Most readers of
The Bagpiper will
remember that
Catherine’s Marker Project
in Henry County, Tennessee in
2002 was a huge success. It was a group effort to ensure that Catherine
Cowan Erwin (1774-1839)—my g-g-g-grandmother, and the ancestor of many
of you—would not be forgotten. As the result of the generous involvement
of many of her descendents a new marker was placed at the base of the
decaying original vertical grave monument, thus assuring that her
resting place would not be lost to future generations.
In June 2003—on my way to Altoona, Kansas, to attend the funeral of my
sister Flossie—I stopped off atthe
Longton Cemetery in Elk County, Kansas, and visited the resting places
of a number of Erwin, Freeman and Hayworth ancestors. The Erwin and
Freeman markers and monuments there were in good condition, but it was
really sad to see the condition of the Hayworth family plot. The reason
was obvious. The last burial in the Hayworth plot had been in 1905, and
the rest dated back another thirty years or so. Only one of the stones
had been carved out of marble as are current cemetery
markers and
monuments.
I thought about the sad condition of the Hayworth plot as I drove back to California, and I also thought about my mother. Hazel Dell Hayworth Erwin would have cried if she could have seen the resting place of her mother, grandparents, aunts, and infant sister. I decided that the persons buried there deserved to be remembered, and I decided that as a gift to my mother I would do something about it.
Consequently I
made arrangements with a monument company in Independence, Kansas
to
restore and remark the Hayworth plot in the Longton Cemetery.
As the result of the necessary written
communications and final
contract, as well as a heavy work load by the monument contractor, the
project was not completed until mid-2004.
James and
Susannah Hayworth have a common monument in the center of the family
plot. If one looks closely the inscriptions can still be read, but the
elements will soon wear them away. The original upright stone marker
was
not
disturbed, but a single
12x24 marble plaque
was
placed
in
front of it within the concrete border
(similar
to what we did for
Catherine Cowan Erwin).
The engraving on the tall slim monuments of Melissa Jane and Mary Miranda Hayworth (extreme left in the top photo), daughters of James and Susannah Hayworth, is no longer readable. A common 12x24 marble plaque, listing pertinent data and similar to that of their parents, was placed in front of the original monuments.
The monument of Sarah E. Hayworth (Aunt Sat), who was also a daughter of James and Susannah Hayworth, had fallen over (note the space in the center of the top photograph). It is located to the right of her parents, and was the only headstone that was in good shape, so it was re-set on a new foundation.
Next is the grave of Melissa E. Stowe Hayworth, daughter-in-law of James
and Susannah, wife of Charles Ellis Hayworth, and my maternal grandmother.
To the right of Melissa is Cora, the infant daughter of Melissa and Charles (Charles Ellis Hayworth is buried in Fargo, OK). The inscriptions on the monuments of Melissa and Cora, like that of James and Susannah Hayworth, are nearly weathered away. A common 12x24 marker was placed in front of their stones as well.
It is my hope that—somehow—my mother knows what has been done. It was my gift to her, and I know that she would have approved. I like to think that she is looking down from Heaven, with a smile on her face and a tear in her eye, and perhaps saying, "Thanks son." »»»