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If you haven't visited the Dartmouth College Cemetery in Hanover, New Hampshire, you may want to take a stroll around. We had no idea how interesting it was, literally, on many levels. We stopped to take a walk around the beautiful place back in June. On the stone above, carved by Gershom Bartlett of Norwich, Vermont, the epitaph reads: "In Memory of Mrs. Achsah (?) Wife of Mr. Joseph Tilden who died Decr 30th 1776 in her 28th Year. Remember frinds as you pass by as you be now so once was as I. As I be now so You Must be. Prepare for death and Follow Me." I like that little saying To get to the Dartmouth cemetery, we started by finding this building, and we parked near it. Then we walked through this gate: The first grave I noticed was the grave of Dr. Charles Elihu Quimby. Dr. Quimby was educated at Dartmouth College, and finished his medical studies at the University of the City of New York. He was a trustee of the Mary Hitchcock Hospital. Dr. Charles Quimby 1853-1921 Dr. Quimby's father, Elihu Thayer Quimby was sort of a hero of mine, as he was one of the first surveyors to help create topographical maps of New Hampshire. He and his associates climbed the White Mountains, and all over New Hampshire with rudimentary surveying equipment when the U.S. Geological Survey was in its infancy, then known as the U.S. Coast Survey, in the mid and late 1800's. There were some interesting smaller stones, getting covered with moss. One stone had come apart from its base: Below is an impressive stone, for Emily Howe, who was the wife of Hiram Hitchcock in the last months of his life. Hiram Hitchcock, along with Carlton P. Frost established the Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital, in honor of Hiram Hitchcock's first wife, Mary Hitchcock. The hospital opened it's doors in 1893. Walking around, we noticed in one corner that the land dropped right off. Looking down, I thought I saw more gravestones down there... The land drops off, with a glimpse of the terrace below. We continued to walk around the top level, and saw this unique grouping: Then we turned a 180 degree corner, found some more stones, and a path to the lower levels. This was really getting fun. The first path took us down and around, and looked like this: From there we continued on a rustic path... ...and came upon this hidden valley! We continued to explore this hidden world which exuded a serene sense of solemnity and history. Along the path was a very neat terrace with a clean looking stone wall. LIttle clusters of graves lie alongside mature trees. The path continued on, and began climbing again, to yet another level: Up ahead, my wife spotted this interesting tomb: Just past the Sawyer tomb, there was a concrete retaining wall, that didn't seem to be retaining as well as it used to! I wonder how long ago it was built? Retaining Wall Has Seen Better Days Just past the retaining wall, we ascended to the next level. It was at this point that I finally felt like we were going to find what we were looking for: The oldest section of the cemetery... ...where we would hopefully find some Gershom Bartlett carved gravestones. A classic gravestone carved by Gershom Bartlett. They usually have a chinless face, with stylized wings and a crown. Another example of a Gershom Bartlett stone in the Dartmouth College cemetery. Gershom Bartlett was a native of Bolton Connecticut, but moved to Norwich Vermont in the mid 1700's. He died in 1798, so his gravestones are among the oldest in this area. Another headstone carved by Gershom Bartlett. This one has begun the process of fading back into the earth. A graveyard is a museum of sorts. There's beautiful artwork, and lots of history. There's one difference though: cemeteries are outside, and exposed to the elements over years, decades, and centuries. Therefore, if you want to see the oldest stones, they are the ones that have seen the most wear, and are disappearing before our eyes. Thanks for wandering down "Old Roads, Rivers and Rails".
As many already know, the HereCast platform is disappearing on 12/31/19. At that point some of these stories will also disappear. If you'd like to be added to the list of folks interested in future articles, send me an email to [email protected] and I'll add you to the list. I don't know what the future holds for Old Roads, but hopefully it will be a bright one! Bob Totz December 2, 2019 Sources: Charles Elihu Quimby: https://books.google.com/books?id=vKVIAAAAYAAJ&pg=PR20&lpg=PR20&dq=Charles+Elihu+Quimby&source=bl&ots=Xouj4itEvv&sig=ACfU3U04wu4cqMAGTXP2i5B8nxEkq1e1Tw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjb-pO1spfmAhUQmuAKHbN-AFwQ6AEwBHoECAkQAQ#v=onepage&q=Charles%20Elihu%20Quimby&f=false Interesting article on Elihu Thayer Quimby's early surveys of New Hampshire: https://www.concordmonitor.com/quimby-triangulate-nh-16795274 Hiram Hitchcock: https://ead.dartmouth.edu/html/ms242_biohist.html https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/46209014/hiram-hitchcock https://www.dartmouth-hitchcock.org/about_dh/history-2.html Gershom Bartlett, 18th century carver of gravestones: http://ctgravestones.org/carvers/gershom-bartlett-1723-1798/ Comments 7
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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 |