Annie B. Covell, an unmarried daughter

Normally I photograph older gravestones in the Ohio cemeteries that I visit—1800s mostly. Now and then a more modern gravestone catches my eye. Sometimes it is the color, the shape, or the decoration. Sometimes it is the name or the epitaph. I snap a picture in case it fills a photo gap on FindAGrave.com.

The stone marking the graves of the Covell family is one such stone. When I did a quick bit of research, however, the results were unexpected. More on that after the photo and inscription.

COVELL
FATHER
LYMAN S. COVELL
NOV. 1, 1828
FEB. 27, 1903

MOTHER
LAURA A. COVELL
JAN. 4, 1843
APR. 16, 1909

DAUGHTER
ANNIE B. COVELL
1866 — 1927
 
Within minutes I found what appears to be Annie’s death certificate. (Thank you, FamilySearch.org.) It reveals that Annie B. Covell (b. 1866, d. 1927), who probably never married, died in the Columbus State Hospital after residing there for 17 years. Other names for the hospital include Ohio Lunatic Asylum and Central Ohio Psychiatric Hospital.

(Do the math: She likely became a patient at the hospital soon after her mother’s death.)

Click image to enlarge

The death record informant is listed as “Hospital Records,” and the records were sadly lacking: Marital status, unknown; Date of birth, unknown; Parents, unknown.

Somehow she found her way back to her parents in Oak Grove Cemetery.

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Oak Grove Cemetery, Delaware County, Ohio