Frailty of human life

In the name of God Amen. I Hiram Andress of the County of Delaware in the State of Ohio being of sound and composed mind, but admonished of the frailty of human life am resolved to arrange my earthly concerns and dispose of the substance which the Lord hath committed to my trust, do therefore make this my last will & testament.

On March 17, 1845, Hiram Andress wrote his last will and testament, directing that his estate be divided between his beloved wife Polly and his two daughters, Eliza and Lucy.

He died a few months later and was buried at Oller Cemetery. On his marker, an angel stands beneath a garland of flowers, holding an open book.



Oller Cemetery, Delaware County, Ohio

Faith, hope, and charity

Faith, hope, and charity are sculpted in human form on the Adams monument at Spring Grove Cemetery.

Look closely: two of the personifications hold their common symbols: a cross (faith) and an anchor (hope).

Spring Grove Cemetery, Hamilton County, Ohio

Lunacy

Twenty years separate their deaths, but they rest side by side forever. Caroline C. C. Caldwell (d. 1882) is buried next to her infant daughter, Isabella Caldwell (yesterday’s post) in Spring Grove Cemetery.

IN MEMORY OF
CAROLINE C. C. CALDWELL
WIFE OF
ANTHONY CALDWELL
DIED JUNE 29, 1882
IN HER 56 YEAR.
The cemetery burial records show that Caroline was a resident of Cincinnati’s Longview Asylum when she died. The disease that caused her death? Lunacy.

The Federal Census records for Cincinnati in 1870 and 1880 show Anthony and Caroline Caldwell living in the same household. In 1880—two years before Caroline’s death—there is an entry next to Anthony’s name in column 15. You know that column:

Is the person [on the day of the Enumerator’s visit] sick or temporarily disabled, so as to be unable to attend to ordinary business or duties? If so, what is the sickness or disability?

What do you think? I think the entry is meant to read “Nervous Disease of Head,” and it was intended for the line below: Caroline.

Without commenting on Caroline Caldwell’s specific condition, which is unknown to me, I share these sentences from the abstract of “Lunacy in the 19th Century: Women’s Admission to Asylums in United States of America,” by Katherine Pouba and Ashely Tianen (2006):

Between the years of 1850-1900, women were placed in mental institutions for behaving in ways that male society did not agree with. Women during this time period had minimal rights, even concerning their own mental health. Research concluded that many women were admitted for reasons that could be questionable. Since the 19th century, many of the symptoms women experience according to admittance records would not make a woman eligible for admittance to a mental asylum today. Women with symptoms were later diagnosed insane by reasons such as religious excitement, epilepsy, and suppressed menustruation.

May you rest in peace, Caroline.

Longview Asylum

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Spring Grove Cemetery, Hamilton County, Ohio

Little Belle

It is easy to be overwhelmed by the large, impressive monuments and the park-like setting of Spring Grove Cemetery, but it pays to keep your eyes open for the smaller gems.

The gravestone that marks the burial site of Isabella Caldwell (b. 1861, d. 1862) may be small, but it touches the heart: “Little Belle.”

LITTLE
BELLE.

ISABELLA B.
DAUGHTER OF
A. & C.C. CALDWELL,
DIED AUG. 29, 1862,
AGED [1 YS. 7] MS. & 12 DS.

The cemetery’s records show Belle’s date of birth and suggests that her death was caused by “congestion of the brain.”

Spring Grove Cemetery, Hamilton County, Ohio

Wallace, Wallace, Wallace

Standing beside the monument to Mary Wallace Perry (b. 1787, d. 1812) and her infant daughter (yesterday’s post) are two dark obelisks. The same surname is inscribed on each of the matching obelisks: Wallace.

The online burial records for Spring Grove reveal the relationships among Perry and the Wallaces. Even before we see the records, we know that the relationships are close.

This sure looks like a family grouping, doesn’t it?

The obelisk on the right bears the names of Robert Wallace (b. 1734, d. 1828) and Rebecca Wallace (b. 1751, d. 1834), Mary’s parents.

The obelisk on the left marks the grave of Mary’s older sister, Edith Wallace (b. 1769, d. 1831).

IN Memory of EDITH WALLACE, Who died April 18th, 1831; In the 63rd, year of her age.

IN Memory of ROBERT WALLACE Who died Aug. 28th, 1828; In the 94th, year of his age. And REBECCA WALLACE Who died June 19th, 1834; In the 84th, year of her age.

All were buried first at Presbyterian Cemetery and moved to Spring Grove in September, 1858.

Who has spied another Wallace in the photos? There is a white obelisk behind the dark ones. The name on that one is David C. Wallace (b. 1784, d. 1861). His burial record reveals him to be the son of Robert and Rebecca.

Is he the D. C. Wallace who arranged the burial of Robert, Rebecca, Mary, and (probably) Edith in Spring Grove?

Spring Grove Cemetery, Hamilton County, Ohio