Talk20 Slides 6-10

Slide 6: White Bronze

The Monumental Bronze Company of Bridgeport, CT produced cast zinc grave markers, sold as "White Bronze" from 1874 to 1914. 

The company opened 3 subsidiaries, with the first in Detroit in 1881 which operated until about 1885. Having operated for such a short time I was excited to find one marked with this location. 

After the closing of the Detroit operation, two more subsidiaries opened in 1886, one in Chicago and one in Des Moines, Iowa. American Bronze operated in Chicago for twenty-three years, until it closed in 1909. Western White Bronze Company in Des Moines operated for twenty-two years, and closed in 1908. This is the most common one found locally. Many markers do not indicate a location. 

They appear across the landscape as a blue gray color and most are in remarkable condition.

Slide 7: Symbolism

Many religious and secular symbols and emblems have adorned tombstones through the ages, possibly to symbolize or convey a belief of death and the hereafter and other aspects of life.

Boat: a boat, as shown here with a body, represents a voyage or the crossing over.

Lamb: usually mark the grave of a child, symbolizing innocence.

Hand with broken link: depicts the hand or presence of God, the broken link symbolizes loss.

Slide 8: Epitaphs

·        Many headstones contain more than names and dates. Epitaphs quoting poems or scripture are often seen, especially on the older graves.

·        This one for Nathan Grigsby from Harper County includes his dying protest of the Democratic party. The other side of his stone also notes his brother Aaron married Sarah, the sister of Abraham Lincoln.

·        Charlie Troy’s headstone in McPherson County contains the poem "My Child". I found it in "The Home Book of Verse, American and English, 1580 - 1918." Part of it reads:  I know his face is hid under the coffin lid, closed are his eyes, cold is his forehead fair, my hand that marble felt, o're it in prayer I knelt, yet my heart whispers that he is not there.

Extra photo for blog post... not included in slide

Slide 9: Cause of Death
Another interesting find on headstones is a cause of death.

Henry Morrison died of bullet wounds he received at the battle of the rio grand river during the Spanish American war. Gypsum Cemetery.

Harry Morgan died in the discharge of duty… he was a passenger conductor shot on the train. Wildmead Cemetery.

Charles Powelson died while bathing. Lyons Cemetery.

John Ellwood was killed by lightening. Windom Cemetery.

Samuel McMurry was killed by Indians on the Cimmaron. Fairview Elmer Cemetery.

I didn’t include a photo in my slide but there is a stone in Memorial Park (now called Penwell Gable) that says “I told you I was sick”

Slide 10: Ceramic Photographs

I love finding photographs on headstones.

As a photographer I was excited to find in my research a document titled: The Photographic News; A weekly record of the progress of photography, dated July 31, 1874, in which it reported "that a custom gaining ground is that of placing photographic portraits of deceased persons upon their gravestones, a direction in which enamel photographs might be employed with great advantage."

Today I see a lot of laser engraved images of not only people, but homesteads.

GYR Carnival - Cause of Death

Alexander & Valentine Goodall, along with Joshua Crowther, lost their lives in a fishing expedition. The men had taken a day off from work with others and chose a fishing spot northeast of town [Salina, KS] at the junctions of the Smoky Hill and Saline Rivers. Joshua Goodall volunteered to swim a net across the river and fasten to the bank on the other side. It was thought he developed a cramp and began flailing for help. Royal Calkin, George Garvin and Alexander Goodall tried to help. Alexander became entangled in the net and Valentine Goodall tried to save him. All three drowned on May 27, 1871.

- Valentine left a wife and five children.
- Alexander left a wife and newborn baby.
- Elizabeth Crowther was left with her seven children. James Muir, a member of the fishing party and one of the five town founders for Salina, sold the widow an acre of his land for one dollar to offer aid.

Located in the same cemetery is the grave of Henry H. Morrison. His headstone states he died from bullet wounds he received August 27, 1899 at the battle of the Rio Grand.

I think the cause of death most often listed on a tombstone is when a person died in military service. Those I have found that listed other causes left me thinking about the grief of the family. How they felt it necessary to tell those of us to visit in the future how this person died.

Click on my label "Cause of Death" to see the other posts I have on this topic.

Gypsum Hill Cemetery

Killed by lightning

John Ellwood

Windom Cemetery

Another cause of death listed on the headstone.

Killed by Indians

Samuel J. McMurry
Fairview [Elmer] Cemetery
Born Oct. 22, 1848.
Killed by Indians on the Cimeron in New Mexico
July 4, 1874

Also - revisit a previous post about six railroad workers that were also killed by Indians.

Killed in the discharge of duty

- The Hutchinson Herald 9/4/1880: Harry Morgan, of Nickerson, a conductor on the A. T. & S. F. railroad, was shot by a laboring man on the train, while near Ellinwood, last Tuesday. The train was going west, and a party of men were on board en-route to New Mexico, for the purpose of working on the road. They seemed to “feel their oats” considerably, and a squad of them were on top of one of the coaches conducting themselves in a noisy and beastly manner. At the command of the conductor they all came down and took their seats inside the coach except one Montgomery, who engaged in an altercation with Mr. Morgan, and being requested by the latter to put away a revolver which he had drawn, commenced cursing, and placing the muzzle of the weapon close to Mr. Morgan’s person, pulled the trigger. The ball lodged in the upper abdomen, making a severe though not necessarily fatal wound. The would-be assassin was placed in jail at Great Bend. There was considerable talk of lynching.

- The Argosy 9/8/1880: Shooting of Conductor Harry Morgan

- The Argosy 9/22/1880: Death of Conductor Morgan
Sunday morning last a gloom was thrown over our city by the report of the death of Conductor Harry Morgan, whose death occurred at quarter of six on that morning. He had, apparently got along so well ever since he was shot that everyone supposed he would recover… Mr. Morgan was 37 years of age. He had been in the employ of the Santa Fe railroad for five years, a resident of Nickerson over a year and served his country four years during the war. He was a passenger conductor on the railroad and enjoyed the confidence and stood high in the estimation of the officers of the company, and was an honored and highly respected citizen. He was a loving and faithful husband and leaves an equally loving and faithful wife to mourn his loss.

- The Hutchinson Herald 9/25/1880: M. J. Ruddy’s hearse was taken to Nickerson Tuesday afternoon, to take the remains of conductor Morgan to the cemetery.

-1880 Nickerson, Grant Township, Reno County, Kansas Federal Census: Harry Morgan age 30. Married. Conductor. Born in Maryland. Parents born in United States. Ella Morgan. Wife. Age 23. Married. Keeps house. Born in United States. Birth place of parents not listed.


Harry Morgan
Wildmead Cemetery
Nickerson, KS

Drowned while bathing

Charles Powelson
Lyons Municipal Cemetery

Not too often do we find the cause of death on a headstone. Richard Waterhouse, Waterhouse Symbolism, is featuring on his blog this month headstones that tell of violent deaths.

While this isn't as horrid as murder I would say drowning isn't a pleasant way to die.

Remembering The Clutter Family

On my last road trip I was able to visit the Clutter Memorial in the Holcomb Community park. Their murders were chronicled in the book "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote. The memorial comes a few months before the 50th anniversary of their deaths. The family was murdered in Holcomb and buried in Garden City at Valley View Cemetery.

Sad Cemetery Walk

Union Pacific RR Cemetery
Victoria, KS
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This was a sad cemetery walk. All buried here died of murder or sickness.
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This cemetery was established to bury the bodies of 6 railroad workers massacred by the Cheyenne Indians in August 1867.
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P. S. Ashley, foreman from Wisconsin
Thomas Carney from Iowa
Charles Watson from Canada
John Harrington from Kansas City
Pat Rafferty from Kansas City
Hugh McDonaugh from Denver
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In the summer of 1873 four Seth siblings were laid to rest here. The stone erected in 2008 tells their sad family story of how they contracted typhoid fever while traveling to join the Victoria Colony. Their mother was laid to rest in St. Louis and these four died after arriving to Victoria. They were survived by the father and 3 brothers.
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Margaret, 27

William, 25

Thomas, 18

Jane, 16