Caroline the Koimetrophile

06/22/2025

“Whenever I see your smiling face…”

Wethersfield Village Cemetery
Wethersfield, CT

06/21/2025

Cemetery Saturday

Today I had the absolute pleasure of taking a guided tour of Wethersfield Village Cemetery. The tour was excellent, and after I chatted with a new friend and distant cousin from North Carolina who had come to Connecticut to work on genealogy.

Wethersfield Village Cemetery in Wethersfield, CT was established in 1638 shortly after the founding of the town on a place called Hungry Hill. Most of the early settlers are buried there in unmarked grave. Over the years it has greatly expanded and is still in use today.

06/20/2025

How marvelous are these!

A few new memento mori miniature pendants are available in the shop! These are based on originals and slightly modified so as not to infringe on copyright for whomever owns them. They turned out lovely! I use a more commercial pendant base to keep the cost down - there are some lovely ones I have seen out of England but the prices are such that most of us do not want to put that kind of money into this type of thing. This way you can purchase more miniatures...

Link for these miniatures are in the comments!

06/20/2025

Footstone Friday

C.J.D. (Charles J. Dunbar) (1780-1856)

Sleepy Hollow Cemetery
Concord, MA

06/19/2025

Happy Juneteenth!

This is the gravestone of Cuff Trot. He was born into slavery around 1746, probably in/around Dorchester, MA. He was brought to Burlington, MA in 1751 when his enslaver, Abigail Wiswell, married Rev. Thomas Jones and moved there.

Cuff was a veteran of the American Revolution, and likely the Seven Years War as well. It is recorded that he helped John Hancock and Samuel Adams evade the King’s soldiers on April 19, 1775.

He was freed in the early 1780s, but chose to stay with Mrs. Jones for the rest of his life. When Cuff died the town Selectmen erected a gravestone for him in the burial ground.

Burlington Retro has a great write up about Cuff Trot here: https://burlingtonretro.com/slavery-did-exist-in-burlington/

Second Parish Burial Ground
Burlington, MA

06/18/2025

Ooh! Many of my ancestors are here, and schools is out for the summer…

✨June 21st, 10:00am. Ancient Burying Ground Tours✨

Tours gather at the red barn in the First Church parking lot, 250 Main Street, Wethersfield. In the event of rain, the tour will be given on Saturday, May 31. Tours last about an hour and a half. Admission is $10 for the general public and free to current WHS members. Due to the outdoor nature of the tour, only cash will be accepted.

🔗www.wethersfieldhistory.org

06/18/2025

Mrs. Mary Townsend (1691-1765)

Mary was born in Boston, MA to Gregory and Jane Sugers on March 17, 1691. In 1720 she married Jonathan Townsend. They settled in Needham, MA soon after their marriage, and Jonathan was the town Presbyterian Minister until his death in 1762. Mary joined him three years later on September 6, 1765.

Needham Cemetery
Needham, MA

06/17/2025

The Battle of Bunker Hill took place 250 years ago today.

This gravestone belongs to Samuel Hill, a native of Billerica, MA who was killed during the battle on June 17, 1775. It was erected by his grandnephews in 1785.

Old South Burying Ground
Billerica, MA

06/16/2025

Masonic Monday

Elijah Flagg Jr. was born in Lunenburg, MA on August 17, 1779 in the midst of the American Revolution. His father may be the Elijah Flagg who lived in Worcester, MA. More research is needed.

In the early 1800s he worked as a school master in Lunenburg, MA. He married Mercy Osborne of Bolton on January 12, 1808. Elijah was living in Marlborough, MA and working as a physician. The couple had four daughters, and at least three of them lived to adulthood.

Dr. Flagg died on consumption (tuberculosis) in Lunenburg on June 3, 1845.

Groton Cemetery
Groton, MA