wife of
Richard Closson
died March 17, 1826,
aged 69 years.
Softly her fainting head she laid
Upon her Saviour’s breast;
Her Saviour call’d her soul away
And laid her flesh to rest.
The poetic epitaph is adapted from “The Death of Moses” by Isaac Watts, whose hymns were a popular source for epitaphs in the 19th century. Compare the version on Charity’s gravestone to the original:
Softly his fainting head he lay
Upon his Maker’s breast;
His Maker kiss’d his soul away,
And laid his flesh to rest.
Richard Closson (d. 1831), a Revolutionary War veteran, is buried beside his wife.
Thanks for sharing the information about the epitaph Pugbug. I came across the same verse at the weekend for the very first time in Southend~on~Sea, Essex, England.
ReplyDeleteWhat a coincidence, eh? An interesting thought--how many gravestones are 'related' by the epitaphs they bear?
ReplyDeleteA similar adaptation of this verse by Isaac Watts can be found on the gravestone of Sarah Jewett in the Stimson Cemetery, Consaul Road, Galway, Saratoga County, New York. I have left spelling & punctuation as found 03/18/2022:
ReplyDeleteIn memory of Sarah, the wife of Dr Nathan Jewett who departed this life Sept, 12 1797, in the 36 year of her age. She was born in Noblesbourough in the year 1762 March 20. Daughter of Joseph Hussey.
Softy her fainting head she laid.
Upon her makers brest.
Her maker kis’d her soul away.
and hear her body rests.
Rest hear till Christ shall come.
he will assend the skye
he will this mortal body raise.
to live with him onhigh.