Tales the Tombstones Tell Page 166-169

Tales The Tombstone Tell Columns from the Republican Observer Written by S. W. Fogo Page 166

Tales The Tombstones Tell - Republican Observer - December 11, 1958

Tavera Cemetery The township of Richwood contains more cemeteries than any other in Richland county and the Tavera cemetery is one of these. Years ago it had another name, the Dosch cemetery. It is located but a short distance from the once thriving village of Tavera.
It is a nicely kept burying ground, not large, but it contains a number of the early settlers of the area. Among the names upon the markers are Persinger, Collins, Gobin, Wallace, Pettygrove Pippin, Benson, Galaway, Wiley, Steiner.
There are many other stones standing on the hillside slope in the shade of some tall pine trees; among them are those who bear these names, Moran, Orrick, Fish, Daughenbaugh, Zimpel, Fosnow, Hanson, Dosch, Brown, Dunston, Cooper, Kast, Lankford and Millison.

Near the west fence is buried James McCartney and his wife Mary. He was born in 1855 and died in 1939. Mary died March 12, 1901, at the age of 79 years, 9 months and 23 days.

There is a large stone and several smaller ones for the Turnmire family. One stone is for David Turnmire, who was born in 1846 and died in 1912; another for Polly his wife, also born in 1846, and passed on in 1911. On the stone for her it says: "A tender mother and a faithful friend."
There is a stone for Edw. Turnmire, and his wife. There is a photograph of he and Mrs. Turnmire together with six of their children. An angel carved out of granite stands here as part of the large monument. On the headstones for two of their children, Stella and Mrs. Florence Waller, there are also photographs, and one is upon the headstone of Edward Turnmire.

John H. Tilley and his wife Abigail, are buried here. He was born July 10, 1828, and she February 17, 1831. They both died the same year, he on March 15, 1903, and she October 5th. Two other stones are upon the lot, one, marked Gertie 1863-1952, and one for Henry 1884-1916. Below these carvings is the word "Mizpah." We wondered why it is upon the stone.
Milton Rosemayer, born in 1846 and passed on in 1930, was a member of Co. I, 11th Regt. When he enlisted, January 16, 1864, he gave his address as Highland. Martha, his wife, was born in 1826, and died in 1937.
On the stone for Jeannette, wife of James Lewis, who died December 2, 1891, at the age of 54 is this verse:

At sunrise pray now Lord Thy day begins. Receive my thanks, grant strength, Wash out my sins, I drop anchor in the silent sea Through the long watches I am safe with Thee.

The death of little Beulah Heigh, five year old daughter of E. A. and Nora Heigh, was a sad blow to her parents. Beulah died on January 3, 1900, and on her stone is a photo of her together with this:

"Darling Beulah, she has left us, Left us, yes for evermore. But we hope to meet our loved One on that bright and happy shore." Hugh Harper, born in 1832, and died in 1900, has a marker which also is for Eliza, his wife, who was born in 1837. The date of her passing is not indicated. A stone for James W. Harper is here together with two children, one aged three, and one five months.
James and Orson Comar found rest in the burying ground. The stone bear the date of their birth and death. James was born in 1823 and died in 1892; Orson's life was from 1855 to 1882.

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J. A. Collins and his wife Elizabeth, are here. He was born in 1836 and died in 1903, and she was born in 1844 and passed on in 1901. Mr. Collins was a Civil War veteran, a member of Co. K, 6th Wisconsin. When he went into service he gave his address as Clayton, Crawford county. He was mustered out in 1865.
N. B. Winton and his wife Mary, are here in this burying ground. Mr. Winton was born in 1818 and his wife in 1830. He died in 1901 and she in 1902. He was born in Pennsylvania and came to Wisconsin in 1847, and to the town of Richwood in 1856. He was married in 1848 to Mary Otto and they became the parents of six children, one of whom, Omer E., was at one time clerk of court for Richland county.
Another Civil War veteran is A. B. Faith, a member of Co. H, 44th Infantry. Alexander B. Faith is how his name appears upon the government records. He gave Muscoda as his residence when he was mustered into service on Feb. 7, 1865. His soldier life was six months as the war ended and he was mustered out August 28, 1865.
One of the early day folks was Charles Allison, who was born in 1837 and died in 1893. William Boak, born in 1849, and his wife Sarah, born in 1855, are buried side by side. John McDermott and his wife were buried here. They lived on North Main street for many years, and their home is now a part of the Jefferson street school property. They were both born in 1865 and both passed on in 1955.
Early settlers buried here include Wm. Vance, born in 1820, and died in 1900, and his wife Margaret, is also here. She died in 1894 at the age of 69 years, 10 months and 28 days. Isam Vance is a real old timer, as when he died on January 9, 1876, he was past 73 years of age. He lived in the days of George Washington.
Albert Brenaman, Civil War veteran, was a member of Co. K, 3rd Infantry. He was born in 1847 and died in 1927. His wife Rosanna, was born in 1847 and died in 1904. Mr. Breneman was a school teacher for some years and always took an interest in educational matters. He gave Clayton, his residence when he enlisted in 1864; his muster out date being July 18, 1865.
The name of Thorp has long been identified with the town of Richwood. L. M. Thorp, who is buried in the Tavera cemetery, first came to the township in May, 1849, and entered 160 acres of land in June, so he became one of the early settlers there. He came from Indiana and in 1851 brought his wife and three children to make their home in the wilderness. His only earthly possessions then was a team and wagon and $100 in cash.
After he and his family were settled and some provisions for the winter bought, he had but $5 remaining and nothing coming in, so he taught school. He cleared his land and became a well to do farmer. He planted many acres of hops and this crop promised big returns but the bottom dropped out of the market, leaving Mr. Thorp just about stranded. He started up the ladder again, so to speak, and recovered from his financial difficulty. Mr. Thorp was a member of the first Republican convention held in Richland county. He was elected as sheriff of the county in 1856, and again in 1862. In 1878 he ran for assemblyman on the Greenback ticket but was defeated. He was married in 1847 to Mary Jane Miller and they became the parents of eleven children, one of whom, Octavia, married A. H. Floatin, a Richland Center storekeeper, in whose store the big fire started which destroyed the Krouskop store and opera hall back in 1883. Also quite prominent in later day affairs was Julius son of L. M. Julius born in 1849 and died in 1917. He was twice married, evidently to sisters, as the stone in the cemetery reads: Sarah J. Buchanan, his wife, 1846-1898, and then Mary Ann Buchanan, his wife, 1841-1922.
Many members of the Ellsworth family are here. They were among the early, early settlers of Richland county and members of the family still own the farm property near Tavera. Joseph S. Ellsworth appears to be the oldest of the family buried here. He was born in 1808 in Vermont where he learned the trade of shoemaker. He moved to Ohio and in 1852 came to Richland county, settling in the town of Buena Vista, where he kept a small store at Independence, a small settlement between Lone Rock and

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Richland City. This small community never became a thriving village but it had stores, a blacksmith shop, a mill, and several houses. This was in the early 50s. The settlement was of short life and today not a trace of it is to be found along the banks of the Wisconsin river where it once stood. One building, a home, was moved to the village of Gotham where it still stands along side of busy highway 14 where auto traffic is heavy. Mr. Ellsworth purchased a water power on Knapps Creek and built the Ellsworth mills which operated for many years. He was married twice, first to Didama Buxton, who died in Ohio, leaving two children, Diana and Oliver. His second marriage was to Amy Stockwell, and to this union three children were born, Thomas J., M. D. and H. B. His wife, Amy, is buried on the lot. She was born in 1820 and died in 1852; Diana, the daughter, born in 1830, and died in 1914, is also there. Thomas J. was born in Ohio in 1842, coming with his parents to Richland county. He remained until l859, when he went to Kansas where he enlisted in the Home Guards and later in an Ohio cavalry company. He became disabled and was discharged. He returned to Richland county. Later he enlisted in Co. H, 44th Wisconsin. He suffered a broken leg, spent some time in a hospital, and was discharged soon after the surrender of Lee.
He returned to Richland county and started a tannery in the town of Richwood. In 1875 he married Mrs. Ellen (Cosgrove) Burns. He was a candidate on the Democratic and Greenback parties in 1880 for county clerk but was defeated by the Republican candidate. His platform had a sound of modern days, for he favored free trade, free schools, free religion, and free men with plenty of greenback legal tender money.
M. D. Ellsworth, the third son, operated his father's mills at Tavera for many years. These mills did general sawing, planing, and matching, the principal products being materials for wagons and other farm implements. The place was known back in the early days as Ellsworth Mills, but later was changed to Tavera. M. D. Ellsworth was born in Ohio in 1847, coming with his parents to Wisconsin, helped on the farm and in 1876 took over the operation of the mills. In 1875 he was married to Miss A. L. Hodgins, who was born in 1848 and passed on in 1924. Stones on the same lot are for four of their children, who died in infancy. The names, dates of birth and death are upon the stones. Mabel, 1883-1885; Leonard, 1887-1887; Frederick, 1876-1877; Joseph, 1875-1876. Also buried in this cemetery are other members of the Ellsworth family. Joseph Ellsworth, born in 1884, and died in 1947, is here. He was postmaster and storekeeper at Tavera for many years and later became a rural mail carrier out of Lone Rock.
Wm. Orrick and his wife Lavina, are among those buried here. William was 63 years of age when he died in 1883 and his wife, who died in 1912, was past 88 years of age. They were the parents of John Orrick of Richland Center, now deceased.
Two children of Mr. and Mrs. A. M. Stratton have a monument. Mr. Stratton was a miller, employed at Bowen's Mill, Sextonville, Excelsior and other points. The children were J. Allen, who died in 1881 at the age of one month, and Guy L., who was six years of age when he died in 1889. Mr. and Mrs. Stratton are evidently not buried in this cemetery as no notation concerning them appears upon the monument other than that they were the parents of the two children.
George A. Pippin and his wife Anna, found the end of life's journey in the Tavera cemetery. He was born in 1861 and died in 1946, while she first saw the light of day in 1864 and passed down the long road in 1905. They were the parents of Dr. B. I. Pippin, Richland Center. Two infant children, Marvin and Beulah, are buried on this lot. Marvin was born in 1904 and died in 1905. Beulah was born in 1890 and died in 1891, so the headstones say.

S. F.

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The Tales Tombstones Tell - Republican Observer - December 18, 1958

Lone Rock Cemetery Dead these many, many years is Johnathan Hopkins, whose tombstone in the Lone Rock cemetery states that he died December 1, 1856, at the age of 52 years, one month and 17 days, and he may have been the first to be buried in this village cemetery as we found no other marker with a date earlier than 1856. However the cemetery is dotted with rough stones from the hillsides and one of these may mark the last resting place of some person who preceded Mr. Hopkins down the long road.
The village of Lone Rock first came into being in 1856, the railroad having been completed to that point in October of that year and only one building was on the spot at that time and it was two months later that Johnahan Hopkins breathed his last and indications are that his burial was the first in this cemetery.
A number of Civil War veterans are here with World War soldiers. Among the World War I veterans we noted markers for Steven Bennett who was born in 1886 and died in 1929. This is all the information the gravestone gives. Vern E. Rose is another World War veteran. He was a Pfc. 19th Ord. corps, born August 27, 1915, and died March 7, 1949. Another is Melvin C. Olson of World War II, born January 19, 1912, and passed on September 27, 1951. A third is Henry J. Krause, a private in the engineering corps. The stone does not give the date of his birth but records that he died October 25, 1936.
Of the Civil War, Boys in Blue, who sleep here are some who belonged to the 6th Wisconsin Battery which was made up for the most part by men from Lone Rock and that area and was organized at Lone Rock with Henry Dillon as captain. Captain Dillon is buried in the Button cemetery not so far away. Byron Babcock is a 6th Battery veteran buried here. He served from September 14, 1861, until July 3, 1865, residing for many years in Lone Rock following the close of the war. E. A. J. Burdick enlisted from Ithaca on Sept. 11, 1861, and was mustered out in October, 1864, his term having expired. Mr. Burdick in after years became an employee of the railroad. R. A. Hammond, another member of the battery, is buried near the gate of this prairie burying ground. On the lot with him is his wife Ida, and a son Carl, the latter was a barber by trade, born in 1874, and died in 1957. R. A. was born in 1848 and died in 1935, while his wife, born, in 1849, died in 1921. Mr. Hammond always went by the name of "Seal", being shortened no doubt from his given name, Rasselas. There may be other members of the 6th buried here but the stones do not indicate it.
Other Civil War veterans in the cemetery are Gardner Godfrey, a member of Co. B, 30th Wisconsin; John L. Harrison, Co. C, 37th Regiment; William F. Green, Co. G, 12th Connecticut Infantry; Leonard Tracy, Co. H, 1st Vermont Cavalry; D. E. Johnson, Co. B, 25th Illinois; there is also a G.A.R. marker on the grave of Charles H. Mumford, but no indications of the regiment in which he served. Jas. Gilson, a member of Co. K, 32nd regiment; Wm. H. Bower, Co. I, 23rd Infantry; W. A. Bower, Co. M, 38th Regiment. These are among the folks who served in the Civil War along with John Betty, Co. D, of the 9th Iowa Regiment. Mr. Betty was the last Civil War veteran from the Lone Rock area to answer "taps". His wife, Emma, who was born in 1859 and died in 1928, is buried by his side.
Well known names upon the stones are the names of Endicott, Gile, Price, Britts, Phetteplace, Raybuck, Chase, Hendricks and Fox.

On the marker for William Ward, who died in September, 1884, at the age of 44, it reads:

"We should not weep that he is gone, With us its night with him it's dawn."

Ben J. Hobart was also a Civil War veteran, a member of Co. B, 12th Wisconsin Infantry. He was born in Ohio Feb. 12, 1820, and died April 2, 1905. Buried on the same lot are Polly, his first wife, born in 1825, and died in 1863; and Eliza, his second wife, who died in 1899, at the age of 72 years and six months.

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On the same lot with E. A. J. Burdick, G.A.R. veteran, mentioned above, are markers for three other members of the family. Sybil was born in 1846, and died in 1938; Frank, born in 1870, and died in 1899, Harry, 1877-1952, and Clayton, 1886-1956.

The Preston family have several members buried here. James A. Preston, died in October, 1892, at the age of 72; his wife, Lucinda, was 75 when she passed on in 1900; Howard Preston died in 1902; Harley in 1900, and Lucinda, wife of James, Jr., died in 1885, at the age of 21.

Alpheus Aldrich evidently liked to move about for it says upon his marker that he was "born in Rochester, New York, April 24, 1818. Married Helen Conable on January 27, 1839. At different times lived at Fabius, New York; Berlin, New Jersey; Smithport, Pa.; Deansville, Wis., and Lone Rock, where he died June 28,1885. His wife died November 12, 1882. On the same lot is a stone for Eber J. Aldrich, born December 11, 1851, married Ida Jenkins, on June 24, 1875, and died November 14 1884. His wife died in 1886 at the age of 31. A son, Alexander Alpha, died in 1883 at the age of two years, 11 months and 22 days. Mr. Aldrich was a blacksmith. He too, like his father, wanted to move about a bit so he built a boat, launched it in Wisconsin river and set sail, landing at New Orleans. He returned home from there, no doubt with many tales of his adventures down the big river which he told and re-told to those who gathered at his blacksmith shop.

Michael Schlough was a harness maker by trade, and from what we learn, a good one. He plied his trade at Lone Rock for many years. He was born in 1845, and died in 1921; his wife, Mary, came into this world in 1848, and died in 1928. On the same marker are the names of their children. A son Vernie, died March 27th, at the age of a bit past one year; a daughter, Stella, was 17 when she passed on April 12, 1899; Carrie was three when her death took place on December 18, 1885, and Adda, whose death was December 19, 1885, was one year, one month, and seven days old.
Two of the early born folks were Philip Creasy, born in 1818, and his wife, born in 1821. He died in 1889 and she in 1875. On the stone for Mary Whipple, who was born in 1809 and died in 1900, is a line which reads:
   "Weep not, she is at rest."
Dr. J. E. Peebles and his wife Elizabeth, are buried here. He was born in 1847 and died in 1914; his wife was born in 1847 and passed away in 1925. On the back of the tombstone for Dr. and Mrs. Peebles are two inscriptions which read:
   "P. N. Gray, aged 82"
    J. B. Gray, aged 82"

George Schnee was 86 years, 8 months and 11 days of age when he passed away in 1886. On the same lot is his wife Cora Bell Woodbury. Also in this cemetery is R. H. Layton, born in 1831, and died in 1904. A stone for Elmer, ten year old son of Mr. and Mrs. A. W. Towsley is here. Mr. Towsley was for years station agent for the railroad. A marker for Mary, wife of H. W. Haskell, who died October 12, 1897, at the age of 64. A daughter, Clara, who died January 22, 1876, at the age of 15, sleeps beside her mother.
Mr. Haskell was a hotel operator in Lone Rock for a number of years. His hotel was known far and wide as the "Haskell House."

One of the widely known persons to be buried here is John Fletcher Beardsley. "Fletch" as he was called by his friends, was, according to his tombstone, "born in Herkimer county, New York, March 29, 1849, moved to Wisconsin in 1856, settled at Lone Rock in 1870, where he died March 2, 1923." When Mr. Beardsley came to Lone Rock in 1870 he began the business of selling sewing machines and musical instruments, later he branched out into selling farm machinery of all kinds, implements, threshing machines, etc.; also sold lumber and building material. His

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