Category Archives: Uncategorized

Murder in the Courtroom!

Posted on June 14, 2020 by gravelyspeaking

  NATHANIEL PARKER WILLIS AUGUST 21, 1868 JULY 27, 1909 “TRIED AND TRUE” GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN THAN THIS – – THAT HE LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIEND (CHILD) JOHN 15:13 MURDERED IN A COURT OF JUSTICE, … Continue reading →

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Honoring Those Who Served

Posted on May 25, 2020 by gravelyspeaking

Not far outside Bloomington, Indiana, is a small country cemetery.  Like many of the cemeteries in Indiana, the stone carvers’ unique work can be found on the gravestones.  The Mt. Ebal Cemetery has two such stones marking the graves of … Continue reading →

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COVID-19 Strikes

Posted on May 19, 2020 by gravelyspeaking

During a bad bout of cabin fever, I decided to drive the four hours to Green Lawn Cemetery in Columbus, Ohio, 317 landscaped acres of gravestones, mausoleums, and memorials.  The famous, such as Eddie Rickenbacker and James Thurber, as well … Continue reading →

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Marble and Bronze

Posted on February 24, 2020 by gravelyspeaking

The same sculpture appears in three cemeteries very far apart—Greenwood Cemetery in Phoenix, Arizona, Crest Lawn Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia, and Kraft-Graceland Memorial Park in New Albany, Indiana.  They are all have the exact same statue of a man standing … Continue reading →

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Immortality Symbols

Posted on February 10, 2020 by gravelyspeaking

IN MEMORY OF LOUISA B. FYFFE WIFE OF JEHU WILKINSON BORN AUGUST 19, 1844 DIED MARCH 5, 1880   REST IN PEACE The Monumental Bronze Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut, produced what was billed as ‘white bronze’ cemetery markers from the … Continue reading →

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The Church Window

Posted on October 9, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

Generally, I write about older gravestones from the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries.  I usually find them to be more interesting with symbolism that is intriguing and sometimes forgotten or obscure.  Or I write about statuary found in graveyards that … Continue reading →

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Mother and Daughter

Posted on August 26, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

May “Mollie” Cash Neal Born 1844, Louisiana Died October 1894, aged 49-50 Mary Elizabeth “Lizzie” Neal Born 1867, Louisiana Died June 17, 1889, aged 21-22 The monument in the historic Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta of two women sitting next two … Continue reading →

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The Gates Mausoleum

Posted on June 11, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

  The Gates Mausoleum (not Bill Gates, who is very much alive) in the Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx is a massive display of wealth.  Robert “Bet-a-Million” Warne Gates, who made a fortune manufacturing and selling barbed wire and founding … Continue reading →

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Walking Past the Mundane

Posted on May 8, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

Sometimes we walk by the mundane and pay no attention like I did recently in a cemetery in Kentucky.  Then when I looked across the cemetery, I suddenly spotted a wide variety of basket hangers. I must admit, I never … Continue reading →

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It’s all about the business

Posted on April 28, 2019 by gravelyspeaking

IN MEMORY OF FRED WESSELS, SENIOR WHOSE VISION, FAITH AND COURAGE MADE THESE COMPANIES POSSIBLE ATLANTIC MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY SOUTHERN SAVINGS & LOAN COMPANY ATLANTIC INSURANCE & INVESTMENT COMPANY Fred Wessels, Senior was born on October 26th, 1879, in Savannah, … Continue reading →

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