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...and a hunt for Gershom Bartlett headstones. The East Thetford Cemetery lies on the east side of U.S. Route 5, just above the East Thetford village and state route 113 East Thetford still has some great landmarks such as Wings market... Wing's Market in East Thetford, Vermont. ...and the Railroad depot: East Thetford, Vermont Railroad depot building The East Thetford cemetery sits on a beautiful piece of level land, set high above the Connecticut River shoreline. It's light, and bright, and very well maintained. I finally made time to go for a stroll through the old East Thetford cemetery to see what was in store. I was glad I did! It was late August, and the weather was great, with late morning sun shining down. East Thetford Cemetery, late morning, Aug 24, 2019, looking south... and looking north... On the southwest corner there there is a nice spot with plenty of shade. Shady grove in the southwest corner. I'm willing to guess that many folks like myself have traveled past that cemetery hundreds of times, without giving it much thought, or even noticing it. But these old graveyards really are wonderful historic sites that dot the Vermont and New Hampshire landscapes. They can be found in the center of cities, off of state highways, or along old dirt roads. Some small, rural graveyards are buried in the woods, almost totally forgotten, and I've been told of one cemetery that is found by parking on the interstate! I guess that particular graveyard was a bit more convenient to find before the interstate came in and rearranged, or destroyed some old roads. The first gravestone I investigated was the headstone of Liutenant William Heaton, He has an American flag and a star shaped veteran’s medallion next to his gravestone. The medallion is very rusty, but I believe it refers to the War of 1812. Lieut. Wm Heaton, son of Capt. Orange Heaton Here is what I could make out of the inscription on his stone: "Son of Captain Orange Heaton and Mrs. Jemima Heaton died at Fr.....ills NY 18 Nov 1813 of a.....eined in fighting for his country .....W...burgh ...in Canada.......intered here.....22nd Feb 1814" Close-up of Revolutionary Soldier Lieut. William Heatons Epitaph. Next to Lieutenant William Heaton's grave lies that of his father, Captain Orange Heaton, also a war veteran, if the war for Independence. By my math, Orange would have been about ten years old when the Declaration of Independence was signed. Those must have been some interesting teenage years. I wonder how old he was when he joined the fighting. Gravestone of Captain Orange Heaton, father of Lieutenant William Heaton. His inscription reads: "Mr. Orange Heaton died Feb 20th, 1848 in his 82nd year". It's sad that he lost his son so many years earlier, also fighting for his country. Here is a close-up of Captain Orange Heaton's gravestone: Inscripton on revolutionary war veteran Orange Heaton's headstone. I was surprised to see that someone was named "Orange"! Maybe Orange had red hair? There were some interesting names back then. Next is a gravestone that has remained intact and in very good condition for over 180 years. It's sad that it was made for a child of only one year and nine months old. The inscription reads: "Henry C. son of B.W. & J.J. Ranstead. Died Sept. 5, 1839; Aged 1 year & 9 months. Henry C. Ranstead, aged 1 year, 9 months. After checking out the older stones near the front of the cemetery, I started looking for the oldest stones in the graveyard, and got down to the business of searching for gravestones carved by Gershom Bartlett, colonial carver of gravestones, who lived in Norwich during the latter years of the 1700's. Bartlett usually quarried his stones from local outcroppings of slate along the western shore of the Connecticut River. Those outcroppings can still be seen along US route 5. The stones he carved can be found up and down the Connecticut River valley, from Westminster to Ryegate, Vermont and along the river valley in New Hampshire. If you know what to look for, Bartlett's headstones tend to stick out like a sore thumb. Here is the first one of Gershom Bartlett's stones that I found. I'm pretty sure this is one of his, based on the type of stone, the shape of the stone, and what is left of the design and inscription, though much has disintegrated over the years. Gravestone carved by Gershom Bartlett of Norwich, Vermont, barely recognizable today. Barely recognizable on the stone is the word "Doctor", and below that, possibly "December", as seen in the close-up below. Close-up of old, very worn stone carved by Gershom Bartlett. Here is a much better example of a headstone carved by Gershom Bartlett, which reads: "In Memory of Mr. Enos Son to Capt. Samuell & Mrs. Mehetable Rogers died Novr. 19th, 1793 in his (16th?) year. A fine example of a headstone carved by Gershom Bartlett circa 1793. All of the stones carved by Gershom Bartlett had interesting, almost cartoon-like faces carved at the top, as seen below: Some of the original settlers of Thetford, Vertmont are buried here; their old gravestones having weathered over two hundred years of rain, snow, frost, and thaw cycles, and many of them show that wear, though some have remained intact and beautiful. In the rear of the northeastern corner of the cemetery, lies a large stone with the following inscription: "IN MEMORY OF THE EARLY SETTLERS OF THETFORD VERMONT erected 1956" Stone dedicated to the early settlers of Thetford, set in 1956. Here is a nice stone carved by Gershom Bartlett from 1783: 1783 Headstone carved by Gershom Bartlett All I can make out from the inscription above is: "Samuel Gillette died Dec ....1783 in ... 68th year....Age" Close-up of Samuel's epitaph, 1783 Here is another of Bartlett's stones. This is one of the better examples of Gershom Bartlett's gravestones in the East Thetford cemetery. It is tall and in very good shape and has somehow weathered well, over the years. 1783 Headstone for Mrs. Abigail Horsford. The inscription on this one reads: "In memory of Mrs. Abgail ye wife of Lieut. Elihu Horsford Died Feb r 15th 1783 in her 33d. Year of her Age". Close-up, below: Close-up of inscription on Abigail Horsford's stone. Gershom Bartlett lived just down the road from this graveyard. It is no wonder that there are many examples of his fine carving work in East Thetford. Bartlett was a revolutionary war veteran, and an original settler of Norwich Vermont. He was very active in the community, and many, many people of his day came to him for original, hand carved gravestones, when it was time to lay their loved ones to rest. I would have loved to have met him, and watched him work with his hammers and chisels. If you happen to be in one of the old cemeteries in our region, and you see one of Gershom Bartlett's gravestones, don't be surprised if you see someone looking back at you! A face carved by Gershom Bartlett, late 1700's. Thanks for wandering around on "Old Roads, Rivers and Rails"! < Click the link for my profile page, and then scroll down for other adventures. New subscibers are encouraged and appreciated! It's free! - Thanks, Bob Totz, Sept. 13, 2019 Interesting short article about Gershom Bartlett's life in Connecticut before moving to Norwich Vermont: http://ctgravestones.org/carvers/gershom-bartlett-1723-1798/ Abigail, daughter of Abigail and Lieut. Elihu Horsford Old Stone Carved by Gershom Bartlett in the 18th Century, Now Half Gone Rear of the East Thetford Cemetery, showing a few old gravestones poking out of the earth. Be careful! The ground drops right off in back Comments 5
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AuthorI'm Bob Totz, retired VT postmaster, and historical geographer ARCHIVES:
October 2021
EXPANDED ARCHIVES: AUGUST 2021 1858 Johnson Map of North America MAY 2021 1795 - "Road Over the Mountain" - Part Two Historic Toll House For Sale 1795 - "Road Over the Mountain" Part One OCTOBER 2020 Finding That Special Peaceful Place AUGUST 2020 Kayaking on the Pompy JULY 2020 Pt. 2: What the Heck Are These Things? JUNE 2020 Bob's Bio... What the Heck Are These Things? Pt. 1 MAY 2020 Stone Walls and Spirits The View APRIL 2020 Sunny Brook Farm Relics: Pt 2. Sunny Brook Farm Relics: Pt 1. MARCH 2020 Signs of Norwich Pt. 2 COVID-19 Tracking Map Centertown and Valleyquest Signs of Norwich Pt. 1 "Imperfect Union" - Book Review Historic Centertown FEBRUARY 2020 King's Hwy Pt. 2 WRJ Museum at Post Mills Airport Chatauguay Vermont The Independent Farmer poem Traveling Along the King's Highway - Lebanon NH JANUARY 2020 Finding Parkhurst Cemetery In Search of Parkhurst Cemetery Affordable Housing The Old Stone Grill Two Rivers Trail-Kmart License and Registration, Please! Prohibition, Murder and Dr. Seuss Peace, Paris, & P.O. DECEMBER 2019 BLOGGER'S LINKS Welcome to Old Roads Love-Quail Hollow fun Dartmouth Cemetery SEPTEMBER 2019 E. Thetford Cemetery JUNE 2019
Taps: Meetinghouse Cemetery 4-Corners Borders Quest Old Iron Gate Stumbling Upon History Sunrise Walk MAY 2019 4 Corners Cemetery Strafford's Abandoned Foundations Art in Old Stonework APRIL 2019 Strafford Tpke Pt 2 Strafford Tpke Pt 1 White River Valley FEBRUARY 2019 Learning from Historic Maps of the Upper Valley Change in Lewiston VT JANUARY 2019 A Vermont Ski Waltz John Ledyard 1773 What is the Upper Valley? DECEMBER 2018 Dartmouth Green Music Video: Sometimes Music Video: Montreal Express Railway Disaster of 1887 |