Tag: cemetery

Imagine walking in the woods looking for Tupperware using expensive satellites…otherwise known as geocaching…and tripping, most literally, over a tombstone. That is what happened to us a few years ago off the Eastern Trail near Portland.

Rumors of being buried alive. Painful, struggling deaths. Bodies exhumed from their graves – their final resting places – and displayed for all to see. Are these spirits truly at rest? Or are they still wandering those museum halls, searching for the eternal peace they have not yet found?

While walking through old cemeteries, or even new ones, I am always interested in the dates. How old was the person when they died? What time period did they live in? One day I stumbled upon a date that baffled me.

Have you ever noticed, when walking through a cemetery, that people often leave tokens on the headstones of their loved ones? The items vary and include photos, letters, toys, trinkets, statues, stones and coins. After a little research I found a reason, besides personal ones, for one of the items…coins.

It is now the year 2013 and 2012 is just a memory, but what a great memory it is. Maine Ghost Hunters Meet Up group went to 11 locations throughout 3 states traveling over 2000 miles to explore cemeteries, historical sites, hiking trails with hideouts for murderers and haunted woods. We even searched for the allusive Bigfoot. There were some really great moments in 2012.

A musing is defined in the dictionary as “a product of contemplation; a thought”. As I wander through cemeteries, I am often thinking about the stones above the ground and the individuals that lie beneath. Why that epitaph, that symbol, that style of writing? These are just some of the “cemetery musings” that cross my mind.

When we have a little free time Teresa and I tend to jump in the truck and go out looking for cemeteries. It’s not often that you get a 45 degree sunny day in December so we took full advantage of the day and visited 3 cemeteries. We never knew these cemeteries were there even though I have driven by them thousands of times. The Last stop of the day was a Pet cemetery one of only two in Maine that I could find that was made for pets only. It was a great experience so I wanted to share it with all of you.

A musing is defined in the dictionary as “a product of contemplation; a thought”. As I wander through cemeteries, I am often thinking about the stones above the ground and the individuals that lie beneath. Why that epitaph, that symbol, that style of writing? These are just some of the “cemetery musings” that cross my mind.

Noah Pratt, Jr. was a third generation carver from Massachusetts. He followed in the footsteps of his grandfather and father along with two of his brothers and then passed the craft down to one of his sons. This generation of carvers was part of the shift from winged skulls and/or faces to other styles that happened in the late 1700’s. They were among the first to use realistic faces and figures.

The Lamson Family of Charlestown, MA were well known carvers. Their stones can be found as far north as North Andover, MA and as far south as Connecticut. A concentration of their stones can be found in Boston and on Cape Cod at Yarmouth Ancient Cemetery and Truro Old North Cemetery. Four generations of carvers are attributed to this family.