at the same time, alive with history and stories of our past. Here you will find many of the Breckenridge "great's", like Edwin Carter, Robert Foote, and the Detweiler family. You will find hundreds, however, whose stories have yet to be told. I am working to change that; trying to tell their stories, one person at a time. You have seen some of those stories here, on this blog.

This past weekend I was scheduled to conduct the Tombstone Tales at Twilight Tour on both Friday and Sunday. I had been in the cemetery more than once in the past few days, and had already conducted the tour a couple of times this spring, so I was more than prepared for the anticipated busy weekend. Breckenridge celebrated our "Kingdom Days" event over Saturday and Sunday, and our tours are typically at capacity while residents and tourists alike submerge themselves in the history of our community.

Two of my favorite people to talk about while we explore the vast grounds are the last two: Bertha Welch and Robert "Bob" Lott. I've talked about Bob before, so we'll leave that be. This post is about Bertha.

© Jen Baldwin, Ancestral Journeys
2011-2013

It is a wooden marker, with a significant crack down the middle.

"Bertha Welch, Born Jan 9 1883, Died Feb 12 1903."

Her death was recorded in the local newspaper, telling a sad story of a young bride, neglected and physically abused by her husband, who finally abandoned her while pregnant. She gave birth to a little boy, who at the time of publishing at least, had survived. Bertha, however, passed within days of the delivery, and was buried far from her family in California. A tragic ending to a tragic story.

 I know, without any doubt, that the marker was in its proper place at the head of Bertha's grave on 7 June 2013. I know, without any doubt, that the marker was discovered missing on 14 June 2013, just one week later. Sadly, this was the last remaining wooden marker in Valley Brook Cemetery that you could still read. As far as I am aware, the marker sat undisturbed for 110 years. And now its gone.

It saddens me, to the very depths, that this poor woman; young and alone in death, will now sit unmarked and forgotten by most in her final resting place. I am one that will never forget.

If you have any information on the whereabouts of Bertha Welch's wooden grave marker, please contact the Breckenridge Heritage Alliance. 

970-453-9767
Facebook
info@breckheritage.com

Breckenridge Memorial Day Commemoration

NEW event at Valley Brook Cemetery on May 27

Breckenridge, CO -- The Town of Breckenridge in collaboration with the Breckenridge Heritage Alliance invite the public to the inaugural Breckenridge Memorial Day Commemoration at Valley Brook Cemetery on Monday, May 27 at 9:00 a.m. to commemorate, acknowledge and memorialize the service and sacrifice of our deceased veterans. The Commemoration will include a keynote speech from Colonel Loren Johnson, the Commander of the 140th Mission Support Group, Colorado Air National Guard, Buckley AFB, an interdenominational service and a wreath-laying.

Headstone of Alonzo Phillips.
© Ancestral Journeys, 2012-2013

The ceremony will be followed by light refreshments. The Breckenridge Heritage Alliance will have an interpretive guide present to answer questions regarding the history of Valley Brook Cemetery. Parking will be available at the Carriage House Learning Center across from the entrance into Valley Brook Cemetery and at the Breckenridge Recreation Center.

Over sixty (60) veterans’ graves have been identified through Valley Brook Cemetery records. Please contact Vanessa Agee at 970-453-3187 x2 to provide further information regarding any veterans who are buried at Valley Brook Cemetery, but whose military service may not be reflected in the cemetery records. Also, volunteers are needed to place flags at each veteran’s grave and to remove flags one month later.

For more information or to volunteer, please call Vanessa Agee at (970) 453-3187 ext 2 or vanessaa@townofbreckenridge.com.

Wintermute Cross

Actually, a very tragic story. The Wintermute family in Breckenridge was short lived, and though I will spare the details, the basics of it is this: 

They married. They had a daughter. The wife died from childbirth complications. The daughter was sent to be raised by family in California. The husband was depressed and turned to alcohol. He ultimately killed himself at this site, next to his wife's memorial, and is buried along side her. 

One Memorial, So Much to See

Endless memorials left by friends and family across the world tell stories of those that came before us. This one stands out to me in many ways. Located in the Breckenridge Masonic Cemetery in Breckenridge, Colorado, it certainly invites discussion, if nothing else. 

Remembering Charles "Charlie" Owen Terrill, it sits at the far southern end of the cemetery. Made entirely of marble, it is one of the few obelisk's on the grounds, including the Valley Brook half. It consists of the main memorial in the obelisk and two identical chairs, both engraved with citations from the Bible on the front and "Love" and "Peace" on the back. Each side of the obelisk base is engraved. 

As seen from the main road through the cemetery.

Charles Owen Terrill, 14 Aug 1930.

The front of one chair.

Inscription on the base of the obelisk. The meanings
are currently unknown to the author, but if anyone has ideas,
please share. Suggestions have been the Sigma Nu fraternity,
"EC" meaning Eminent Commander. 

FDUMC JAIL MINISTRY: Father Dyer United Methodist Church
(Father Dyer is a historic church in Breckenridge)
CAPTAIN U.S. ARMY

M.M.A.
Again, the meaning of this is unknown.

 The Bible verses on the chairs:

1 Corinthians 12 NIV

"What I mean is this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul', another, 'I follow Apollos', another, 'I follow Cephas'; still another, 'I follow Christ."

Micah 6:8 NIV

"He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

All photos Copyright Ancestral Journeys, 2011 - 2012.

Burial Site of Sarah A Simms

Recently, I had the pleasure of meeting one Mr. Frey, who has ancestors in the Valley Brook Cemetery in Breckenridge, Colorado. He sent me the following photo, from his family archives, circa 1908. 

Curious, I went back to the cemetery, and briefly looked around, but didn't find the site - I'll have to go back again. However, I was able to find this image on the findagrave.com site, taken two years ago by another local volunteer: 

Here is the site as it stands today: 

Two trees have grown up through the plot, and the border around the burial site is now gone. Of course, there is more vegetation surrounding the entire area. 

The flowers were left by the recent family member's visit.

Woodmen of the World

Before moving to Colorado, I had never heard of the Woodmen of the World fraternal organization. Around here, though, they were shoulder to shoulder with the Masons, I.O.O.F. and the Improved Order of Red Men (I.O.R.M.). You can see their current status as an insurance provider on their website. They still have two active lodges in Colorado, both in Castle Rock.

The Woodmen were founded in 1890 by Joseph Root, here in Colorado. It was an offshoot of the Modern Woodmen of America, and has always been a benefit society, which means that it provided insurance to its members. For a member of good standing, the organization would provide $3,000 at the time of death in 1890.

Their main principles included hospitality, service, loyalty and protection. They used a tree stump as their lodge altar, and for many members, it was their headstone as well. The female equivalent was the Women of the Woodcraft. 

I recently found this example in the Valley Brook Cemetery in Breckenridge, Colorado. The marker is a tree stump, approximately ten inches in diameter. The inscription is flaking apart, so some is hard or impossible to read. 

There are at least three names on this
Woodmen of the World headstone,
 with deaths beginning in 1880.
Photo Credit: Jen Baldwin, Ancestral Journeys
2012.

The tree stump is about two feet tall, and has
branches extending out. It is easy to overlook, and blends
with the surrounding environment.
Photo Credit: Jen Baldwin, Ancestral Journeys,
2012.

There is a wonderful example of a Woodmen headstone in the Evergreen Cemetery in Leadville. It is unusually wide, with a diameter of nearly two feet, and very short. The story I was told was that it was made especially for a short, heavy man, and the stump correctly represents his stature in life. 

Breckenridge Settlers: The Adams Family

I've written about the Adams Family before. I've been intrigued by the residents buried in the Valley Brook Cemetery for some time, and I recently discovered a new resource, and a genealogical gem. Women As Tall As Our Mountains: Mini-Biographies of Summit County Women, a project of P.E.O., Chapter FU, originally published in 1976 (my copy is copyright 2003). There are several authors involved in the project, and they interviewed numerous women, all residents of Summit County, and the stories are amazing to read. (Copies can be purchased through the Breckenridge Heritage Alliance.)

From the story of Clara Adams Tillett, who was little Josie's sister, we have learned that Phillip Adams, came from Germany, and helped survey the route for the railroad from Denver to Leadville over Boreas Pass outside of Breckenridge. After the completion of that project, he mined.

According to the text, the family lived in the red house on the west side of the Blue River near the smelter, and that house was still standing at the first publication in 1976. The site is unfamiliar to me, but I have decided to try to find out where that was, to see if there is anything still there. Should be an interesting little side trip of discovery in my own town.

Also included is the cause of death for both Phillip and Theresa Adams, Josie and Clara's parents. Since the year of death is the same, 1927, there was some question there.

"Clara's parents both died in 1927. Her mother, Theresa, died February 9 of pneumonia and her father lived until October 16 and died of a heart attack. They are both buried at Valley Brook Cemetery."

Finding this new resource has provided a personal and in depth look at day to day life in Summit County, during the "early years." If you are researching in this area, I highly recommend you try to find a copy. And no, you can't borrow mine. I'm not done with it yet.