The name caught my eye.
Mary Ann
It was at the top of the old headstone in raised letters. I looked down the stone and saw that she was 23 when she died in 1852, the wife of David Campbell.
Beneath her name was that of a young child, William, of the same man. Was he her child too? What was his cause of death? How did she die at such an early age? Something as simple as a toothache could have been the cause of death. Infections were deadly as were many of the diseases which antibiotics and vaccinations control today. Of course childbirth was a common cause of death for young women.
Did she leave any children giving her descendants who know of or search for her today? I wonder if, like my Mary Ann, she has a great granddaughter who wonders about her?
Mary Ann Pretty died in 1908 of tuberculosis, which had taken her husband and two children previously. Over the next several years, four more would succumb to the deadly disease. Only three children survived, one of whom was my grandfather.
It is interesting to see the name of David Campbell so prominently displayed on this headstone though he is not buried in that spot. Maybe he married again and is interred with another wife. Mary Ann Campbell’s family has interesting items to research.
Can you tell I am knee deep in genealogy these days?
21 comments:
I have a few friends who are obsessed with genealogy. I guess it's something that takes over once it gets into the system. :-)
I have a few friends who are obsessed with genealogy. I guess it's something that takes over once it gets into the system. :-)
In my genealogy research, I've found that one answer usually brings two or more questions with it. As her death came a couple of years after the child, childbirth may be the cause of her demise.
It is a fascinating thing to do Marie, I would love to find out more about my parent's parents. I feel we must have some French blood back there 😊
i'm not sure i knew you were interested in genealogy. this headstone is beautiful, how sad she was so young and lost such a young child!!
It's fairly obvious, yes! :)
Cemeteries are fascinating places. Even with such sparse information you can sort of get a glimpse of a community history but so little of the person there. Sad for the younger ones there, life snuffed out so easily then.
Only knee deep? I have known people who buried themselves in this fascinating (and often heartbreaking) exploration.
And yes, cemeteries are so often beautiful and intriguing places.
Tracing back your family's history can be totally obsessive but so rewarding. I loved discovering who my ancestors were as people and the stories of their lives. It was so interesting and I even managed to unearth a couple of family skeletons!
We have 'done@ all our family trees I am all done out in family history now. I decided going back before 1500 was far too difficult! Cheers Diane
I can tell!
I am now very curious about that family.
I just finished reading "The Pioneers", the history of the pioneers who settled Ohio. Death in childbirth was so common, as was "consumption". Indian raids were also common. I think it was pretty easy to die, back then.
Hello,
I have worked on my family tree and have taken photos of family gravestones. It is sad to hear about these family members who died so young. The headstone is beautiful, some are so old they are hard to read. Enjoy your day, wishing you a great weekend ahead.
It's quite shocking to see just how many graves there are of young women and babies in our churchyards. I'm lucky in that I have a cousin who does lots of research into family history and she keeps me informed of all her latest discoveries.
I think time spent on genealogy is great. So many people want to know more about their ancestors and since you know so much about yours already, it would be so meaningful to those far removed relations. I do think that grave is interesting and a little funny that the emphasis, after her name, is who she was married to.
Your family certainly had its share of heartbreaking illness and death, Marie.
Yes, it's intriguing to read those headstones and wonder about the circumstances, isn't it? I marvel sometimes that anyone knows much of anything about generations gone by, it's so easy for records to be lost or destroyed - or even inaccurate at times. One needs to be a very patient, very persistent detective.
this is touching story about your great grandmother dear Marie
my younger brother died with same disease either and my only aunt died with child birth during labor pain ,one of her daughter is wife of my brother
i always enjoy your thoughts and expressions deeply ,you have gift to describe the well
blessing!
At least you are knee-deep in something really interesting. I always wonder about people and especially small children...always think how broken-hearted the mom must have been.
It can be sobering to walk through old graveyards.
Old cemeteries are so interesting to walk through.
Interesting! I too like to look at those details in the cemeteries.
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