Hedges "Mourning Woman"
Location: Area C/Lot 85
Date of Placement: after 1868
Decedents: Lycurgus Hedges, Amanda S. (Baker) Hedges, daughter Lillian B. (Hedges) Talbott, Dr. Henry T. Talbott,
parents Catherine (Scholl) Hedges and Aeneas Hedges
Monument inducted into the Hall in September 2024 (Class #5)
Location: Area C/Lot 85
Date of Placement: after 1868
Decedents: Lycurgus Hedges, Amanda S. (Baker) Hedges, daughter Lillian B. (Hedges) Talbott, Dr. Henry T. Talbott,
parents Catherine (Scholl) Hedges and Aeneas Hedges
Monument inducted into the Hall in September 2024 (Class #5)
Learning all this information has certainly added to my fondness of the monument which features a weeping woman sitting atop, and holding a wreath in one hand with the other holding up her head. In the study of monument iconography, the grieving woman is self-explanatory, where the wreath symbolizes victory over death. Interestingly, the laurel wreath is associated with Greek attire and celebrations since ancient times, continuing a tradition to the modern day Olympic ceremonies.
The weeping statue could be that of Niobe, another woman from ancient times. She appears a great deal in classical art and sculpture, especially in cemeteries. In Greek mythology, Niobe was a victim of hubris, and was turned to stone by Zeus after she mourned over her lost children. The story of Niobe, and especially her sorrows, is an ancient one. She is mentioned by Achilles to Priam in Homer's Iliad and is as a stock type for mourning.
As one of the most amazing monuments in Mount Olivet, the man who commissioned this work was a gentleman whose name evokes an equal level of intrigue. Lycurgus Edward Hedges was a businessman who made a fine living engaged in the flour and grain business. He accumulated great wealth, but remained civic minded. One of his social accomplishments relates to having served as our cemetery's third president from 1889-1892.
Lycurgus, a name you don’t run across every day, was born in Frederick County near Hansonville on February 14th, 1825. As the second child of Eneas and Catherine (Scholl) Hedges, he came into a family with roots dating back to before Frederick’s founding in the mid 1700’s. His ancestors settled a 258-acre parcel in the 1732 on Monocacy Manor which they gave the name “Hedge Hogg,” located roughly five miles north of Frederick City and west of the Monocacy River.
Lycurgus, a name you don’t run across every day, was born in Frederick County near Hansonville on February 14th, 1825. As the second child of Eneas and Catherine (Scholl) Hedges, he came into a family with roots dating back to before Frederick’s founding in the mid 1700’s. His ancestors settled a 258-acre parcel in the 1732 on Monocacy Manor which they gave the name “Hedge Hogg,” located roughly five miles north of Frederick City and west of the Monocacy River.
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Lycurgus married Amanda Susan Baker (January 31, 1835-April 16, 1897) on October 5th, 1858. His bride hailed from Washington County, and soon the couple would be blessed with a daughter whom they named Lillian Baker Hedges.
The family moved to 82 E. Church St., and took up residence in a modest brick townhouse on the south side of the street midway between Chapel Alley and East Street. (This address would be renumbered to today's 224 E. Church street in 1905.)
Lillian would one day marry Henry Thomas Talbott (1866-1909), a physician practicing in Charlestown, WV. Her life would be brief, as she passed at the tender age of 26, less than two months after she gave birth to a daughter named in her honor. Lycurgus would die six months later and this grand monument would be erected to memorialize both father and daughter by a grieving wife and mother, Amanda Hedges.
The family moved to 82 E. Church St., and took up residence in a modest brick townhouse on the south side of the street midway between Chapel Alley and East Street. (This address would be renumbered to today's 224 E. Church street in 1905.)
Lillian would one day marry Henry Thomas Talbott (1866-1909), a physician practicing in Charlestown, WV. Her life would be brief, as she passed at the tender age of 26, less than two months after she gave birth to a daughter named in her honor. Lycurgus would die six months later and this grand monument would be erected to memorialize both father and daughter by a grieving wife and mother, Amanda Hedges.
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This monument carries the maker's mark on its base. It was produced by Thomas F. Delahunty of Philadelphia and a native of Ireland. Delahunty's work can be found in cemeteries throughout the country and his marble works was located across the street from North Laurel Hill Cemetery. The photographs above were found online within the Handley Regional Library and Winchester/Frederick County (Virginia) Historical Society. Delahunty's connection to Winchester can be found at historic Mount Hebron Cemetery where his work is on display with a similar "mourning woman" memorial for a woman named Catherine Klees, and the towering Monument to the Unknown and Unrecorded Confederate Dead. The latter was unveiled in 1879.
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We are pleased to welcome the Hedges "Mourning Woman" monument by Thomas Delahunty into our Mount Olivet "Monument Hall of Fame."
