USA > Georgia > Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II > Part 24
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Old Jewish Burial Ground, Savannah
On Guerard Street, near the Union Station, is the old Jewish burial-ground of Savannah. It contains the tomb of the noted Mordecai Sheftall, one of the earliest pioneer residents of the town, who donated this tract of
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land to his people for burial purposes. Here also rests Sheftall Sheftall. Father and son-they were both pa- triots of the Revolution, and both men of the most ex- alted character.
St. Paul's, Augusta
The church-yard of old St. Paul's, in Augusta, is thickly sown with historic dust. It is not alone the burial- place, but the cradle, of the ancient town, reaching back to the earliest pioneer days. The site of the primitive little fort which was here built by order of Oglethorpe, in 1736, is today marked by a handsome Celtic cross, in the extreme rear of the church-yard, overlooking the Savan- nah River. On the beautiful grass-covered lawn, under- neath, the shade of trees, some of which are more than two centuries old, may be seen a number of rare monu- ments; but the ancient edifice itself is, in many respects, the most precious of Augusta's sacred heir-looms and memorials.
It marks the spot where Christianity was first planted in the wilderness of upper Georgia; and the name of the pioneer evangel, therefore, is an appropriate one for it to bear. The ashes of the great soldier-bishop, LIEU- TENANT-GENERAL LEONIDAS POLK, repose underneath the sanctuary of the church. His wife sleeps beside him. Here, too, rest the mortal remains of two of the beloved rectors of St. Paul's-Dr. Edward E. Ford and Dr. William H. Clarke. Mr. Richard Tubman, one of the most generous of Augusta's public-spirited citizens, likewise occupies a crypt underneath the house of worship. There are also costly memorials within the edifice to United States Senator John P. King, for forty years president of the Georgia Railroad ; to Captain John Carter, an of- ficer in the Continental Army, who was the first senior warden of the parish after the Revolution, and to other distinguished residents of the town.
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When the burial-ground was made a battle-field, in 1781, the oldest monuments were destroyed; but there are quite a number of memorials in the church-yard which have reached the century mark. On the left of the his- toric edifice there is only one grave of special note, but around it clusters a wealth of fragrant associations. Here sleeps the famous inventor who, twelve months before the keel of Fulton's boat began to plow the Hud- son, was successfully applying steam to navigation on the waters of the same stream which his grave today overlooks. He died the victim of adverse fortunes; and in the simple epitaph inscribed on the time-worn slab above him there is a world of pathos. It reads :
Sacred to the memory of WILLIAM LONGSTREET who departed this life, September 1, 1814, aged 54 years, 10 months, and 26 days. "All the days of the afflicted are evil; but he that is of a merry heart hath a con- tinual feast."
William Longstreet was the father of the celebrated Judge Augustus B. Longstreet, who wrote "Georgia Scenes." He was also the grandfather of the no less distinguished General James Longstreet-Lee's old War- Horse.
Perhaps the tomb which attracts the chief interest on the part of visitors to St. Paul's is the tomb of old Gov- ERNOR GEORGE MATHEWS, in the area of ground to the right of the church. An officer of note during the Revolu- tion, he is credited with having saved the American army from rout at the battle of Brandywine. He was notoriously a bad speller. At one time he wanted to thrash John Adams. While Governor of Georgia he committed the fatal blunder of approving the Yazoo Act. His grave is covered by an old-fashioned box of marble, on which the following inscription is recorded :
In memory of GENERAL GEORGE MATHEWS, who died 30 of August, 1812, in the 73rd. year of his age.
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Next to Governor Mathews, in a similar tomb, sleeps ROBERT FORSYTH, the father of Georgia's illustrious statesman, Hon. John Forsyth. He was killed by the notorious Beverly Allen, whom he was seeking to arrest, while United States marshal for the District of Georgia. The following epitaph is inscribed on the tomb :
Sacred to the memory of ROBERT FORSYTH, Fed- eral Marshal of Georgia, who, in the discharge of the duties of his office, fell a victim to his respect for the laws of his country and his resolution in support of them, on the 11th. of January 1794, in the 40th. year of his age. His virtues as an officer of rank and un- nsual confidence in the war which gave independence to the United States and in all the tender and endearing relations of social life have left impressions on his country and friends more durably engraved than this monument.
Underneath a horizontal slab of marble, in the fore- ground of the church-yard, lie the ashes of the gallant naval officer who commanded the very first vessel com- missioned during the American Revolution. On account of the recognized priority of his claims in this respect, he has sometimes been styled by pre-eminence, the "Ad- miral of the American Navy." The inscription on the slab is as follows :
This stone is placed by fraternal affection to the memory of COMMODORE OLIVER BOWEN, a native of the State of Rhode Island, where he sprang from an honorable stock. He departed this life, July the 11th. A. D. 1800, in the 59th. year of his age. A patriot of 1775, he was among the first in this State who stepped forth in Vindication of our Rights. His life equally with his property was often risked in the Cause. His widow, his relations, and his many friends will ever regret the departure of the Benevolent and Honest Man.
This Stone is placed by Fraternal affection, to the Memory of Commodore OLIVER BOWEN a Native of the State of Rhode Ifland where he fprang from an honourable Stock He departed this Life July the 11 A.D. 1800. in the 59 Year of his Age.
A Patriot of 1775- he was among the firft in this State who fteped forth in Vindication of our Rights His life equally with his property were often rifqued in the Caufe.
His Widow his Relations and his many Friends. will ever regret the departure of the Benevolent and Honeft Man-
HORIZONTAL SLAB OVER THE TOMB OF COMMODORE OLIVER BOWEN, AUGUSTA, GA.
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Commodore Bowen, at the outbreak of the Revolution, was a resident of Savannah. Most of his life was spent on the ocean front; and how he came to be buried in Augusta is unknown. Dr. Chauncey C. Williams, a former rector of the parish, in speaking of his services to the cause of independence, makes this statement :
"When Washington was at Cambridge and powerless to dislodge Lord Howe from Boston, because he had no ammunition, Commodore Bowen, by a clever and daring attack, captured a shipload of gunpowder off Savannah. One-half of this was sent to General Washington, and enabled him to drive the British out of Boston. It may almost be said, therefore, that this man, buried in St. Paul's church-yard, made the success of the Revolution possible."*
Bordering upon the main walk, just within the gate, is the last resting place of COLONEL AMBROSE GORDON, a soldier of the Revolution and an officer in the State troops. He was the father of William Washington Gordon, the first president of the Central of Georgia, for whom Gor- don County, in this State, was named. The monument over him is cubical in shape, built somewhat in the fash- ion of an urn. The inscription reads as follows :
Sacred to the memory of COLONEL AMBROSE GORDON, who, in the various relations of life, dis- charged his duty with fidelity and diligence. He was born in the State of New Jersey, on the 28th. of June 1751 and departed this life in the State of Georgia, on the 28th. of Jan., 1804, aged 53 years.
WILLIAM THOMPSON, an officer of the Revolution, sleeps in a grave near Governor Mathews. His tomb bears the
*The Story of St. Paul's Church, Augusta, Ga., A. D. 1750-1796, p. 7, a pamphlet.
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insignia of the Order of the Cincinnati. Inscribed on the surface of the marble box is the following record :
Here lies the body of WILLIAM THOMPSON, Esq., who was an Officer in the 9th. Pennsylvania Regt. of the late American Army from its formation in 1776 to its dissolution and amongst his American Brethren made an Offering of his Blood on the Altar of Liberty. He departed this life on 19th. day of March, 1794, Aged 45 Years. And as a testimony of her re- gret and in remembrance of him, his disconsolate Widow hath caused this Stone to be placed as a covering to his bed of rest.
Near the east wall of the church is buried SEABORN JONES, an uncle of the Congressman who bore the same name. He was the first speaker of the House of Assem- bly after the adoption of the Federal Constitution in 1789. His grave is marked by a massive square column, inscribed as follows :
SEABORN JONES. Born at Halifax, N. C., June 15, 1759. Died at Augusta, Ga., July 24. 1815. Aet at 56. Eminent as a jurist, a Christian without guile, a man without reproach.
GEORGE STEPTOE WASHINGTON, a nephew of General Washington, died in Augusta on January 10, 1809, and was buried in St. Paul's church-yard, but there is no. stone to mark the spot. On the east side of the church is the grave of the first Presbyterian minister in Augusta, the REVEREND WASHINGTON MCKNIGHT. It is a fact of some interest that St. Paul's, though an Episcopal Church, was leased by the town authorities, in 1804, to the Presbyterians. This grew out of complications, which are elsewhere discussed. The property was in part re- stored to the Episcopalians in 1818.
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Summerville, Augusta
Some of Georgia's most distinguished dead-includ- ing Governors, United States Senators, Congressmen, judges, editors, historians, and men of eminence in every sphere of usefulness-lie buried on the Sand Hills, near Augusta. The land for the cemetery was deeded to the village of Summerville by Thomas Cumming, Esq., and an Act to incorporate the trustees of this burial-ground was approved by Governor Troup, on November 21, 1823. Mr. Cumming was the first intendant of the town of Au- gusta, and the first president of Georgia's oldest bank. His grave, near the center of the burial-ground, is marked by a substantial monument, from which we learn that he was born on May 30, 1765, and died on March 6, 1834.
Several members of his family sleep near him. One of these, a son, WILLIAM CUMMING, was a gallant soldier of the War of 1812, holding the rank of colonel in the United States army. He afterwards declined a briga- dier-general's commission from President Jackson, and a major-general's commission from President Polk. In 1822 he was drawn into a duel with the famous George McDuffie, of South Carolina, an affair in which the latter was severely wounded. The inscription on the monu- ment to WILLIAM CUMMING reads as follows :
In memory of WILLIAM CUMMING, eldest son of Thomas and Ann Cumming, born Savannah, July 27, 1786, died, Augusta, Feb. 18, 1863. Distinguished by rare mental endowments and varied knowledge, his serv- ices as a soldier and his high sense of honor commanded the respect of his comrades-in-arms, while his acknowl- edged worth as a citizen, his integrity and truth, com- manded for him esteem and confidence in the community and State, in which was passed a long life.
Not far removed, there stands a shaft to GENERAL AL- FRED CUMMING, an early Mayor of Augusta, who after-
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wards became Governor of Utalı. Inscribed on his monu- ment is the following epitaph :
In memory of ALFRED CUMMING. Born at Sum- merville, Sept. 4, 1802. Died at the same place, Oct. 9, 1873. Aged 71 years.
(Side)
As' mayor of the city of Augusta, during the epi- demic of 1839, he rendered services that were grate- fully acknowledged by his fellow-citizens. As Superin- tendent of Indian Affairs and Governor of Utah, he administered these trusts of the general government with courage and humanity, integrity and fidelity. In the relations of private life, a man of kindly, strong and generous affections.
In a lot immediately adjoining, sleeps HENRY HAR- FORD CUMMING, one of the ablest lawyers of his day in Georgia, to whose vigorous initiative is largely due the Augusta Canal. The following epitaph is inscribed upon his tombstone:
In memory of HENRY HARFORD CUMMING, dear to his family as the devoted husband, the tender father; honored in this community as the distinguished lawyer, the good citizen, the faithful friend, the fearless defender of the right, the peerless gentleman. Bern, Oct. 15, 1799. Died, April 14, 1866.
Two distinguished sons sleep near him, JULIAN, a man of rare gifts, who gave his life to the Confederacy, and GENERAL ALFRED CUMMING, a distinguished com-
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manding officer on the Confederate side in the late Civil War. On the tomb of the former is inscribed :
His life, rich in the promises which a rare intellect and a generous heart could give, he offered for his country ; wounded and captured at Gettysburg, a mar- tyred patriot, he died a prisoner of war on Johnson's Island, Lake Erie, March 8, 1864. He breathed his latest breath among foes and strangers; he sleeps here in the midst of friends and kindred.
GENERAL ALFRED CUMMING, nephew and namesake of the distinguished Governor of Utah, sleeps under a hand- some headstone, on which the following inscription is lettered :
ALFRED CUMMING. Born, January 30, 1829. Died, Dec., 5, 1910. God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
(Rear)
ALFRED, son of Henry Hartford and Julia Ann Cumming. A Graduate of the West Point Military Academy and Brigadier-General of the Army of the Confederate States.
DR. HARFORD MONTGOMERY CUMMING, an accomplished young physician, and a soldier of the Confederacy, who died at the age of thirty-four, is also buried in this area.
Underneath a square headstone, in a remote corner of the cemetery, sleeps the widow of William Longstreet, a noted inventor, who anticipated Robert Fulton in apply- ing steam to navigation. She was the grandmother of the noted Confederate general-Lee's "Old War-Horse." The inscription on her tomb reads :
Sacred to the memory of HANNAH LONGSTREET. She was born in Monmouth Co., N. J., March 23, 1765 and died on the Sand Hills, Feb. 12, 1837. "I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord."
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JUDGE EBENEZER STARNES, a distinguished jurist, is buried here.
Marked by a huge block of solid granite is the last resting place of MOSES WADLEY, one of the railway pio- neers of this State, long president of the Central of Geor- gia. The monument bears this inscription :
MOSES WADLEY. Brantwood, N. H., April 29, 1822. Sand Hills, Ga., Jan. 6, 1887. "We know that all things work together for good to them that love God."
There is a monument in this cemetery to GENERAL W. W. MONTGOMERY, though his ashes repose elsewhere. The following epitaph is inscribed on the monument :
In memory of GEN. W. W. MONTGOMERY, who rests in the cemetery in Augusta, Ga. At the close of an honored life, his spirit returned to God who gave it, Sept. 5, 1847.
His son, JUDGE W. W. MONTGOMERY, sleeps in an un- marked grave on this same lot. His widow, to whom there is an inscription on the above monument, also rests here.
Underneath a horizontal slab, lifted some two feet above the ground, on marble pillars, rest the mortal ashes of an illustrious Georgian, the inscription upon whose tomb reads as follows :
In memory of the HON. JOHN MILLEDGE, who de- parted this life on the 9th. of February, 1818, aged 61 years. The deceased was born in the city of Savannah and his political life is intimately connected with the history of Georgia.
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Quite a simple epitaph for one who was both Gov- ernor of the State and United States Senator, who repre- sented Georgia also in the National House of Represen- tatives, who gave to the State University the land on which the present city of Athens is built, and whose name was conferred upon the historic town which re- mained for sixty years the seat of government.
Close to Governor Milledge sleeps an honored Geor- gian, upon whom, as chairman of the famous Secession Convention, of 1861, devolved the duty of pronouncing Georgia "free, sovereign and independent." He filled the high office of Governor of the State, represented Geor- gia in Congress, and held the portfolio of war in the Cabinet of President Taylor. There is nothing whatever to mark the grave in which he lies; but the lot is en- closed by an iron railing, and on the gate is lettered the illustrious name :
GEORGE W. CRAWFORD
The distinguished Governor of the State who bore the executive seal of Georgia into exile rather than see it profaned by military usurpers in the days of Recon- struction, also sleeps here. His grave is marked by a handsome shaft of brown granite, on which may be read the following inscription :
Sacred to the memory of HON. CHARLES J. JEN- KINS. Died June, 13, 1883. Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia, 1860-1865. Governor of Georgia, 1865- 1868. In arduis fidelis.
The Latin motto quoted in the epitaph was stamped upon the handsome gold medal presented to him by! the State of Georgia. Translated it means "faithful in
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hardships." The medal was a facsimile reproduction of the original seal which he rescued.
Further down the same walk, some fifty feet from the Jenkins lot, is a grave covered with an old-fashioned box of marble, well preserved, but yellow with age, on which appears the following record :
Sacred to the memory of ALFRED CUTHBERT. Born in the city of Savannah, Dec. 23, 1785. Died in Jasper Co., Ga., July 9, 1856, in the 71st. year of his age.
His wife, Sarah Cuthbert, sleeps beside him. Mr. Cuthbert represented Georgia with distinction in the Sen- ate of the United States. He also served for a number of years in the national House of Representatives. His brother, John A. Cuthbert, a distinguished Congressman and jurist, removed from Georgia to Alabama, where the last years of his life were spent.
Georgia's foremost historian, COLONEL CHARLES C. JONES, JR., a gentleman of profound scholarship, of tire- less research, of elegant manners, and of rare gifts of oratory, also sleeps here, under a handsome granite stone, surmounted by an artistic cross of marble. The inscrip- tion on the monument reads :
CHARLES COLCOCK JONES, JR. Born, Savannah, Ga., Oct. 28, 1831. Died, Summerville, Ga., July 19, 1893.
Beside him sleeps his beloved wife. The lot is bor- dered by four beautiful cedars, one at each corner.
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ARSENAL
Included among the other distinguished Georgians who rest in this little cemetery on the Sand Hills may be mentioned : H. H. HICKMAN, PLEASANT STOVALL, GEORGE T. STOVALL; JUDGE ROBERT FALLIGANT, a distinguished jurist, long a resident of Savannah, whose father fought under the first Napoleon and emigrated to America after the battle of Waterloo; JOSEPH GANAHL, a representative member of the Georgia bar; and a number of others.
The Arsenal, Augusta
When the United States Government purchased the tract of land near Summerville, on which the present Ar- senal is located, it assumed an obligation to preserve the private burial-ground of the Walker family, some of the members of which are included among the most distin- guished of Georgians. The little area of ground has been enclosed by a high wooden fence, but the brambles of late years have been allowed to overrun it; and some of the tombs, under an accumulated mass of dead leaves, in a thick tangle-wood of bushes, have moldered to such an extent that the inscriptions on them can hardly be deci- phered. One of these is the tomb of MAJOR FREEMAN WALKER, for whom Walker County, in this State, was named. The epitaph on the raised horizontal slab has been almost completely effaced; but happily this inscrip- tion, which came from the pen of Richard Henry Wilde, the famous poet and member of Congress, who wrote the "Summer Rose," has been preserved in White's Statis- tics of Georgia. It reads as follows :
Consecrated to the cherished memory and mortal relics of FREEMAN WALKER, an able and successful advo- cate, a graceful and fluent speaker. His influence as a Statesman, his reputation as an Orator, his urbanity as a gentleman, were embellished and endeared by social and domestic virtues. Long a distinguished Member of
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(Continued)
the Bar, often elected to the Legislature of the State, he at length became one of her Senators in Congress, and retired after two years of honorable service, to resume a profitable profession which he practiced with untiring in- dustry and unblemished character, until shortly before his death. Generous, Hospitable, and Humane, of cheer- ful temper and familiar manners, he was idolized by his family, beloved by his friends, and admired by his coun- trymen. Even party spirit, in his favor, forgot some- thing of its bitterness, and those who differed from the politician did justice to the man. Born in Virginia, in October, 1780, his brilliant and useful life was termi- nated by a pulmonary complaint, on the 23rd. day of September, 1827, in the 47th. year of his age.
One of the most distinguished soldiers of the Civil War, MAJOR-GENERAL WM. H. T. WALKER, who lost his life in the battle of Atlanta, on July 22nd, 1864, is also buried in this little enclosure of ground. His grave is handsomely marked with a monument of white marble, on which the following epitaph is inscribed :
MAJOR-GENERAL WM. H. T. WALKER. Born in Augusta, Ga., Nov. 26, 1816. Killed in the Battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864.
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"His soul to Him who gave it rose; God led it to its long repose, Its glorious rest ; And, though the warrior's sun has set, Its light shall linger round us yet, Bright, radiant, blest."
Some few feet distant sleeps his gallant brother, GEN- ERAL VALENTINE WALKER, under a neat memorial stone.
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Further down the main walk repose the mortal ashes of the most celebrated woman of her day and time: MADAM OCTAVIA WALTON LEVERT. Her mother was a member of the Walker family; and, after the death of Dr. LeVert, she removed from her former home in Mo- bile, Ala., to the Sand Hills, near Augusta, where the last years of her life were passed. The grave of Madam LeVert is in the corner of a lot, surrounded by an iron fence and overarched by a number of beautiful shade trees. The ornamental headstone over her last resting place is somewhat discolored, but the inscription is still quite distinct :
OCTAVIA WALTON LE VERT. Born, August 11, 1811. Died, Mar. 12, 1877. "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."
On the same lot is buried her daughter, Cara Netta Reab, who died at the age of thirty; also two grand- children. Madam LeVert was the granddaughter of George Walton, one of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence for Georgia, and the daughter of George Walton, Governor of the Territory of Florida. She spoke fluently several different languages, traveled extensively over Europe, where she met the crowned heads, published a delightful volume entitled, "Souvenirs of Travel," and was for years the best-known woman in the social life of America.
City Cemetery, Augusta
On the main driveway of Augusta's city cemetery, in what is called "Poet's Row," sleep the mortal ashes of three noted Georgia poets. The first of the trio is the author of the greatest war song ever written. His grave is a bed of flowers bordered with marble, and marked by a neat headstone, of ornamental design, on which the
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artist has chiseled a cross, emblematic of the author's deep religious faith. The inscription reads :
JAMES RYDER RANDALL. Born in Baltimore, Md .. Jan., 1, 1839. Died in Augusta, Ga., Jan. 15, 1908. Author of "My Maryland."
Though a native of the State with whose name his matchless anthem is forever entwined, Mr. Randall spent the greater part of his life in Augusta, where he occu- pied an editorial chair on the Chronicle. He was also at one time the Washington correspondent of this paper, and still later the private secretary of Congressman W. H. Fleming. It is quite a coincidence that while Mary- land has given to Georgia one of her greatest poets, Georgia, in turn, has given one of her greatest poets to Maryland. Sidney Lanier, who wrote "The Song of the Chattahoochee" and "The Marshes of Glynn," sleeps in an ivy-covered grave, otherwise unmarked, on the Turnbull lot, in Green Mount Cemetery, in Baltimore.
Just a few feet beyond the Randall lot stands a tall marble slab, on which the signs of age are quite appar- ent. . It marks the last resting place of the celebrated poet, historian, orator, and Member of Congress, RICH- ARD HENRY WILDE. The grave is bordered with brick, and chiseled upon the time-worn slab is the simple epitaph :
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