This is part-two of a story chronicling some of the local places frequented, and people met, by Col. Robert Gould Shaw of the American Civil War. If the name seems eerily familiar, you may recall being introduced to Shaw as the fearless leader of the 54th Infantry Regiment of Colored Troops who stormed Fort Wagner in the motion picture Glory.

Shaw was formerly with the 2nd Massachusetts Infantry Regiment as a 2nd lieutenant, and spent the winter of 1861-1862 encamped just east of the Monocacy River and Frederick City at a place called Camp Hicks. In part 1, I shared a letter written home (by Shaw) to his sister, Effie, in which he talked warmly of spending a day with two of the daughters of Col. Edward Shriver, a lawyer, politician, officer and all-around, key Union man here in town. This correspondence was found in a work called Blue-Eyed Child of Fortune: The Civil War Letters of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw. The work was edited by Russell Duncan and published Avon Books in 1992.
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My fascination, in respect to “Stories in Stone,” lies in the fact that the above-mentioned Col. Shriver and a daughter, Mary, are buried here in Mount Olivet. To think, each had a brush with greatness. I often have wondered how the colonel and his daughters reacted upon hearing news of Shaw’s untimely death on July 18th, 1863 in South Carolina while recalling their fond encounter(s) with the dashing young, soldier the previous year?

More Letters Home
The next few correspondences written by Lt. Shaw were atypical of the time of year. It was December, and more importantly, Christmastime. In letters written on the 14th and 25th, Shaw laments the fact of being away from family and the pleasures of home during this special time of year. Apparently, we soon learn that Shaw had received a special gift from his sister mid-month—42 pairs of mittens. With the holidays behind him, Shaw in his first letter of the new year recounts some of the non-glamorous experiences of his military duty.

Cantonment Hicks
Jany 15 1862
My dear Effie,
 
I have, I believe three letters from you unanswered, the last received day before yesterday in which you relate your encounter with, and defeat by the invidious fog. I hope he relented at last and that you have got away.
I proceeded immediately after receipt of yours to inspect my checks and I don’t think you w’d find them much less flabby than formerly. Indeed, Mother’s account of my corpulency must have been a little exaggerated for I don’t perceive much increase my-self.

I returned yesterday noon from the Monocacy bridge, between here and Frederick where I was on guard for 24 hours, and where I should have had a very pleasant time if it hadn’t been for three brats who tormented me. I stayed in a house near the bridge, and thought at first that the landlady was a very pretty & pleasant woman, but the bad behavior of the above-mentioned children soon brought out some little characteristics which were, to say the least, not ladylike. She got very much enraged and said to the nurse: “Hang you, you black imp, I’ll knock your black head off”—and to the children “Get out of this or “I’ll smack your jaws!” and made use of many other expressions.
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At night instead of putting the children to bed, the plan was, to get them asleep downstairs & then carry them up. Of course, this was a tedious process & involved much screaming, swearing, bawling & blubbering. Three times it was tried & three times they waked up on the way upstairs. After the third failure the noise was something terrible—all the three children screamed at the top of their lungs. Mrs. waters cussed & swore at the black girl. The black girl cried and actually said it wasn’t her fault. Mr. Waters consoled himself & vainly tried to amuse the 2 children by vigorously playing upon the most infernal old fiddle that ever was manufactured and beating time very hard with his cowhide boots. I sat with a smile on my face, but despair in my heart trying to concentrate my ideas sufficiently to understand "Halleck’s Elements of Military Art & Science.” May I be preserved in the future from such scenes at these! I didn’t bargain for anything of the kind when I joined the regiment. 

​I originally read this particular letter for the first time about 15 years ago and pondered the location of this residence of the Waters family. I knew it was in the vicinity of the old Jug Bridge’s eastern approach, today’s MD144 over near Bartonsville and Spring Ridge, and not far from the site of Camp Hicks off of Linganore Road.

Jug Bridge itself was a marvel in engineering for its time, having been built in 1808-1809 as part of the Baltimore-Frederick Turnpike. It was a true asset in the transport of travelers, pioneers, and natural resources and farm products from western Maryland to eastern manufactories and the port of Baltimore. It was equally important in the American Civil War for moving troops. It behooved the Union Army to protect this important gateway from being sabotaged by the Confederates--hence Shaw’s guard duty assignment.

So the next question is this: "Who was this family whose house Shaw and other soldiers took refuge in during the war?" I looked at two old Frederick maps: the Isaac Bond Map of Frederick County (1858) and the Titus Atlas Map of 1873. I could not find a Waters family name associated with any houses in the immediate area on either map. The US census records of 1860 and 1870 were of no help as well because I didn't find any Waters in this specific location. ​

I started to deduce “Waters” families by looking at those buried here in Mount Olivet, because otherwise they wouldn’t be relevant to me for my story’s sake (as this is a blog about folks buried in Mount Olivet.) The exercise limited me down to three gentlemen who seemed to match up age-wise to being of “young father age” in the year 1862. Two, of the three men, had little kids in 1862, and only one had three at this time. This latter suspect perfectly fit the bill of siring the “brats” that tormented the man who would lead the legendary “54th Mass” later this same year.

My person of interest was Richard Linthicum Waters. I would soon find that his wife, Ann Virginia (Hobbs) Waters, had family in the immediate area—father Rezin Hobbs (1810-1891) and wife Margaret Galezio (1810-1881). The neighborhood was known more commonly by the name of Pearl, nearly a century-and-a-half before the name Spring Ridge would come around.
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I still didn’t know where this house was, but asked my research assistant, Marilyn Veek, to search real estate records for a clue. I shared with her my “non-findings” on the maps earlier mentioned, not to mention census records.  I had found Richard L. Waters living in Carroll County in 1860 within the Freedom District at the hamlet of Freedom. This is the approximate location of Centennial High School today, just northwest of Eldersburg in southern Carroll County. He was listed as a farmer, and I found other supposed relatives of his father-in-law (Rezin Hobbs) in the area. 

In 1870, the Waters family was living in Frederick City and Richard was listed as a green-grocer and living on East Patrick Street.

​Richard Linthicum Waters was born February 11th, 1834, the son of Ignatius and Susan R. (Linthicum) Waters. In 1850, the Waters lived in the Howard District of Anne Arundel County, and Ignatius was listed as a Methodist minister. This area would become Howard County in 1851. Family history pointed towards the family being slaveholders.

Richard married wife Anna Virginia Hobbs on October 7th, 1856. As far as I could ascertain, the Waters had the following children:

Sarah Margaret “Maggie” Waters (1857-1887)
Charles Monroe Waters (1859-1909)
Amelia Waters (1860-1863)
Minnie Waters (1862-1865)
Ida Kate Waters (1866-1869)

So this proved my postulate of Richard and Ann Waters having three children with the potentyial for extreme "brattiness" in January, 1862 at which time Lt. Shaw would have stayed in their home in between guard duty shifts atop the old Jug Bridge. However, where was the Waters’ home in 1862, as I could not prove that the family was living here in the Bartonsville/Pearl area on the east side of the Monocacy River, and along the National Pike? That’s when the “smoking gun” was discovered by my trusted assistant.
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In August 1860, Richard L. Waters obtained the property named “Snug Farm” from Frederick W. and Malinda Bremerman. Ann Waters father (Rezin) and husband (Richard) would enter into an agreement to mortgage the parcel for $4,500. It can be found on the 1858 Isaac Bond map and labeled under the name of F. W. Bremerman. The property is the first dwelling found on the east side of the Monocacy along the Frederick-Baltimore turnpike, on the southside of the road. 

While the Bremermans were losing children in the late 1850s, the Waters were gaining them. Perhaps, family help was needed from Ann Waters’ family ( the Hobbs) who lived here in this vicinity. This would have been a comfort for the young mother in childbirth, along with relatives to look after her other small children. Besides, if we can trust Lt. Shaw’s judgment, those Waters' kids were a handful to say the least!
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The Waters owned slaves in the 1860 census and possessed a domestic servant in 1870. So it is not far- fetched that the family had at least one slave in January, 1862, whom Mrs. Waters verbally attacked in front of Robert Gould Shaw. Interestingly, this would be one of the first images of slavery and oppression witnessed by the wealthy New Englander who would help mold the most famous Black fighting regiment in US history (the 54th). An interesting paradox, found all to often in Frederick’s history as “a border county within a border state,” is that Mr. Waters was a die-hard Union Man. He even hosted a Union rally on his property back in the summer of 1861.

One of the speakers at this event was Col. Edward Shriver. The Shriver family, one of the town’s most loyal and patriotic, (of whom I mentioned in part I of this article) also owned slaves, as did Frederick’s greatest Union supporter of all-time—Barbara Fritchie. So don’t let anybody tell you that the American Civil War was solely an act to end slavery as there were many factors at play, and motivations for men to fight on both sides (states rights, nationalism, patriotism, economics and capitalism, abolition of slavery, humeris, etc).

Now back to the family of Richard L. Waters, host to Robert Gould Shaw in December, 1861. The couple would have other children born later in the decade so I’m sure the sleepless nights didn’t end for several years to come. As much as I feel sorry for Mr. and Mrs Waters, I, of course, feel more sorry for the slaves and servants that had to dote on the brats with little say in matter.
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So what happened to the Waters family? Well, it appears Richard declared bankruptcy in spring of 1868. This led to the Waters family losing the fore-mentioned property and likely precipitated the move into Frederick.

​I found a few ads beginning in 1866 where Richard is advertising his business wares as a green grocer. 

​By 1880, the Waters had moved again—this time to Baltimore. In the 1880 census, Richard is listed as a salesman, and the family was living on Lombard Street. Two more children blessed the family in the forms of Richard Vincent Waters (1870-1926) and Rachel N. Waters (German) (1873-1947). Sadly, the Waters had endured the deaths of three children in the 1860s,  perhaps leading to financial woes and the original move from “Snug Farm” to Frederick. Daughter Amelia, the youngest of the “three brats,” died in February, 1863. Two other daughters, Minnie and Ida Kate would die in 1865 and 1869 respectively. 

​Richard L. Waters was duly buried in the Hobbs family plot in Mount Olivet’s Area H/Lot 139, alongside his three previously deceased daughters. The “sharp-tongued” Ann Waters would live until 1913, dying in Berwyn, MD.

​Brat number two, Charles Monroe Waters, grew up and eventually worked as a foreman for the American Can company in Baltimore. In 1880, he married an Irish immigrant named Catherine and had two daughters and two sons. When Charles died in January of 1909, he was living in Brentwood, MD in Prince Georges County. His body was brought to Frederick to be buried beside his father and sisters.

​Sarah Margaret Waters, “Maggie,” married Thomas Edward Denoe in 1887. Interestingly, Mr. Denoe was a grocer in Baltimore and had a successful career, primarily running his store on West Baltimore Street. The couple never had any children. Maggie died in 1923 and is buried in historic Loudoun Park Cemetery in west Baltimore.

​Unfortunately, I could not  come across a visual of the old Waters house that Lt. Shaw visited. The former house no longer exists as it was torn down long ago to make way for the new alignment of the National Pike/MD144. As many know, the original Jug Bridge collapsed on March 4th, 1942, when heavy rains and high winds caused a 65-foot span of the bridge to collapse. A few years later the stone arch bridge was demolished and little remains of it. The replacement bridge was in operation for decades until a new crossing over the river was built to the immediate south of the old bridge.  

"Prospecting" in Frederick
In early December, 1861, Frederick diarist Jacob Engelbrecht estimated more than 16,000 Union soldiers had recently come to town and were encamped around it. They were under the command of Gen. Nathanial Prentiss Banks who set up his headquarters at the southeast corner of N. Court and W. Second streets, a few doors north of Col. Edward Shriver’s home and courthouse square.

​Regiments, here at that time, were not just from Massachusetts, but hailed from New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana. The streets were packed with “boys in blue” as Frederick had never been so populated ever before. Unfortunately, liquor and libations got the best of many of these soldiers, far from home with time to kill. In one of his letters, Robert Gould Shaw talks about a “sobering” experience while attending a great party here in town in early January, held at a landmark structure that still stands today.

​The party in question was held on Friday, January 10th (1862) at Prospect Hall, former site of St. Johns Literary Institution later known as St. John's Catholic Prep (College Preparatory School). The owner in 1862 was local lawyer William Pinkney Maulsby, Sr., born July 15th, 1815 near Bel Air in Harford County. Maulsby had been commissioned a colonel during the war and was the first commander of the 1st Potomac Home Brigade, organized at Frederick, Maryland, beginning August of 1861. It was mustered into the Union Army under Gen. Banks on December 13th, 1861.

​As a young man, Maulsby studied law in Baltimore under the tutelage of John Nelson (who would later go on to serve as the US Attorney General). In 1835, William married John Nelson’s daughter, Emily, and embarked on a legal and political career. You may recall a story I published a few years back about William and Emily Maulsby’s daughter Betty Harrison Maulsby (Ritchie) who was was the driving force in organizing Frederick’s first DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) chapter in 1892. Betty’s daughter, Emily Nelson Ritchie McLean would serve as President General of the national organization from 1905-1909.

Upon the creation of Carroll County in 1837, Col. Maulsby represented the county first as a state senator, then as a state’s attorney. By 1850, he had moved his family to Baltimore before again moving to Frederick for business and political reasons. In 1856, Maulsby purchased “Prospect Hall,” a large Greek Revival style mansion just south of the city.
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Prospect Hall would serve home to the Maulsby family from 1856-1864 and the location did more than host the future hero of Glory, as this would be the site where Gen. George Meade assumed command of the Army of the Potomac in late June, 1863.

Col. Maulsby headed his regiment (Potomac Home Brigade) for three years, leading his men at Harper’s Ferry, Gettysburg, Monocacy, and countless smaller skirmishes. After leaving the US Army, he sold Prospect Hall and moved to downtown Frederick and a home on East Second Street. Despite his service to the Union, William P. Maulsby earned the wrath of many Republicans in the post-war years due to his affiliation with the Democratic party and his leniency towards the defeated secessionists.

​In 1866, he ran an unsuccessful bid for congress. Maulsby continued his career as a judge and eventually moved to Westminster where he died October 3rd, 1894. He is buried under a large cross monument in Mount Olivet’s Area G/Lot191.

​A Very Queer Old Party
Lt. Shaw talked of a “party” of another kind in a letter sent to sister Effie in February, 1862. His hosts were prominent mill-owners in Buckeystown who had a son whose later printed creation would “shower good news” down on Frederick County for well-over a century. I also owe this same man homage as his direct descendants gave me my first real job, and the opportunity to work professionally in public history. 

Frederick Md.
February 9,1862
 
My dear Effie,
I have received two letters from you since I last wrote and I admire your constancy in writing so regularly.
Susie is in Washington & I have just telegraphed to Cousin John to know if he can’t go home this way and make us a short visit. I can’t possibly go away, so if they don’t come to Frederick I shan’t see Susie at all. That would be too bad when we are so near together. Today, for the first time, I think, for five weeks the weather is fine—but it looks as if it were going to cloud over again in a little while.
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I have very pleasant lodgings here in a family consisting of a very queer old party, named Delaplane, and his wife. The latter has a most wonderful appetite and an extraordinary love of good dinners, the result of which is, that we live remarkably well. Capt Savage & Dr. Stone of the 2 Mass. Live here too, but will soon be going back to the regt. I am afraid I shall be rather lonely then. We have two rooms adjoining each other, one of which has a large open fire-place, which is very comfortable & cozy. I go round to the Court-Martial around 10 o’cl. A. M. and we usually get through at 2 P. M. so that I have a good deal of time to myself. I find though, that camp is the best place for me. I am always in good spirits out there—probably because it is such a wholesome life. As soon as I get a horse, I shall have a much pleasanter time here, for I have much difficulty in getting about now—especially out to camp where I want to go quite often.

Robert Gould Shaw was living with Theodore Crist Delaplaine and wife Hannah (Wilcoxen) Delaplaine, proprietors of the Monocacy Flour Mill located southeast of Buckeystown along the Monocacy River. This property still exists today off of Michaels Mill Road.

Mr. Delaplaine was born in Georgetown on November 2nd, 1810. Two weeks after his birth, his mother died. At this point he was taken to Frederick to live. In T.J.C. Williams’ History of Frederick County (published 1910), shares the following anecdote about young Theodore:

“On the way from Georgetown to Frederick the stage coach broke down but the little fellow was passed through a window, and was quite unharmed.”
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I don't know whether that means if he was thrown out of the vehicle, or simply handed out, but it piques curiousity. Young Theodore's childhood was spent on a farm near Ladiesburg and he was educated in the country schools. He got his first job at Greenfield Mills in southern Frederick County and then added to his “milling” experience and education by working at like operations in Halltown (WV), Bladensburg (MD), Georgetown (DC), Alexandria (VA), Highland and Germantown (OH), and Missouri. Delaplaine returned to Maryland and owned/operated various mills in Frederick County along with getting further instruction as an employee of the famed Ellicott Mills in Ellicott City (Howard County). 

​In 1851, Theodore Delaplaine acquired the Monocacy Mills outside Buckeystown which he would operate successfully for the next 24 years. Williams’ History goes on to say:

“During the Civil War his output reached one hundred barrels a day. The quality of his flour was excellent and much of it was sold wholesale to South America."

​In 1862, General Lee’s Confederate troops made a raid on Delaplaine’s mill and took seven hundred barrels of flour. The general is said to have offered to pay in Confederate money as far as he was able but, knowing that it was practically useless, Mr. Delaplaine refused the money. This story illustrates the importance of Union protection for the mill, not unlike the old Jug Bridge, as it was a prime target of the Rebels. It's no wonder the Delaplaines were so willing to provide soldiers accommodations in their humble abode. 

Theodore Crist Delaplaine was married in 1848 to widow Hannah A. Wilcoxen (b. April 21st, 1818), daughter of Capt. Eden Edmonston and Lucretia Waters. And yes, Mrs. Delaplaine, through her mother's family, was a distant cousin of the fore-mentioned Richard Waters. The couple had three children: Rosanna Delaplaine (Dutrow) (1849-1883), Theodosia Waters Delaplaine (1854-1944), and William Theodore Delaplaine (1860-1895). From all accounts, these children seemed a little better behaved than those of Richard L. and Annie Waters mentioned earlier.

To some of you, the Delaplaine’s youngest child’s name may seem familiar because William T. Delaplaine started the Frederick News in 1883. He would die young of pneumonia at the age of 35, leaving his four young sons to carry on the family business which was handed off to future generations. I had the great pleasure of working for, and under the tutelage of, Theodore Crist Delaplaine’s great-grandson, George B. Delaplaine, Jr. and great-granddaughter, Frances Delaplaine Randall while at Frederick Cablevision and GS Communications for 12+ years. If it wasn't for them, I likely wouldn't be writing this article for you today.
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Hannah Delaplaine died on April 2nd, 1885 and was buried in Mount Olivet’s Area Q/Lot 257. The old miller, Theodore, would join his wife here five years later, dying on April 13th, 1900 at the age of 90. Theodosia is buried in this plot with her parents, and William T. in an adjoining lot. Sister Fannie (Delaplaine) Dutrow is buried in Urbana’s Zion Cemetery.

Parting Words
A final letter was written from Frederick by Robert Gould Shaw to his mother on February 16th, 1862. In this, he talks of calling on the prettiest girl on town, but her name is omitted in the publication. Unfortunate, as I bet she’s here in Mount Olivet, whoever she was.  Shaw also speaks of attending a church service at All Saints Episcopal Church on West Church Street (Frederick) and finding himself, along with the church sexton, the only men in the building full of ladies.
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Sadly, Shaw ends the letter on a sour note in respect to Frederick, but one that would likely to have subconsciously fed his drive for the job ahead that he was destined for: 

All of Shaw's wishes would come to fruition: Fort Donelson and Savannah were captured within days, and Gen. Ambrose Burnside would have full control over Norfolk within weeks after the March 8th ironclad showdown in the Battle of Hampton Roads in which the Union's USS Monitor defeated the Confederate CSS Virginia (aka the Merrimack). This fully opened the area to serve as a base of operations for Gen. Burnside to launch an expedition on North Carolina's coast.

​Outside of these letters, the only proof of Shaw’s presence in town is within a small article that appears in the Frederick Examiner newspaper on February 19th, 1862. The lieutenant’s name is mentioned with others who  made up a court-martial tribunal that was meeting in the newspaper’s office. Today this exact location is better known to Fredericktonians as The Orchard restaurant on the southwest corner of North Market and West Church Streets.

​On February 22nd, 1862, George Washington’s birthday was celebrated in fine form here in Frederick, complete with a grand review of the Union Army on Market Street. We are lucky to have a few photographs of that momentous occasion in the archives of Heritage Frederick (the former Historical Society of Frederick County). One was taken just outside the previously mentioned Examiner Building. The grand marshal was Col. Edward Shriver with whom Shaw had spent time while here. Could Robert Gould Shaw be pictured among the Union men captured in the photographs on Market Street? We’ll never know.

On Sunday, February 22nd (1862), resident Jacob Engelbrecht penned in his diary the following passage:

“Today Washington’s birthday was celebrated by the people of Frederick by the ringing of bells & firing of cannon by the military. Two flags were presented by the ladies of Frederick to the First Maryland Regiment under Colonel William P. Maulsby. The presentation was made by James T. Smith & received by William P. Maulsby. Addresses made by both. The different regiments in our neighborhood were present on the occasion numbering 4 or 5,000 who paraded through the streets. The presentation was made at the veranda of the Junior Hall where nearly all the staff officers were. Major General N. P. Banks, Colonel Geary, General Abercrombie, &c were present. After the presentation the “Star Spangled Banner” was sung—led by William D. Reese. And Mrs. General Banks sung in style. Among the singers your humble servant was among the singers and I would remark that I sang the same old “Star Spangled Banner” a few weeks after it was composed say about October 1814.”

The next day, Lt. Shaw and his regiment were given orders to be ready in one hour’s notice, with three day’s cooked rations, and cartridge boxes filled. A fellow soldier from Massachusetts, named Henry Newton Comey, wrote in a letter:
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”The wagons started off immediately as did the artillery and pontoons. We expected to leave about that time as well, but alas we did not. We later heard that the pontoons, floated by canal from Washington, were too wide for the canal locks at Harpers Ferry, and could not get into the river. Our departure came on February 27th, when we abandoned Camp Hicks after breakfast. At 4:00am, the 2nd, Rgt. Slogged through the wet boggy ground which laid between the camp and the road, and marched into Frederick. From there we took railway cars southwest to Sandy Hook.”

​At this point the regiment crossed the Potomac and spent the night in the empty houses on Shenandoah Street (Harpers Ferry). Over the next seven months, Shaw fought with his fellow Massachusetts soldiers in the first Battle of Winchester, the Battle of Cedar Mountain and at the bloody battle of Antietam. Robert Gould Shaw served both as a line officer in the field and as a staff officer for Gen. George H Gordon.  Twice wounded, by the fall of 1862 he was promoted to the rank of captain.

It’s fascinating to think that Shaw walked the streets of Frederick. He would have traveled by Mount Olivet regularly, and I’d bet money that he strolled through Mount Olivet at least once. If anything else, we have several folks interred here that shared conversation, libations, meals and social interaction with this brave young soldier, destined for "Glory." If you've never seen the movie of the same name (Glory), please make a point to watch as you will witness Shaw's promotion to the rank of colonel and the rest of his amazing story--one shared with the brave men of the 54th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. 

Ironically, Col. Robert Gould Shaw doesn't have a marked gravesite. He was buried in a mass grave at Fort Wagner, South Carolina along with his fallen troops. He is remembered in his hometown with the famous bronze-relief sculpture by Augustus Saint-Gaudens and located at the edge of Boston Common. Shaw also is honored with a cenotaph in nearby Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Well this year's Black History Month has one extra day in it this year, which gives me the opportunity to squeak-in and give context to a unique story with links to Mount Olivet on this final day. This two-part odyssey has nothing to do with a person of color, per se, but connects Frederick to one of the most interesting white characters found in the story of struggle for freedom and equality related to the American Civil War—Robert Gould Shaw.

We are lucky to have several incredible, well-produced, historical motion pictures about warfare within reach. Many tell the story from the perspective of the human experience more so than simply battle strategies and execution. Examples include the recent Academy-award nominated 1917, along with classics such as Apocalypse Now and Saving Private Ryan. The HBO miniseries John Adams is also among my favorites as it gives a more authentic view of the American Revolution and shows the frailties and quirks of our founding fathers. Add to that list a movie which debuted 30 years ago and became an instant classic— Glory.
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This film, directed by Edward Zwick, chronicles the legendary 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, the Union Army's second African-American regiment in the American Civil War. It stars Matthew Broderick as Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, the regiment's commanding officer, and Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes, Andre Braugher and Morgan Freeman as fictional members of the 54th. For many viewers that grew up in the 1980s like myself, part of the magic of this movie was seeing this virtually unknown hero (Col. Shaw) played by high-school slacker “Ferris Bueller.”

The film depicts the soldiers of the 54th from the formation of their regiment to their heroic actions at the Second Battle of Fort Wagner. The screenplay by Kevin Jarre was based on the books Lay This Laurel by Lincoln Kirstein and One Gallant Rush by Peter Burchard, and the personal letters of Shaw.

Glory was nominated for five Academy Awards and won three, including Best Supporting Actor for Denzel Washington. It won many other awards from, among others, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts, the Golden Globe Awards, the Kansas City Film Critics Circle, the Political Film Society, and the NAACP Image Awards. The film premiered in limited release in the United States on December 14, 1989, and in wide release on February 16, 1990, making $27 million on an $18 million budget.
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So what does this have to do with Mount Olivet and Frederick? Well, Col. Robert Gould Shaw was stationed here in Frederick before he received his own glory on the battlefield. He walked our streets, stayed in homes and interacted with our citizenry—some of which reside here in the cemetery for eternity.

On May 28th, 1861, Shaw was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the regiment's Company H. A great way to examine this man (at this time and beyond) is through the book Blue-Eyed Child of Fortune: The Civil War Letters of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw. This work was edited by Russell Duncan and published Avon Books in 1992.

In July of 1861, his regiment was sent to today’s panhandle area of West Virginia where he encamped at Martinsburg, Charles Town and Harpers Ferry. In early fall, Shaw and his fellow “Bay Staters” were encamped in Montgomery County, primarily Darnestown, with forays at Muddy Branch and Seneca Creek.  In December, the 2nd Massachusetts came to Frederick to set up winter quarters. The chosen place was located roughly three miles east of Frederick City, just across the Monocacy River in the vicinity of Linganore Road in what one soldier called “a beautiful wooded area on a hill.” The government called this site Cantonment Hicks after the Maryland governor (Thomas Holyday Hicks), but the soldiers would refer to it more lovingly as “Camp Hicks.”  Here, troops had tents and built some small, wooden barracks, each boasting iron coal stoves.

Robert Gould Shaw wrote the following letter home on December 8th, 1861.

Camp Hicks near Frederick, Md
December 8, 1861

My dear Effie,
Your weekly & welcome letter came yesterday. I look for it regularly now and shall be much disappointed the first time it misses, if such a thing can be imagined after your long & faithful regularity. I didn’t have time to write again from Seneca, before we left, as I said I should, for the order to march came at 12 ½ A.M. We got off early in the morning. It was tout ce qu’il y a de plus unpleasant to be waked up at Midnight, the weather icy cold, to wake up in their turn the cooks, & see about rations. We had a good two days march, for the cold weather kept us going. The roads didn’t soften even at noon.

The day after we arrived it changed and we have had almost an Indian summer for 5 days, during which time we have made ourselves comfortable & can defy Jack Frost when he comes again.

Yesterday I went into Frederick to see Capt Mudge who has been ill for about 3 weeks. I found him much better & was coming out, not having any acquaintances top visit when I fell in with Copeland & it turned out to be a fortunate rencontre for me. He took me to a house where I was presented to two young ladies & we shortly sallied forth all together & after picking up Mrs. Copeland, another lady & Capt. Savage, we repaired to a bowling alley where we had a perfectly jolly time all the afternoon. We then took a walk, after which we went home to the house of the afore-mentioned young ladies, & took tea. In the evening there was a great deal of playing on the piano & chorus singing, in which latter we all howled, & made as much noise as we could. I can’t describe to you my sensations at sitting once more in a nice parlor & seeing real ladies with petticoats about. I had hardly realized before that for 5 months we had been living like gypsies & seeing only men, I had really not spoken to a lady since we left New York. These two are daughters of Genl Shriver, a Union man here, who was very active in helping break up the Maryland legislature 2 months ago. One of them is a very nice girl indeed, I should think, if one can judge on so short an acquaintance. She sings very well too. 

​The letter goes on about other things at camp, but of key interest to me here is the mention of downtownFrederick—in particular, fascinating elements include a bowling establishment and the Shriver family. I found a bowling alley advertised in a Frederick newspaper from 1866 and located within the Globe Hotel of Mr. A. Lauer and located at 53 E. Patrick Street. I’m not sure when it originated, but there was also a bowling lane located within the Independent Hose Company on East Church Street.

I am well aware of Col. Edward Shriver and made mention of him in an earlier “Story in Stone” published back in October of 2018. The blog dealt with eyewitnesses to the legendary John Brown Raid of Harpers Ferry in October, 1859.
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Edward Shriver was born on December 8th, 1812, the second son of Judge Abraham and wife Ann Margaret Shriver. The colonel was a Frederick lawyer who in 1854 had provided the Agricultural Society of Frederick County with the land that has served home to the Great Frederick Fair to this day.
Shriver served in Maryland’s House of Delegates from 1843-1845 and was asked to serve as Secretary of State by two different governors, but declined. Between 1851 and 1857, he was a clerk of the Frederick County Court. 

Edward Shriver was also active in the Maryland Militia, and became colonel of the Sixteenth Regiment.  In the fall of 1859, Col. Shriver quickly began assembling the three town companies of militia, and went to Harpers Ferry by train to survey the chaotic scene for himself, before bringing the larger militia contingent on the scene. He would oversee the Frederick men as the group holds claim to being the first responders on the scene, and successfully kept Brown “holed up” in the engine house until Robert E. Lee and his US Marines arrived from Washington, DC. Col. Shriver even talked personally with Brown, hearing his demands regarding the hostages he had taken, including one Frederick man who is buried in our cemetery by the name of George Brengle Shope.
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The Shrivers lived in the house that still stands today at 114 N. Court Street, diagonally northeast of Court Square. This was a convenient location for Col. Shriver’s occupational pursuits and likely housed his law business, as it still serves that purpose today as a sign above the front  door calls it the Court Square Law Building. 

​Sadly, Edward Shriver lost his wife, Elizabeth Lydia (Riegart), on December 2nd, 1860. The widower had the task of raising four daughters into adulthood, amidst his busy working and civic life. During the outbreak of the Civil War, Shriver, called a “staunch Unionist,” helped mobilize the citizenry of town and assisted Governor A. W. Bradford in administering the draft and served as the governor’s judge advocate for matters pertaining to conscription. Shriver also has received credit for preventing the meeting of a Maryland Secession Legislature. Through devotion to the Union, he would pick up the moniker of “General” along the way.

​After the war, Col. Shriver would be appointed postmaster of Baltimore by President Andrew Johnson, a job he held from 1866-1869. He also would serve as registrar of Baltimore’s water department. He died In Baltimore at his residence on Eutaw Street on February 24th, 1896. He was first buried in the Shriver family burial plot, once located on the west side of N. Bentz Street, south of Rockwell Terrace. This was an extension of the old German Reformed Graveyard, today comprising Frederick’s Memorial Park. The entire family plot would be removed to Mount Olivet on May 11th, 1904, and now these burials can be found in the northern part of Area MM (Lot 23). Here, he was buried beside his wife Elizabeth.

​But what of the Shriver daughters mentioned by Robert Gould Shaw? These were the ones that accompanied Shaw in the bowling foray, and a walk about town to follow. This culminated in a return to the Shriver household in which the hostesses engaged the 24-year-old Massachusetts’ soldier in singing and gave him the warm visual of ladies in petticoats? From the letter, we can sense that one, in particular, caught Lt. Shaw’s eye as he referred to her as “a very nice girl indeed, I should think, if one can judge on so short an acquaintance. She sings very well too.”  Well the 1860 US census shows that the Shrivers had four daughters. Two, Ellen and Eliza, can be ruled out because they would have been far too young in late 1861. That leaves Anna Albertine Shriver (b. 1840) and Mary Margaret Shriver (b. 1844). ​

Anna (aka Annie) seems like the first choice as she was 21 at this time. She would marry Col. John A. Tompkins of New York in 1867. Perhaps Anna fits the description because it’s obvious she fancied a military man like her father? As a captain in 1862, John Almy Tompkins commanded Battery A, 1st Rhode Island Artillery at the Battle of Antietam. His battery was part of the Second Corps attack toward the Sunken Road, also known as Bloody Lane. Captain Tompkins and his men fired over 1,000 rounds of ammunition in about three hours and withstood a Confederate infantry attack right into their guns that led to hand to hand fighting.

Tompkins and the 1st Rhode Island had visited Frederick the previous summer of 1861, encamped for a night at the Hessian Barracks from June 17th-18th. He would participate in some of the most famous battles in the war including the Wilderness, Fredericksburg and Gettysburg.

​After the war, Mr. Tompkins served as Superintendent of the Baltimore Chrome Works, and later became a real estate broker in Baltimore. In the 1880 census, the Tompkins can be found living on Linden Avenue. Note that Anna’s father is living with her at this residence. Anna died in April of 1918 and is buried with her husband in Arlington Cemetery.

​Mary Shriver is the only other option for Col. Shaw’s possible “Frederick crush.” She was born on April 18th, 1844, making her 17-and-a-half at the time of the December 7th excursion with Col. Shaw—certainly not out of the question. From what I have gleaned of Mary, she seemed to have been an incredibly kind woman as there are several articles describing her as such through her benevolent work during the war and beyond. Not only did she raise money and volunteer to care for wounded soldiers, she also headed up relief missions to help the victims of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, and was director of Frederick’s Poor Fund for many years. She seems to have possessed theatrical talent as she helped produce and present entertainments that served as fundraisers in town. 

​Mary wouldn’t marry until later in life, October of 1879 to be exact. Her groom was Chapman Love Johnson (1850-1915), a schoolteacher from Richmond, Virginia. She may have met him through her vast array of relatives living in Carroll County, site of her family’s ancestral home of Union Mills. The Johnsons would reside in the hamlet of Ebbvale, just outside Manchester and northeast of Westminster. They had one daughter, Elizabeth Forrest Johnson, and eventually removed to Utica, New York. Chapman was later employed as a civil engineer. 

Chapman Johnson passed in Lansdale, PA as the Johnsons were staying with their daughter at that place. Elizabeth, a 1902 graduate of Vassar College (Poughkeepsie, NY) had just been hired as head of the Baldwin School in Bryn Mawr and founded in 1888 by namesake Florence Baldwin. This was a private school for girls offering educational instruction from pre-K through 12th grade. The Johnson’s daughter took the reins from Ms. Baldwin, herself.

​Mary Margaret Shriver Johnson died four years later in New York on November 5th, 1919 at the age of 75. She would be buried next to her husband on Mount Olivet’s Area MM/Lot 2. Their graves are roughly fifteen  yards from Mary’s parents.

Perhaps it’s a good thing that Mary, if she was indeed the apple of Col. Shaw’s eye for one cold, December day in Frederick in 1861, charted a different life for her life away from Glory’s famed Robert Gould Shaw. Her daughter, Elizabeth, would lead and grow the Baldwin School for 26 years until stepping down in 1941. The school thrives today, thanks in part to the tremendous fundraising, marketing and recruiting done by Miss Johnson. Today it boasts a strong theater and music departments and an extensive computer lab located in a recently renovated wing named for the former leader. The chief fundraising arm of the institution is fittingly named "The Elizabeth Forrest Johnson Society."

Miss Johnson never married, but moved on to making further educational contributions at the Woodstock Country School in Woodstock, Vermont. The school which closed its doors in 1980, had a library that bore Miss Johnson’s name, and she is buried in nearby Riverside Cemetery.

​Well, our story title this week can signal someone’s tragic demise one of three ways: the result of an unfortunate loss of footing or balance; being caught unprepared in an extreme, below average temperature situation in September, October or November that could result in frostbite or worse; encountering a geologic novelty while swimming or boating at a place where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops in the course of a stream or river.
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I probably have most readers somewhat intrigued at this point, especially with the oddity involved with the latter two consequences. However, this week’s story is pretty straightforward, however, complete with a little twist, two in fact.
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Rev. Simon Schweigarde Miller was a minister in the German Reformed faith tradition. He was born in Waynesboro, Pennsylvania on February 22nd, 1842, the son of Henry Miller (1805-1848) and Elizabeth von Schweigarde (1808-1881). His great-grandfather (John Adman Heilman, Jr.) was a commissioned lieutenant who commanded men in the Battle of Long Island during the American Revolution. He was part of the famed “Flying Camp” that included regiments from Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland. Many Frederick men were part of this military formation employed by the Continental Army in late 1776, chief among them was Thomas Johnson, Jr., who would go on to become Maryland’s first governor.

​Simon Miller was living in Lancaster, PA, a student at Franklin and Marshall College, when the American Civil War broke out. He was registered for the draft but his calling differed from his great-grandfather’s as he would graduate from college in 1862, and follow-up his education in divinity school, attending the Reformed Seminary in Mercersburg until 1864. He was ordained at this time and took his first charge at Grace Church in Akron, Ohio. 

In the 1870 census, Rev. Miller is duly listed as a clergyman and living in the household of George C. Biser, an insurance agent. Mr. Biser would become Miller’s father-in-law, as daughter Mary Genevieve Biser would become the minister’s wife in 1874. At this time, the couple moved to Boonsboro, where Rev. Miller took the lead of Trinity Reformed which still stands today as the oldest UCC/German Reformed congregation in the tri-state area. The Millers would welcome three children while here: Mary Genevieve (1876), Paul Biser (1877), and Hugh Schweigarde (1884).

​A terrible happenstance for any family to have to endure, as the headline, not surprising of the time, certainly caught my attention. It was not uncommon for headings of this nature, as ghastly, and straightforward consequences were commonplace in describing fatalities. I guess the Frederick News editor wasn’t to blame as I found the same headline in the Hagerstown paper as well. A few more details of the accident were revealed which makes me assume that this paper carried the story first, although a day behind as it seems. 

​Simon ventured to Frederick and paid then cemetery superintendent $6.75 for opening and closing a grave space. The young boy was brought to Mount Olivet was placed in the Biser family plot located in Area R/Lot 56. This section is easily found as it is only a few yards away from the Roelkey family crypt.

The unfortunate tragedy that beset Rev. Miller and his family at this place, likely prompted him to tender his resignation a month later. He would leave the site of sadness, and return to his native Pennsylvania. St. Petersburg (Pennsylvania) would be the scene of his new congregation. In the Illustrated Portfolio of Western Pennsylvania Reformed Churches, published in 1896, the following was said about Rev. Miller by author J. N. Naly in relation to his leadership at St. Petersburg Reformed Church: 

"The congregation was without a regular pastor for about two years. Then they issued a call to the Rev. Simon Miller. Bro. Miller suceeded, however in establishing confidence, and raised about $2,500 with which the interior of the church was remodeled and frescoed, and the remaining debt was cancelled. His pastorate closed on the 30th day of April, 1895."

In 1893, the Miller’s 16-year-old son, Paul, had died in Philadelphia. I was unable to find the true cause. His body had been sent to Frederick to be buried alongside Paul’s younger brother, Hugh.

The well-traveled clergyman would next take charge of the Daniel Stein Memorial Home in Myerstown, PA. This was a facility for retired German Reformed ministers and their spouses. Rev. Miller would serve as superintendent of the Stein House for four years before returning to Maryland and Frederick County. ​​He would preach at Mount Pleasant Reformed Church for two years before a semi-retirement in Frederick, while filling-in as a substitute pastor for congregations in need.
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Rev. Miller took up residence at 44 E. Third Street in downtown Frederick. This rowhouse is on the southeast corner of E. Third and Maxwell Alley. ​

​However, this would be the scene of a second terrible fall for the Miller clan. It happened in April 1924.

From another article, a few days later, it seemed as if the aged minister was recovering nicely from his broken hip. This news, like Rev. Miller, would be short lived.

​Rev. Simon S. Miller would join his son Hugh, who had predeceased him 34 years earlier, thanks in part, to a deadly fall.

​Wife Mary died the following year. I was relieved to see that it was not the result of a fall or tumble. 

Well, with St. Valentine’s Day having recently hit us again, it’s nearly impossible to avoid images of hearts, roses, greeting cards and candy—specifically chocolate . And with the latter, the most popular chocolate chosen for this commercially-hyped day of “love-reckoning,” isn’t the typical household variety such as Hershey Bars, M & M’s or Reeses Cups (my personal favorite). No, no, no, we’re talking the “top shelf” stuff, packaged of course in box form, with an assortment of delicacies.

Whether it’s a familiar name like Godiva, Lindt, Whitman’s or Russell-Stover, I’m always reminded of the legendary line from Forrest Gump—“Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.”  However, when it comes to candy, I think I’d be more satisfied sometimes with plain ol’ Reeses Cups—but it’s the thrill of the quest, I guess, that makes boxed-chocolate something exciting.

As I near my four-year anniversary working for Mount Olivet, I reflect upon the great satisfaction I've had in writing these “Stories in Stone” blog articles—this is number 140. The most gratifying part of it for me can also be explained by that Forrest Gump quote, however with one simple difference by interchanging the word life with the word death--“Death is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.”

A few years ago, I wrote the following to describe  my articles:

​“They are essays about former Frederick residents buried within Mount Olivet’s gates. Yes, some of these individuals stand out for their achievements. Others can be remembered for misfortunes. All in all, most of those “resting in peace” just lived simple, ordinary lives. To borrow a line from George Bailey in Frank Capra’s legendary film It’s a Wonderful Life:
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“Just remember Mr. Potter, that this rabble that you’re talking about...they do most of the working and paying and living and dying in this community.”

We can just assume that the people here that you've never heard of before, simply lived ordinary, average lives. However, I have found that not to be the case, over and over again. That point hit home again last weekend while falling into a subject topic by pure accident. It is the genesis for this story here.

I had been researching online within old Virginia newspapers of the early 1800s in hopes to learn more about my previous "Story in Stone" profile, artist John J. Markell. Out of the blue, a front- page article in the Staunton Spectator and General Advertiser caught my eye. Under the bold  headlines MIscellany and Interesting Biography, appeared an extensive, two-column ode to a gentleman named William Lenhart, the Mathematician. Mr. Lenhart apparently had been living in Frederick, Maryland, before his death at the same place in the summer of 1840.

I was certainly intrigued by seeing the words “Frederick, Maryland” in the story, and much more than I was in seeing “mathematician.”  I’ll be the first person to tell you that I love numbers, especially as they pertain to history—dates, population totals, ages, casualty numbers, etc. I don’t mind basic arithmetic and entry-level statistics, but higher math in its various forms (ie: algebra, geometry, trigonometry, calculus, number theory and mathematical physics) scares the hell out of me. It’s a good thing I married a high school math teacher, who, ironically, has very little use, or interest, for history. 

“The Math Guy”
With 40,000 former residents in my midst at Mount Olivet, roughly the same population as our state capital of Annapolis, I still pass countless gravesites without a thought, as their names are still nothing more than “names in stone.” With that said, I was certainly hoping that William Lenhart was possibly one of our own since he lived, and died, in Frederick back in the early 19th century. One minor conundrum was knowing that Mount Olivet opened in 1854, 14 years after Lenhart’s death. However, many of those early Frederick residents that had been buried in the existing church-owned graveyards of that era, would eventually be moved to Mount Olivet by the early 1900s.
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When I found that article in the Staunton newspaper, I was at home with no immediate access to Mount Olivet’s interment database. I will share a tip here with those finding themselves in the same predicament of wanting to check if someone is buried in a certain cemetery or not. Simply search the inventory of a particular burying ground on the www.FindaGrave.com  site via the internet.  It’s certainly not “fool-proof,” as some graves haven’t been added yet by hard-working volunteers, but generally most gravesites are included that have markers.

In respect to Mount Olivet, here’s some basic math: our Find-a-Grave page shows that 34,058 interments have been added—that’s 73%!  I simply typed "Lenhart" into the name search option and found the following result as part of a long list of Lenharts.

Normally, I would be very disappointed to find this result. However, with this particular research mission, I became ecstatic because just in the sheer fact of getting this return, I now knew that there was a statistical chance and probability of William Lenhart, (Mathematician) being buried in our cemetery. Although there were no birth or death dates listed here, and no photo of tombstone (if one at all), I held optimism because here was a William Lenhart that could be him. I wish I could tell you the odds at the outset of this being a perfect match, but I already painfully divulged my math deficiencies earlier.
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Another source of delight for me (in looking at the scant Find-a-Grave entry for William Lenhart) was the fact that his grave location was listed as Area NN/Lot 130/Grave 7. This particular area is shaped somewhat like a small triangle on the cemetery’s western perimeter, only about 30 yards from the landmark Barbara Fritchie and Thomas Johnson monuments in the middle of Mount Olivet  (in Area MM). Here, three local church congregations of yore bought property around 1907 and made arrangements to move bodies from former downtown churchyards. 

Interments from Frederick's former Methodist graveyard (once located at the SE corner of E. 4th St and Middle Alley) occupy the south side of the triangle (left). Evangelical Lutheran holds the center of NN, with these bodies coming from the second burying ground of the congregation, once located on the SE corner of E. Church Street extended and East Street (today's Everedy Square vicinity).  Frederick’s Presbyterian Church holds the northern (right) portion closest to Confederate Row, roughly 30 yards away. In particular, bodies occupy lots 130-135 as shown on the above map section. I will tell you more on that church cemetery's history later.

The William Lenhart I had just found on Find-a-Grave is shown as occupying Area NN/Lot 130, and because of this, I now knew that although loosely documented, this man had died before 1854, and had been buried elsewhere in town before being brought here. I would also soon lean that he had been previously buried in another part of Mount Olivet before coming to this current spot.

Now I found the rationale to devote time to solve the problem:
Does the Mount Olivet William Lenhart = William Lenhart, the Mathematician? I now had reason to read through a very lengthy article about a “math guy” in an effort to “solve my equation” or “prove my postulate” of these two being one and the same.

After perusing the article, I engaged in the painful task of transcribing the lengthy two-column article for your reading pleasure. This had first appeared in print within the Baltimore American and Commercial Advertiser of October 2nd, 1841 (nearly a month earlier than it had appeared in the Staunton, VA newspaper). With no further adieu, here it is in its entirety as I think that this author’s presentation, although extremely lengthy and embellished, runs circles around anything I could wordsmith for telling his story:

WILLIAM LENHART, THE MATHEMATICIAN.
Perhaps very few of the readers of The American are aware that in July, 1840, a man died in Frederick, Maryland, who had genius, which under favorable circumstances, might have illustrated the name of his country throughout the scientific world. The seed which produces the most luxuriant harvest requires proper cultivation to make it minister to the necessities of man. The marble which is taken from the quarry has no attractions for the eye until the chisel of the sculptor displays its tortuous veins, and gives the beauty of proportion. So, genius of the highest order—without the fostering care of patrons, and a suitable field for its display—often lies buried with the unknown possessor; and “mankind are little sensible how a brilliant sun has gone down in darkness, which, under more favorable circumstances, would have fertilized and adorned society. It is with a view to make my humble contribution to the memory of a highly gifted man, who was, at one portion of his life, a citizen of Baltimore, that I write this article. Had Lord Clive not been employed as a clerk in India, he would probably never have displayed that brilliant genius which gave him rank with the nobility of England, and astonished the world. If Lenhart had not, during the greater portion of his life, been the victim of severe disease, he would not have required the aid of my unpretending pen. For the facts on which this article is based, I am indebted to the July number of the Princeton Review.
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William Lenhart was the son of a respectable silversmith, of York, Pennsylvania, where he was born in 1787. His education received but little attention, until when he was about fourteen years old. Dr. Adrain,—then obscure, but since so extensively known as a mathematician,—opened a school in York, and young Lenhart became one of his pupils. Owing perhaps to the scanty means of his father, he did not remain at school more than eighteen months: yet in that short period, the rock was smitten and the waters of genius flowed out in an abundant stream. Adrain soon discovered the great mathematical talents of his pupil; and assumed towards him much of the relation of a companion in study. 

All I could say, during and after reading this, was “Wow!” My head quickly filled with several new research questions, along with potential methods to attempt to answer each. Who was this article’s author, simply referred to as “S.C.?” What more did the referenced Princeton Review article have to say about Lenhart? What exactly were Lenhart’s disabilities, and how were they caused exactly? Who was Lenhart’s sister, and where did Lenhart live in Frederick? Were there any direct heirs to Lenhart or his immediate kin (as it appears Lenhart never married or had children)? What religion was Lenhart (hopefully Methodist, Lutheran or Presbyterian)? The answers to these problems would surely give me my answer. 

“Show Your Work”
My wife (the math teacher) always stresses to her students that one of the most important aspects of solving a math problem is to “show your work,” letting others know how you reached a particular answer to a problem. I will follow suit and share my "work" with you as well. You’ve already witnessed my first steps in scouring the Staunton newspaper article for clues, while tracking down the original article in the Baltimore American.

I next went to Ancestry.com to search for a potential Family Tree that would include William Lenhart the Mathematician. I found one immediately, and learned parental names: Godfrey Lenhart (1754-1819), who I successfully verified as a prominent silversmith and noted grandfather clockmaker in York, PA. William's mother was Mary Elizabeth Harbaugh (1753-1824). The Family Tree was a little shaky, so I sought out other genealogical histories of the Harbaugh family that could be found on the internet. One such gave me exactly what I was searching for, including the knowledge that Mary Elizabeth (Harbaugh) Lenhart was a daughter of early Swiss immigrant Yost Harbaugh. Her brothers, George, Ludwig and Jacob, left York in 1760 and brought their families to northwestern Frederick County. Settling in the vicinity of today’s Sabillasville, their last name soon became synonymous with the locale still known as Harbaughs Valley. And just in case you were wondering, Baltimore Ravens head football coach John Harbaugh is a descendant of this same family.

William Lenhart had a sister named after his mother. Mary Elizabeth Lenhart, who  somehow met a gentleman named John Bayly. I found that Bayly operate a store in the first block of West Patrick Street which sold linens, broadcloths, groceries and seasonable goods. I'm assuming that the family lived above or behind the store, as was commonplace in the early 1840s.

The Bayley’s had a daughter named Catharine, who would marry a noted former Fredericktonian, Samuel Tyler (1809-1879). Mr. Tyler was a lawyer, author and Georgetown College professor. I was already familiar with some of Tyler’s other writings, including a memoir of Roger Brooke Taney. I now surmise that Samuel Tyler was S.C., the original newspaper memorial's writer, as Mr. Lenhart was his wife’s uncle. (I can’t explain S.C. instead of S.T. but perhaps we can chalk it up to a typo).

I quickly returned to Find-a-Grave and found both John and Mary Bayly buried in Mount Olivet. No pictures of stones either, but elation struck me when I found that they, too, were residing in Area NN, Lot 130, graves 7A and 8. I had successfully proven the relationship between Lenhart brother and sister (now a Bayly), and more so, decedent and famed mathematician!

Of course, when I came into work on Monday, our database included information pertaining to Area NN's William Lenhart ranging from vital dates, to stating the fact that he was a removal from Frederick’s Presbyterian Cemetery on May 10th, 1887. Our data also had him as hailing from York, PA, dying at the residence of John Bayly, and, finally listed as an occupation that of a mathematician. Oh well, “What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger” as they say—an interesting expression to recite as a full-time employee of a cemetery, for sure!

​Several old math journals from the 19th century mention Lenhart’s heroics answering prize questions offered up in monthly publications like the Mathematical Correspondent under the leadership of editor George Baron. The Correspondent presented problems to subscribers inviting them to solve and send in answers, which if correct, would be published in upcoming volumes. Lenhart was a regular contributor of both questions/problems, and answers. The following clippings come from the pages of various editions of The Mathematical Correspondent (1804).

I really didn't find much more on William Lenhart in old newspapers. Town diarist Jacob Engelbrecht recorded the mathematician's death, but not anything more. Lenhart’s name came up in several online searches connected with scholarly articles on math and its history in America.

A particular interest to me was exploring how modern academics viewed William Lenhart today? I found an impression of his legacy in an article on early American mathematics journals, in which D.E. Zitarelli writes:

When it comes to the study of mathematics in this country, we describe six of its major contributors, two of whom are known somewhat (Robert Adrain and Robert M. Patterson), but the other four seem to have slipped into obscurity in spite of accomplishments that deserve more recognition (William Lenhart, Enoch Lewis, John Gummere, and John Eberle).
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In 2005, Lenhart was ranked as the 7th top problemist of the early 1800s by Zitarelli , a bonafide expert on the subject having published his 2019 book entitled: A History of Mathematics in the United States and Canada: Volume 1: 1492–1900.  
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An online journal article from the periodical Historia Mathematica (aka The International Journal of History of Mathematics) found at (https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/82122927.pdf) and entitled: The Fading Amateur: William Lenhart and 19th-Century American Mathematics by Edward R. Hogan of East Stroudsburg University (East Stroudsburg, PA). This work was published in 1990 by the Academic Press. Dr. Hogan writes:

"There were amateur mathematicians in the United States after William Lenhart (1787-1840); there still are today. But Lenhart, although strictly an amateur in the sense that he neither received nor sought to receive revenue from his mathematical work, was one of the leading American mathematicians of his generation. He is the last person, to my knowledge, who was both. Lenhart was highly regarded by his countrymen. By the time of his death, he was heralded as a mathematician of extraordinary ability.

Samuel Tyler, although not a scientist, was one of the foremost Baconians in America and Lenhart’s nephew by marriage. He said of his uncle’s contributions to the Mathematical Miscellany: “They have gained for him a reputation as the greatest Diophantine Algebraist that ever lived; and this is no mean renown, when it is considered that a Euler, a Lagrange, and a Gauss are his competitors." Such words might be dismissed as exaggerated praise from family and friends, but others with far more mathematical knowledge gave Lenhart similar compliments. Probably the most impressive came from Charles Gill, a competent, if self-taught, mathematician. He wrote to Lenhart: “No one will now deny that you have done more with the Diophantine analysis than any man who ever lived." In addition, the mathematical astronomer Daniel Kirkwood described Lenhart as an “eminent mathematician” and cited Gill’s evaluation, implying his agreement."

Dr. Hogan also shed a bit more light on how William Lenhart suffered his life altering afflictions.
After being offered a partnership in a business firm in 1812, Lenhart went home on a holiday to see his family, friends, and fiancee, and met with a freak accident. He was taking a ride in a gig when he passed by a traveling menagerie. The roar of a lion in the caravan frightened his horse, and Lenhart, thrown from his gig, fractured a leg and seriously injured his back. He never recovered; for the rest of his life he suffered extreme pain, exacerbated by a second fracture of the same leg.

​The article goes on, but I think you are now likely feeling overwhelmed. I certainly am at this point in writing, and am starting to have uncomfortable flashbacks to certain math classes in my high school and college career.
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A final article of note was found in math periodical entitled The Analyst (Volume II, No. 6). A piece in this November, 1875 edition was penned by a colleague and friend of Lenhart’s, the fore-mentioned astronomer Daniel Kirkwood.  The professor recounted that Lenhart was extremely fond of smoking cigars, owned a small library of books with some volumes dating to the early 1700s, and oftentimes replied to math publications with solution submissions to math questions under pseudonyms because he had found various ways to solve problems. He used the name Diophantus on a number of occasions, and more surprisingly answered as a supposed female contributor as well—using the name Mary Bond of Frederick Town, MD.

The Gravesite
My last task was to seek out Lenhart’s exact gravesite. Since there was no picture on the  Find-a-Grave website, I pondered if our local math genius was simply buried in an unmarked grave? This was often common as the re-interment process was quite complicated. Many graves were unmarked in former cemeteries, and old stones from the early 19th and 18th centuries didn’t hold up well in some instances. Those deemed shabby, were oftentimes banned from public display in the once- uppity places like our sparkling new “garden cemetery” during its earlier days.

Some ragged stones hit the trash heap, others were buried. This would happen regularly when certain families "ponied" up the funds to have new stones made, and sometimes elaborate family memorials crafted, as replacements. Our records are pretty good here at Mount Olivet, and extensive work has been done over the years to document interments in places like Area NN in an effort to compensate reburials lacking gravestones or any other kind of marking. An interesting wrinkle in this particular re-interment case relates to the Presbyterian Cemetery removal of 1887.

The church graveyard in question was originally located at the southwest corner of Dill and N. Bentz streets. Various clergy members and other VIP's would be buried behind the church itself, located on W. Second Street. The majority of burials of this congregation were placed in the other graveyard. Back in the day, Dill Avenue was originally known as New Cut Road. Upkeep for these cemeteries was difficult and costly for churches, especially when the burial business was now going to Mount Olivet—a well-established professional cemetery in town. 

Many congregations simply bought land in the form of lots within Mount Olivet, in an effort to transfer their own graveyard inhabitants. Since 1854, individuals had been removed here and there across town from various churchyards and associated graveyards and brought to the new cemetery by families with the means to do so. Mount Olivet was "the place to be,” even in death. Younger generations purchased extra lots in an effort to remove bodies from elsewhere in an effort to reunite themselves one day with parents, grandparents and other members of extended family in one location.
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The Presbyterian Church bought lots 246-251 in Area Q in 1887, just across from the Barbara Fritchie monument. Bodies were brought from the former burial ground—among them William Lenhart, his sister and brother-in-law (the Baylys) and buried on May 10th. I would find their names among those appearing in a newspaper article from the May 18th, 1887 edition of the Frederick Examiner which reported the mass removal from Frederick’s Presbyterian graveyard.

​You may recall, that  earlier in the story, I gave Area NN as the location of William Lenhart’s grave, not Area Q? In December of 1907, a decision was made to rebury the Presbyterian bodies in Q (hailing from the old graveyard on N. Bentz) in Area NN. The move was only about 30 yards away. So William Lenhart was buried three times, a charming way to be handled in death. 

​Armed with cemetery diagrams, I went to Area NN to find Lenhart’s grave and subsequent gravestone. All the while, I said to myself, “If this guy doesn’t have a stone, can I actually call this a “Story in Stone?” This was a logical question that I’m sure would make Lenhart and a host of ancient Greek math philosophers smile for sure. Once on the scene, I sadly went to the spot where Lenhart and the Baylys were supposed to be located. I found nothing but unmarked grave here. I double and triple checked the area and maps, but still with no success.

Upon closer examination, I noted two downed-headstones, innocently leaning behind the row in front that Lenhart and the Baylys were supposed to be within. I strained to read a faded name on the top of these two stones, after brushing off debris. I then found the name "John Bayly.” I was once again very excited, well, you know, not as happy as at the birth of my son, but pretty happy. I carefully pulled that stone off the other to expose the second gravestone leaning underneath Bayly’s.

Bingo!!!--it was that of William Lenhart, and I won’t confirm, or deny, that I may have done some sort of crazy math celebratory dance, then and there, in Area NN.  I next carefully laid both stones out in the places they were supposed to occupy. I questioned the whereabouts of Mrs. Bayly’s gravestone, as it was visible, yet noted on the old diagram I held. I then thought perhaps  she didn’t have one, or shared her husband's. 

The next morning, I made a visit to the gravesite to see the stone faces of the Lenhart and Bayly monuments. I had hoped overnight rain showers had helped clean off additional mud and debris. I soon flagged down our assistant grounds foreman, Rob Reeder, who was passing by the Area. I told him a bit of the story and how I found these stones stacked behind other graves.  I also asked if he would kindly re-set the Lenhart and Bayly stones in place sometime in the coming months? He said sure, and even told me that he could do this later that same day. I certainly was expecting an answer of March or April.

Excavation work began later that morning, and the original bases of each stone were found, having been placed within a cement trough. This method was responsible for serving as a foundation for the entire row of vintage stones from the former Presbyterian cemetery.
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I was called to the scene a short while later as a third stone foundation was found in the spot where Mary Elizabeth Bayly appears on lot maps. This was the base of a missing stone. Another search ensued and her gravestone (somewhat illegible) was found in two pieces, hidden behind the back row of Presbyterian congregation monuments and against the perimeter fence.

​The bottom piece of Elizabeth Bayly's stone  fit against the foundation base like a "Cinderella shoe." Unfortunately though, erosion had rounded the major break area showing that this marker had been broken for a very long time, perhaps 50-60 years and never repaired. The other stones (Lenhart and Mr. Bayly) must have fallen more recently, but sometime before 2013, at which time the Find-a-Grave contributor posted the additions of William Lenhart and the Baylys to the Find-a-Grave website without photographs.

I’m proud to say that in less than one week, we discovered a famous mathematician buried in Mount Olivet, found out more about his life and times, and set into motion the repair and resetting of his tombstone. This is the essence of our Mount Olivet Preservation and Enhancement Fund with a 3-part mission to preserve the history, structures and gravestones of our amazing cemetery. Our newly-formed Friends of Mount Olivet membership group will further this mission as volunteers will assist in documenting and assisting in the "resurrection" of fallen and damaged stones, while helping to raise needed project funds and support to benefit our historic monuments and memorials through repair.
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It has been said that each of us dies two deaths. The first is when the physical body ceases to exist. The second is when you are forgotten, and disappear from the written and spoken record. I’d say that we successfully brought William Lenhart back to life—a great "addition" to our varied cemetery population. Just like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get. 

When you have over 40,000 individuals buried in a cemetery, you are bound to have a few that possessed above average artistic ability over their lifetimes. As some of subjects of these “Stories in Stone” articles have left their legacy in the form of hand-signed letters or documents, interesting houses of their own design, advertising memorabilia, mentions in faded newspapers, and their names on various street signs within the city and county, the artists leave their precious work behind—visions that once encompassed their minds, and in some cases, very souls. To name just a few, representatives of this profession and buried here include Helen Smith, David Yontz, Florence Doub and John Ross Key, grandson of the guy with the most famous memorial in the cemetery—sculpted by another artist of renown by the name of Pompeo Coppini.  
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Among the earliest painters that can be found in Mount Olivet is John Johnston Markell. He was born on June 17th, 1821, the son of Samuel and Amelia Schley Markell. His great-grandfather, John Thomas Schley (1712-1790), was one of Frederick’s first settlers-having built the town’s first house and serving as schoolmaster and choirmaster for the German Reformed Church. An artist in his own right, Schley was a master of Fraktur, a calligraphic hand of the Latin alphabet and any of several blackletter typefaces derived from this hand.

​Samuel Markell (1789-1846) was one of three brothers living in Frederick (John and Jacob) at the time of his wedding in 1815. He and wife Amelia would have five children, our subject John Johnston being the third-born in order. These included: William Warren Markell (1816-1839), Thomas Maulsby Markell (1818-1902), John J., Catherine Markell (1827-1907), and Amelia S. Markell (1833-1910). The Markell family resided in the vicinity of S. Market and W. South streets, one time owning the property on the south side of South between Market and present day Broadway Avenue. Marilyn Veek, my amazing research assistant, scoured old land records and found Samuel living at 203 S. Market Street, a location his wife and children would live out their lives as well.

​I’m assuming that young John received his education at the Frederick Academy, where his father had been appointed to teach the Introductory School in 1809. In 1827, Mr. Markell would oversee the Third Department, which I'm guessing would denote secondary education. As for artistic talent, Markell was self-taught as a painter. Perhaps he gained inspiration from miniature portraits of his parents painted at the time of their wedding. A depiction of Amelia Schley Markell dates to March 9th, 1815 and was done by the Swiss itinerant artist David Boudon.

John J. Markell was only 17 years old when he painted his first self-portrait in 1838 in Philadelphia. Even at an early age, he clearly knew he was an artist, and holds, in his hand, several brushes to identify himself as an artist. By 1839, at the age of 18, he was found living in Leesburg, Va., and advertising his services as a “Portraits and Landscape Painter.” Markell had embarked upon the life of an itinerant portrait artist, travelling to various locations and offering his unique services to the local population.
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A bit of information regarding this profession can be gleaned from a book entitled: A Most Perfect Resemblance at Moderate Prices: The Miniatures of David Boudon by Nancy E. Richards and published by the University of Chicago Press on behalf of the Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Inc. The author states that the field of portrait painting in which John J. Markell entered was highly competitive and traditional customers/patrons were those of middle and upper middle class. In the early 19th century of Markell’s era, painters charged $100 for full length portraits, $50 for half-length, and $6 to $20 for miniatures done on ivory, some going on to be encased within a locket. Other services included profile likenesses which could be performed from $6-$8 and silhouettes were a true bargain at just 6 cents each.

​John J. Markell’s accomplishments as an artist are especially noteworthy because he only lived to age 23. This, however, also adds to the issue of having only a scarce bit of information on him. Markell left behind at least eleven portraits, seven landscapes, one lithograph and three other paintings to study and enjoy today. For quite some time now, I have been familiar with three vivid local landscape scenes, two depicting major incidents in Frederick’s history. Note: all three works can be found in some form as part of the Heritage Frederick archival collection.

​View of Frederick from Prospect Hill
This 1844 landscape piece may look familiar as it was utilized as the cover of an anniversary calendar produced for Frederick’s 250th commemoration back in 1995. John J. Markell painted this scene of the Frederick City skyline looking northeast from a vantage point atop Prospect Hill (and the vicinity of the aptly named Prospect Hall mansion). Rolling farmland and clusters of trees are beautifully portrayed here as storm clouds gather overhead. One can see the picket fence-lined Jefferson Pike starting at the right of the artist’s work and extending into town as it still does today. The one church spire most evident in this work is that of Trinity Chapel of the German Reformed Church. This was home church of Markell’s family going back to the time relatives immigrated here in the mid-1700s. 

Courthouse Fire
On March 31st, 1842, a fire broke out near Court House Square on Record Street at the residence of Dr. William Tyler. Burning embers were carried by blustery conditions to other nearby dwellings. One such was the Frederick Academy located directly across the street to the slight northeast of the Tyler residence. Another key building of interest also was affected—the County Courthouse to the southeast. The belfry of the seat of government, which formerly stood on the same footprint as today’s Frederick City Hall, was ignited but thanks to the work of town fire companies and residents participation in bucket brigades, the building was saved. John J. Markell did not let pass the opportunity to paint from memory his eyewitness account of a very scary moment. Apparently this was done in the form of a banner and was in the possession of the Independent Fire Hose Company for many years.  Unfortunately, the courthouse would burn to the ground 19 years later, possibly thought to be the work of arsonists with Southern sympathies at the advent of the American Civil War.

​Camp Frederick, 1843
A watercolor (that would became a popular lithograph obtained by local residents) by Markell depicts a military encampment that occurred June 6-10th, 1843 on the grounds of the Frederick Barracks, better known to locals as the Hessian Barracks. Today this is the site of the campus of the Maryland School for the Deaf. In the work, Markell skillfully produced images of the varying companies that participated. These included men from Fort McHenry, Hanover, Hagerstown, Sharpsburg and Frederick. It was quite an attraction as throngs of local citizens lined S. Market Street to get a glimpse of the happenings of this major military force assembled. Markell's vantage point for this work would put him at Mount Olivet's front gate, however the cemetery would not come into existence until a decade later.

​A more intensive self-portrait of John J. Markell arrived at Heritage Frederick some years ago from California. Former curator and Executive director of the Museum of Frederick County’s history, Heidi Campbell-Shoaf had been eagerly awaiting this treasure to add to the local collection. 

In a newsletter article she wrote of the oil portrait:

“Markell painted himself posed with the tools of his trade, an oval artist’s palette and a collection of brushes. He wears the typical male attire for the 1840s, a black frock coat with white shirt and black cravat; a red vest adds a touch of color to his ensemble. His hair, nearly chin-length as was the fashion at the time, flips up ever so slightly at the ends and falls to either side of his left ear.
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Stylistically, Markell’s self-portrait is much like his other paintings, confident brush strokes and clear color choice with a minimum of detail in the clothing results in an image that appears somewhat flat to the eye. Though aspects of his art lacks definition, he skillfully executes the 5’oclock shadow shading his chin and cheeks.

The painting we have is signed not once but three times on the back of the canvas as was Markell’s custom to do. Recycling or reusing the canvas is the most likely reason for the multiple signatures. The first reads ‘John J. Markell, Del., Frederick MD, May 10, 1843’ and is crossed out, then ‘Bathing Lady,’ John J. Markell, Del., Frederick MD, August 13, 1843’ is written and also crossed out, finally, “John J. Markell, Del., Frederick MD, February 7, 1844’ remains.”

I was able to peruse the online Art Inventories Catalog database of the Smithsonian’s American Art Museums and found reference listings for many of Markell’s known works. I was interested to see several portraits done of family members including his parents and siblings. (NOTE: I was not able to see any images of these, but hope that I will be contacted in the future by someone who has a Markell piece and finds this story on the internet. I have included a rundown from the database at the very end of this blog.)

​John J. Markell would die later that year in 1844 on December 2nd. This apparently occurred in nearby Hagerstown. John was likely buried in the German Reformed Cemetery that once stood at the northwest corner of W. 2nd and Bentz streets. Today this is the site of Memorial Park. He also could have been buried behind Trinity Chapel, as his Schley ancestors were among the founders of the German Reformed congregation here.

​Our records show that John J. Markell and his father were re-interred in Mount Olivet in April of 1866. The gravesite is in Area D/Lot 71. The artist’s mother would be laid to rest in this same lot in January, 1870. Siblings including older brother Thomas (d. 1902), who worked as a cashier at a local bank, and sisters Catharine (d. 1907) and Amelia (d. 1910) would join them here too.

​The memory of John Johnston Markell is kept alive and well thanks to the fore-mentioned Heritage Frederick. To recognize the work of this young artist, the entity holds an annual contest to encourage local high school students to depict, through art, an aspect of the county’s history. The contest is funded by the John Markell Memorial Art Contest Fund, administered by the Community Foundation of Frederick County, with additional support from the Frederick Art Club. Cash prizes are awarded to three winners. 

​John Johnston Markell      Aug 24, 1838                  Oil Painting         IAP 7300001
(A Self-Portrait)

View Near Fishkill                Jan 1835                            Watercolor         IAP 7300002

Men on Horses                      unknown                            Watercolor         IAP 7300003

Man of the                                unknown                             Oil Painting        IAP 7300004
Markell Family

Woman of the                       unknown                             Oil Painting         IAP 7300005
Markell Family    

Landscape                               unknown                             Oil Painting         IAP 7300006

George Markell                    unknown                             Oil Painting         IAP 7300007

Sophia Schley Markell      unknown                             Oil Painting         IAP 7300008 
           
John Johnston Markell    Oct 4, 1839                        Oil Painting         IAP 7300009
(A Self-Portrait)

Landscape with                    unknown                             Oil Painting         IAP 73000010
People, Dog and Castle

Landscape with Cows      unknown                             Oil Painting         IAP 73000011

St. John Roman                   1840                                       Oil Painting         IAP 73000012
Catholic Church

John Johnston Markell   Feb 7, 1844                        Oil Painting         IAP 73000013
(A Self-Portrait)

Jacob Byerly                         1843                                       Oil Painting         IAP 73000014

Samuel Markell                   1842                                       Oil Painting         IAP 73000015

Mrs. Samuel Markell        1842                                       Oil Painting         IAP 73000016
(Amelia Schley)

George Markell                   unknown                             Oil Painting         IAP 73000018

Sophia Markell                    unknown                             Oil Painting          IAP 73000019

Jacob Markell                    February 7, 1839              Oil Painting          IAP 73000021

Cupid on a Dolphin         January 1, 1839                Oil Painting          IAP 73000022

Infant Savior                       March 1840                         Oil Painting         IAP 73000023
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The Painter’s Sister        March 30, 1839                 Oil Painting         IAP 73000024     

Once known by the name as Pumphouse Hill, a central area of Mount Olivet represents the highest elevation in Downtown Frederick. This was the one-time location of an actual pumphouse which fed water to all parts of the cemetery. Today, the pumphouse is long gone, but the area’s central facet is Founder’s Garden, a tribute to the seven church congregations that helped with the founding of this non-denominational burying ground which opened in 1854. A decade earlier, this was a farm field with a commanding view to the northeast that included the Frederick Barracks silhouetted against a large grove of mulberry trees.
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Today, at these "lofty heights," the view of the barracks is quite obstructed by buildings, but one can find some of the most prominent families and characters in Frederick history within a small radius. Just a few yards from Founder’s Garden, is the stand-alone grave monument of Dr. William D. Jenks (1791-1877), the man responsible for the previously mentioned Mulberry trees. I have been familiar with this gentleman, at least in name, for over 25 years now since my work on a video production called Frederick Town, a 10-hour documentary featuring a chronological telling of our town’s history from 1745-1995.

Dr. Jenks was one of our earliest dentists. In addition, he, along with a business associate, was responsible for one of Frederick’s strangest, yet short-lived business endeavors, commencing in the late 1830’s. 

​William Dexter Jenks was born on December 5th, 1791 in Cheshire, Berkshire County, Massachusetts. He was the youngest of four children born to Dr. William Jenckes (1757-1794), a private of the American Revolution who fought in a Rhode Island regiment and mother Freelove Brown (Jenckes) (1764-1843). Our Dr. Jenks received his middle name courtesy of his maternal grandmother, Hopestill Dexter (Brown). 

It was tough finding any early information on Dr. W. D. Jenks. His parents were natives of Rhode Island and moved their young family to Massachusetts prior to our subject’s birth. Dr. Jenks’ third great-grandfather (Joseph Jenckes, Sr.) emigrated from England to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1643 and was involved with organizing and operating the first American iron works in the New England Colonies (1646). In 1953, this iron works was excavated and rebuilt to what is now the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Saugus (MA) located about ten miles northeast of downtown Boston. Joseph Jenckes is credited with America’s first machine patent with his design of a waterwheel used at the forge. He would also be inventor of the first fire engine apparatus to appear on the continent in 1654.
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Joseph’s son, Joseph Jenckes, Jr., was also a native of Great Britain, having traveled across the Atlantic with his widowed father in the 1640s. An ironworker as well, Joseph Jenks, Jr. is credited as being the founder of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. 

Dr. Jenks’ father (Dr. William Jenckes) died a few months before the boy’s third birthday. His mother would remarry a gentleman named Dr. David Cushing and six additional step-siblings would come from this union. It comes as no surprise that our subject would enter into the medical profession like his father and step-father. I don’t know if they were dentists per se, but am assuming rather general practitioners. I also was not able to find anything on William Dexter Jenks’ professional schooling/training, or anything pertaining to his youth and young adulthood for that matter.
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A public family tree is posted on Ancestry.com which infers that Dr. Jenks married a woman named Julia A. Hamilton in the year 1806 in Hamilton, Butler County, Ohio. It goes on to show that the couple had three children: Judith (b. 1837), Freeman (b. 1839), and Harriet Ann (1841-1929). I have found nothing about any of these individuals in searching records galore. I feel somewhat confident in stating that the family historian that posted this either holds the only key, or is completely mistaken as Jenks’ obituary makes no mention of a former wife or children. I'm leaning towards the latter, especially after discovering that Jenks' brother, Stephen B. Jenks, moved to East Hamilton, NY, married a woman named Julia Ann, and had children named Judith and Freeman.

I do know that W. D. Jenks came to Frederick in the late 1820’s, likely 1828, as his obituary dated 1877 says that he had spent nearly half a century in the western Maryland town of ours. I performed hours of additional research at the Maryland Room of C. Burr Artz Library hoping to discover his exact arrival. Sadly, the particular microfilm reel of the Frederick Town Herald newspaper facsimiles dating from summer 1827-mid fall 1830 is missing from the collection, and has been for years.

​Although this is conjecture, I feel that Dr. Jenks simply answered the call of local residents here looking for a dentist and moreso, a dental surgeon. In perusing earlier newspapers, I happened to find an advertisement dating from 1824 heralding the services being offered by an early dental physician named D. Asher of Philadelphia. It appears that Dr. Asher was simply an itinerant professional who set up “shop” during his stays at Frederick in the home of a Miss Crables (likely Miss Graybill) on W. Patrick Street.
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I saw no other dentist advertisements in local newspapers until I saw an immediate ad for Dr. Jenks on the front page of the first newspaper I scrolled to within the ensuing microfilm reel (after the missing reel).

One year later, famed Frederick diarist Jacob Engelbrecht mentions our New England physician in an entry that dates to October 4th, 1831:

“This day I had a jaw tooth extracted by Doctor W. D. Jenks. It was the 3rd from behind on the lower right jaw. It is the first I had extracted, except when I was a boy and then did it with thread & a sudden jerk. I had the next hind one plugged by Doctor Jenks on the 16 October & one filed.”
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I would see several other advertisements in the years to follow.

​Of particular interest was a small mention in the January 4th, 1834 edition of the Frederick Town Herald which sheds light on the fact that like the previously mentioned Dr. Asher of Philadelphia, Dr. Jenks apparently took his talents out on the road.

Dr. Jenks continued to serve the Frederick community throughout the 1830s, a decade that saw plenty of town growth and passers through as the National Pike was busier than ever with rushing stage coaches, settlers in large wagons heading westward, and travelers and livestock coming eastward along with valuable trade items and natural resources from the burgeoning Ohio River valley. The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad had arrived in town in 1831, changing the transportation landscape forever.
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Jenks continued to live and run his practice in hotels of town, Capt. Nicholas Turbott’s Tavern at first and later Talbott’s Tavern, operated by Joseph Talbott. This latter hostelry was located at the northeast corner of W. Patrick and Court streets, diagonally across from the Frederick County Courthouse of today. The site had hosted Gen. Lafayette back in 1824 and would gain later fame as the City Hotel before its removal in the early 20th century to make way for the Francis Scott Key Hotel. 

In my researching endeavors for this story, I found an article published in 1968 in which the managing staff of the Frederick News-Post became recipients of a booklet containing copies of several letters written by Dr. Jenks to relatives living in East Hamilton, New York, home to Dr. Jenks’ brother Stephen B. Jenks.
In one of these letters, written in 1831, Jenks estimated that Frederick had a population of 5,000. He mentioned that the city had eight churches and that there was “an elegant and expensive iron railing” around the Court House. According to Jenks:

“Frederick had a flourishing Academy for the education of boys, and also a Catholic Seminary and an Orphan Asylum operated under the direction of the Sisters of Charity.”
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In describing the citizenry, many of whom made up his customer base, Dr. Jenks reported:
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“A stranger on visiting Frederick County would discover little of that urbanity of manners so fascinating in the warm hearted Southerner; they are, however, sober, industrious and frugal; but the want of a system of general education is deeply felt.” 

Jenks said that he had never known business so dull, and he regarded the farmers as an unusually fortunate and happy class of people at that time. He went on to write: “The farmer, who is free from debt and can raise his own bread and meat is your most independent man after all, and must be the happiest.”

Perhaps this last shared impression was the impetus for William D. Jenks to make a very interesting move in the late 1830s? In April, 1837, the local newspaper reveled in reporting to its readers:
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“Dr. Wm. D. Jenks has planted this Spring in the vicinity of this town, 20,000 white mulberry trees. On the growth of one year, for the purpose of feeding silk worms, and purpose of planting the same number next year."

Jacob Engelbrecht would shed a bit more light on the progress of the enterprising tooth expert with an entry written into his diary on July 2nd, 1838:
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“Silk Worms—Messrs. William D. Jenks & Lewis Ramsburgh have a cocoonry at the barracks and their mulberry trees next to the barracks field. I saw them yesterday. Nearly mature they have about worms, this is the first year.”
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Of course, the barracks referred to the Frederick “Hessian” Barracks located today on the campus of Maryland School for the Deaf, just a stone’s throw from Mount Olivet’s front gate.

​The process, as demonstrated by Dr. Jenks’ actions, begins with the mulberry tree and the silkworm, which is a type of caterpillar. The silkworm prefers a diet of mulberry leaves, and produces a cocoon which, when unraveled, can be spun into silk thread. In case you are curious, silk production is called sericulture.
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Historians trace the origins of what has been coined the “Mulberry Mania” or the “Multicaulis Craze” of the 1830s to an 1826 Congressional report. This stated that too much money was being spent on imported silk and that, to remedy this, the feasibility of domestic production should be explored. The result of this investigation was a 220-page illustrated manual published in 1828 by the U.S. Treasury Department.
 
Following the federal lead, state legislatures took up the issue of silk production. Back in Dr. Jenks’ native state, the House of Representatives of Massachusetts actually passed a resolution in 1831 that a treatise be compiled that would contain “the best information respecting the growth of the mulberry tree, with suitable directions for the culture of silk.” The author of this work, Jonathan H. Cobb of Dedham, MA had experience in sericulture and claimed that he was able to produce $100 worth of silk a week year-round. Cobb’s promise enticed farmers with visions of silk production as the surest way to “acquire so much [income], with so little capital and labor.”
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Mr. Cobb also pitched silk production as a means of alleviating rural poverty. Cobb envisioned self-sustaining towns run silk farms, suggesting that “paupers” and students provide the labor. This manual also predicted ample funds would be available for public works and schools “if all the highways in the country towns were ornamented with a row of mulberry trees.” By the end of the decade, thousands of volumes had been printed and this wildly popular work had gone through four editions.

Similar works were published up and down the east coast. In 1836, F. G. Comstock, a Hartford, Connecticut seed dealer, published A Practical Treatise on the Culture of Silk, his own contribution to a growing body of work that sought to promote the planting of mulberries. With the fertile ground of imagined riches thus well prepared, the introduction of a new mulberry tree from China was the seed that allowed a bout of wild agricultural speculation to take root.

Around 1830 a new variety of mulberry was introduced in America from France. It was known as Morus multicaulis, for its habit of sending up multiple sprouts from the base. This variety also had very large leaves and was said to be the secret behind the Chinese success at silk production.
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Nurserymen in several northeastern states began to grow the trees in great quantities. At the height of the bubble, young mulberry trees sold for up to $5 each, while the going rate for trees of other species was thirty to fifty cents apiece. Mulberries are fast growing, as well as easily cloned from both softwood and hardwood cuttings, so a skilled propagator was able to realize great profits.

​The dizzying heights which the speculation reached caused an insatiable demand for the multicaulis mulberry. In hindsight, it is clear that that market speculation drove the price of the mulberry trees well beyond the value of any silk which might be produced from the leaves. Indeed, none of the accounts from the period tell of any but theoretical profit made from silk farming, but instead of equal parts lucky and wily nurseryman who were able to capitalize on the craze.
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Dr. Jenks and Mr. Ramsburg also had the State of Maryland behind them as can be seen by proceedings in the Maryland General Assembly session of 1840. In January, the silkworm entrepreneurs received the permission necessary to utilize the Hessian Barracks for their endeavor. 

John Thomas Scharf wrote in his History of Western Maryland (published in 1882):
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“From 1840 and for several years afterwards a portion of the Barracks (which belonged to the State) were used by special permission of the Legislature by Messrs. Jenks & Ramsburg as a cocoonery. They had a white mulberry orchard, consisting of ten acres, in an adjoining lot. The State granted them the use of the Barracks buildings to test the experiment of silk-culture, then creating so much discussion throughout the country. W. D. Jenks began operations and planted his trees in 1837. Feb. 28, 1840, the reels were put up. During the year sewing silk was made equal to that of foreign manufacture. After the flyer was in operation, gold-stripe vesting was manufactured in considerable quantities.

​With Jenks and Ramsburg leasing the Barracks, silk worms were being raised on the second floor. It has been said that results for this local endeavor were not commercially promising, although enough silk was produced in 1843 that a pair of silk stockings was woven by Buck, a prominent stocking weaver based on Patrick street. Supposedly, the following year featured silk being sent to the penitentiary, where a vest was woven, but this was the peak of the silk industry in Frederick County.

Another resident of town wrote on the subject of the Frederick cocoonery, present in her youth. This was Catherine Susanna Thomas Markell (1828-1900) who wrote an unpublished manuscript entitled "Short Stories of Life in Frederick in the 1830s." Mrs. Markell wrote in her memoir:

"An orchard of thrifty white mulberry trees, covering ten acres, flourished on the sunny eastern slope. The greatest interest was manifested by citizens of all classes and for us children, the whole procedure possessed an inexpressable fascination. Imagination exhausted itself in varied speculations as to what new phase would be next developed. With unbounded admiration, we regarded the huge hampers of glistening, white, yellow and orange-colored cocoons, and when, after undergoing a heating process for the destruction of the grub, interminable lengths of soft gossamer fibre were wound smoothly off the great reels or flyers, our delight defied control.

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In wonderment akin to awe, we watched the mysterious advent of the butterflies and the dainty things emerged, one after another, from their pretty oval prisons and hovered o'er the mulberry foliage strewn about on long plank tables. Upon these leaves the tiny eggs were deposited and upon them also the larvae subsequently fed. The moth, in its exit from the sheath, severed many strands of its fibre, thus rendering the cocoon in a measure worthless for reeling, though an uneven, lustre-less thread, known as "spun-silk" was often fabricated from these "cut" cocoons and used for knitting purposes."

Like all bubbles, the "Mulberry Mania" of the 1830s grew and grew until it popped. Precipitating events for the rapid deflation of the industry nationally can be blamed on a blight which wreaked havoc on newly-planted mulberry orchards in 1839, along with a particularly hard winter in 1844, to which many surviving trees succumbed. These two calamities offered a moment of clarity to farmers who had been swept up in the craze. This helped prove the point that silk production was not viable on a large scale in America. Too many factors, from climate, to the necessary labor and the knowledge of the production process were hurdles too large to surmount. By the time the market crashed, nurseries could not even sell a bundle of a hundred mulberry trees for a dollar.
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The operation at the barracks likely ceased by 1843, opening the opportunity for the grounds to be used easily with the large military encampment under Gen. Scott. Luckily, Dr. Jenks had a legitimate, and proven, career to fall back on. He continued to operate on teeth and create smiles here in Frederick. It’s just a shame he didn’t have the foresight to see the possibility of silk dental floss, embodied today by the product named Dental Lace.

​Dr. Jenks was a member of the Columbia (Masonic) Lodge #58, and served as a Methodist church trustee although he identified more closely with the Unitarian Universalist religion.  He also busied himself with politics. In fact, Jenks’ obituary shares that he was among the small minority who supported (and voted for) Abraham Lincoln in the presidential election of 1860. He personally cast one of 2,294 votes for the future “Great Emancipator.” Many are surprised to learn that Lincoln only received 2.48% of the popular vote statewide, finishing last behind three other candidates: John Breckinridge (42,482 votes), John Bell (41,760 votes), and Stephen Douglas (5,966).
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Well, Dr. Jenks’ support did not go unnoticed as he was aptly rewarded after President Lincoln took office. This came in the form of an appointment as Frederick’s new Post Master.

Dr. Jenks would conduct this job with great pride until having to step down for health reasons in 1865. I presume the assassination of his political icon that same year didn’t help matters either.
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Two years later, health setbacks forced a retirement from the dental business. 

The former New Englander would be buried in Mount Olivet’s Area F/Lot 5. He had bought two adjoining plots when the cemetery was created in the early 1850s. With no family buried in the vicinity, his monument is surrounded by a nice green-space. It almost begs to ask a final, and befitting, question: “Is there room to plant a few mulberry trees?”

One of the hottest movies in theaters currently (at the time of this writing) is simply entitled 1917. We will continue to hear about this critically acclaimed work in coming months as it has already garnered Academy Award® consideration. The feature is an epic war film directed, co-written and produced by Sam Mendes and based in part on an account told to Mendes by his paternal grandfather, Alfred Mendes, a veteran of World War I. The movie chronicles the story of two young British soldiers during the war who are given a mission to deliver a message that warns of a suspected ambush during a skirmish, soon after the German retreat to the Hindenburg Line during Operation Alberich in 1917.

The grave importance of message carrying in warfare cannot be understated. The common name applied to these brave souls was that of a “runner,” a soldier responsible for passing on messages between fronts during war. In the era before electronic communication innovations in warfare, battlefield administrators needed to share intelligence among one another in highly stressful, chaotic and rapidly changing situations. It was certainly a matter of life and death, as the lives of countless soldiers were at stake based on the safe transport of either questions or answers by the runner. Things could go horribly wrong with a lack of communication, a mistake, or an incorrect presumption made without the aid of military intelligence or observation.
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As can be easily imagined, this was a very dangerous job. The movie will certainly demonstrate this fact if you don’t believe me. World War I was dominated by trench warfare. With such, there was a tremendous need for runners. Passing messages between the trenches was not possible without climbing up to ground level and running towards the other trench. While on the ground, the soldier was hampered by weather conditions. The track was not ideal and full of obstacles, oftentimes forcing the soldier to sprint through smoke and chemical-weapon gasses, while on a muddy, or artillery riddled, track. Add to this the fact that runners were completely exposed to enemy sharpshooters, and it was commonplace for participants to die before reaching their destination. Officers could not be sure that a message had reached its recipient unless the runner managed to return.

Last year was the anniversary of the end of the Great War, which prompted me to write stories on some of Mount Olivet Cemetery’s 500+ veterans of that conflict alone who are buried here. Many know that we have Charlotte Berry Winters here, who at the time of her death at age 109, was the last female veteran of the war to pass. We also have 13 soldiers who died during the war in active service. Some died in combat, and others due to the terrible Spanish Flu pandemic.
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One specific Frederick World War I vet, (today buried in our midst here in the cemetery) survived combat and the flu to return to the States and live a productive life. He was a bugler in the US Army’s Company A of the 115th Infantry Regiment, part of the famed 29th Division. Company A, started right here in Frederick. This gentleman’s name was William Theodore Kreh, Sr.—and he was a runner.

​Known by the nickname of “Whitey,” William Theodore Kreh Sr. was born on July 21st, 1897 in Frederick, the son of Theodore Christian Kreh and Ada Mae Stull. The family had 11 children and Mr. Kreh was an accomplished stone mason. The family lived at 239 W. 5th Street on Frederick’s south side at the time of William T.’s enlistment into service at the age of 20. 

​He had joined the National Guard and was assigned to the 115th Regiment and Frederick’s Company A was based here in Frederick at the Armory located at the corner of Bentz and W. Second streets. As a matter of fact, the armory had been built in 1913, the third of a series of similar armories built for the Maryland National Guard in the early 20th century. Up until his time of deployment, he worked as a brushmaker at the Ox Fibre Brush Company.

The following passage comes from the Regimental History of the 115th and paints a picture of what William T. Kreh experienced during his military service.

​Under command of Major General Charles G. Norton, the division was sent to Camp McClellan, near Anniston, Alabama, in August 1917. It spent ten months there in training before being shipped to France. On arrival at the front the division was given responsibility for a "quiet" sector on the German-Swiss border; its mission was to control the Belfort Gap. After two months in that position, the Blue and Gray division was sent north on September 22, 1918, to take part in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. The men of the division went "over the top" for the first time on October 8. In twenty-one consecutive days in the front line trenches they advanced six miles at a cost of 4,781 casualties, including 1,053 killed or died of wounds. The 29th sector was south of the Heights of the Meuse. The mission was to storm those heights attacking the entrenched positions of the Hindenberg Line with its pillboxes and machine gun nests. The division helped to take the Consenvoye Heights and the Borne de Cornouilles (Corned Willy Hill). On November 11, when the Armistice was declared, the 29th division was marching back to the line to join the Second (U.S.) Army's drive against the forts at Metz. 

William T. Kreh had recently married Amy Ford before making the trek to Alabama. Musical talents earned him a prestigious job as Company A’s bugler.  This would put him in close proximity to the command element throughout the war.

Like the runner, bugler was a hazardous position in any infantry unit—and often times one in the same. In addition to the standard Reveille and Taps calls, the bugler blurted out command signals for the troops during action. To do so required him to stand tall and play the instrument with great force so all could hear over the rattling of machine guns and the explosions of artillery shells. In doing this, he represented a perfect target for the enemy. Cutting off lines of communication in war was an essential objective for the enemy, and I’m sure William T. Kreh was well aware of this fact.

​On arrival at the front, the division was given responsibility for a "quiet" sector on the German-Swiss border with its mission to control the Belfort Gap.

​After two months in that position, the Blue and Gray Division was sent north to France on September            22nd, 1918, to relieve the soldiers on the frontlines northwest of Verdun taking part in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. The men of the division went "over the top" (of the trenches) for the first time on October 8th. In twenty-one consecutive days in the frontline trenches they advanced six miles at a cost of 4,781 casualties, including 1,053 killed or died of wounds. The 29th sector was south of the Heights of the Meuse.                                

​Up until the 8th of October, William T. Kreh and his colleagues of the 29th had been encamped in the Valley of the Meuse, waiting for orders to attack. Mustard gas created depression among the troops. Of all the death and destruction, the area of Molleville Farm would prove the bloodiest and fiercest. The locale was a key position in the German defenses during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. The farm was attacked on October 8th, by the 29th, who finally took the woods around the farm over a week later on October 16th at a cost of 3,936 casualties. 

Several Frederick doughboys fought in a fierce and decisive battle, as this action would become a deciding turning point in World War I. Going across this land, the soldiers not only fought the Germans but also the horrible conditions of the trenches located so close that one could hear their enemies talking to each other. Other inhabitants of the trenches were rats and vermin.

William T. Kreh would be given an assignment at the Molleville Farm, one that would receive great praise from a fellow Fredericktonian, Major D. John Markey (1872-1963), commander of the 112th Machine Gun Battalion of the 1st Maryland Infantry Regiment. He eventually took command of the 115th Regiment, and eventually rose to the rank of brigadier general, and served on the General Staff of the Army. In a letter written in January, 1919, Major Markey, an original founder of Frederick’s Company A, was quick to heap praise on the former unit he helped create. The letter was published in the February 21st, 1919 edition of the Frederick News:
 
“Company A, 115th and the community can well be proud of the record they have made. One of their members, “Whitey” Kreh, a bugler of the company carried a message for me at the battle of Molleville Farm, an important message from the frontlines back to headquarters through an unusually heavy barrage.”

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find much more on Kreh’s heroics at Molleville Farm on October 15th, however his action under fire would not go unnoticed by the top brass as they say. On November 11th, when the Armistice was declared, the 29th Division was marching back to the line to join the Second (U.S.) Army's drive against the forts at Metz. The Armistice put an end to the war—the Allies were victorious. Kreh and the men of Company A would return home that spring, and Kreh officially wrapped up his service with the 115th on May 24th, 1919, receiving his honorable discharge.
 
William T. Kreh would receive the AEF Citation for Gallantry in Action for his role in delivering important messages through an intense bombardment. This award is more commonly referred to as the Silver Star. His citation, dated June 3, 1919, reads as follows:
 
“By direction of the President, under the provisions of the act of Congress approved July 9, 1918 (Bul. No. 43, W.D., 1918), Bugler William T. Kreh (ASN: 1283806), United States Army, is cited by the Commanding General, American Expeditionary Forces, for gallantry in action and a silver star may be placed upon the ribbon of the Victory Medals awarded him. Bugler Kreh distinguished himself by gallantry in action while serving with Company A, 115th Infantry Regiment, 29th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, in action in the Verdun Sector, France, 15 October 1918, in delivering important messages through an intense bombardment.​
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In doing some more research, I found that the bugler’s mission in World War I would be replaced in the coming years by more advanced communication equipment and procedures.

​Once back home in Frederick, William T. Kreh took up residence with wife Amy at 110 W. 5th Street. They would have two sons: Robert and William T. Kreh, Jr. By 1930, the Kreh family can be found living at 110 McMurray Street and William was still employed as a machinist and Ox Fibre.  I saw several articles that show Kreh’s involvement in the local American Legion Post and was a charter member of Veterans of Foreign Wars, John R. Webb Post, No. 3285. In addition, it seemed commonplace for him to be regularly   given the honor of performing as bugler for military holiday events and on veteran funeral details here at Mount Olivet and other local churches. 

​By the year 1941, America was heading into a Second World War. William T. Kreh, Sr. was involved in the war effort again, this time as an employee working at the Washington Navy Yard within the Personnel Department. 

​His obituary says that he was actively involved in local athletics, primarily officiating games—a perfect hobby for a former bugler. He even served as a former president of the National Baseball Umpires Association. Kreh became ill in the late 1940’s and would slowly become debilitated by this malady. He spent his final months at the Newton D. Baker Veterans Hospital in Martinsburg, WV, dying of a heart attack on November 30th, 1956. His death and obituary made the front page of the local paper.

​William T. Kreh is buried in Mount Olivet’s Area P/Lot 198. His wife Amy would pass in 1968. Other family members reside here too.

It's only fair to ponder the question: "Was Taps played at the former runner's funeral? And if so, who played the bugle?" ........................................................................It didn't take long to answer that question.

Early last year, I wrote an article about one of our most noteworthy residents of Mount Olivet—Claire McCardell. Born in 1905, McCardell revolutionized the fashion industry in the field of casual women’s wear with her work and designs in the 1930s, 40s and 50s. A monument of this Frederick native was commissioned by the Frederick Art Club in 2019 with the intent of being placed along Carroll Creek in 2021.
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Claire McCardell (Harris) was a New York City resident at the time of her death in 1958. She is fondly remembered by her alma maters, Frederick’s Hood College and the Parsons School of Design in New York City.

​A very nice collection of her garments is located at the Museum of the City of New York. Apparently, Ms. McCardell was also a keen consultant of historic costume within this same museum’s collections. She often gained inspiration here for her own work, along with items found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute.

Last February, I was contacted by a gentleman named William DeGregorio, a PhD Candidate of Bard Graduate Center in New York. Mr. DeGregorio was currently working on a dissertation involving the history of the Museum of the City of New York and sent me an email as part of his research quest. Interestingly, his query had nothing to do with Claire McCardell, but rather an interesting contemporary who was not a fellow designer, but like Claire, had distinct connections to Frederick, the fashion industry, and the NYC Museum. Best of all, both women are buried and memorialized here in Mount Olivet Cemetery. DeGregorio’s person of interest was a lady named V. Isabelle Miller.
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It is highly likely that Miss Miller knew Claire McCardell, because of her profession—as Miller was the Museum of the City of New York’s first curator of costume. She worked for the museum essentially from its inception in 1925 until her retirement in 1963. The extra novelty in this fact is that like McCardell, V. Isabelle Miller was a pioneering woman in a field and position traditionally held by men at the time. 

The museum was first founded in 1923 by Henry Collins Brown, a Scottish-born writer with a vision for a populist approach to telling New York City's rich story. The original home of the museum, and Ms. Miller's place of employment, was Gracie Mansion at 89th Street and East End Ave. The former estate is encompassed within Carl Schurz Park overlooking the East River. It would eventually become the future residence of the mayor of New York City, but at that time was a historic home owned by the Parks Department. The museum would move from this location in 1932, having outgrown its space.

​Mr. DeGregorio was looking for anything he could on V. Isabelle Miller, but encountered “road blocks” immediately as little archival information exists on her at the NYC Museum, combined with the fact that she essentially disappears from any records shortly after her retirement. However, the PhD candidate stumbled upon a clue when conducting a routine Google search. He found a V. Isabelle Miller buried in Frederick, Maryland’s Mount Olivet Cemetery on the immensely popular Find a Grave website.

For those not familiar with this incredible internet offering and genealogical tool, Find a Grave is an American website that allows the public to search and add to an online database of cemetery records. It is owned by Ancestry.com. The site was created in 1995 by Salt Lake City resident Jim Tipton to support his hobby of visiting the burial sites of celebrities. He later added an online forum. Find a Grave was launched as a commercial entity in 1998, first as a trade name and then incorporated in 2000. The site later expanded to include graves of non-celebrities, in order to allow online visitors to pay respect to their deceased relatives or friends.
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Find a Grave receives and uploads digital photographs of headstones from burial sites, taken by unpaid volunteers at cemeteries. These volunteers then post the photos on its website, and add vital information taken from the stones themselves or cemetery records. In some cases, photos and obituaries of the deceased are added, along with links to family members in either the same, or different, cemeteries. As of October 2017, Find a Grave contained over 165 million burial records and 75 million photos. If you want to check out what Mr. DeGregorio found on his search, click the link below to view Miss Miller’s Find a Grave page:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/24391102/v-isabelle-miller

I was able to confirm Miller’s interment here and supplied William with a few other tidbits in our scant records on the decedent. She is buried on Area G/Lot 201, directly across from Confederate Row, a prime landmark within our cemetery of 40,000+ interments. William then aided me with what he had been able to ascertain on this virtually unknown resident of Mount Olivet and forgotten to the local history annals of Frederick as well. Here is a passage from our email correspondence last February:
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“Chris, thank you for confirming that this is indeed our Miss Miller, who has so far eluded us. I am also grateful for the information on her family. My question now is how she ended up in NYC? She was briefly employed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the early 1920s before being hired at MCNY in 1926 to oversee costumes, silver, and toys. She published a seminal catalogue on New York silversmiths in 1937, which is still widely consulted, and remained with the museum until 1963. There are a few mentions of her in the papers in 1964 but between that point and her death I am not sure where she was.” 

​Her legacy at the museum can be seen in the incredible collection amassed today, something she began almost a century ago. Here is link to the costume collection alone on the museum’s website:
https://www.mcny.org/collections/costume-textiles

I painstakingly found two pictures of Ms. Miller. One featured her playing a piano and was within an old newspaper from the 1920s. The other was a passport photo from a document on Ancestry.com. 

I was able to glean a few more things now that William had sparked my interest in this individual. In our cemetery records, it says that Miss Miller died at Westwood, NJ and her occupation was museum curator. Her vital dates were 6/28/1892-1/05/1980.  V. Isabelle’s mother, Elizabeth (Bantz) Miller, is also buried here in the same lot at Mount Olivet, along with her grandfather, Algernon Sydney Bantz.

Elizabeth Miller died 9/12/1953 but we don't have a birth date on file. The record just says she died at age 90 in New York City. Our records say that Harvey P. Miller is buried in Westchester County, NY at Kensico Cemetery in Valhalla. V. Isabelle's brother, Haydock Harvey Miller (1888-1976), is also buried at Kensico with his father.
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I was interested to see that Algernon Sydney Bantz moved to Missouri, and that the Miller family was in St. Louis in the year 1900 according to the US census. This also told me that the "V" (V. Isabelle) stood for Violet, a fact that William DeGregorio did not have.

​The Bantz's had deep roots in Frederick going back to our founding in the mid 1700s. Violet Isabelle's great-grandfather was Gideon Bantz, a tanyard operator and huge proponent for farming and our early agricultural society which put on the first county fairs and expositions. I saw that Gideon's son, Algernon Sydney, worked as a tanner at his father’s operation until moving to Missouri. He had married Isabella Porter here in Frederick in 1853.

The couple seemed to have left for the Midwest shortly after they wed, because their first child (Gideon) was born in 1854 in St. Louis, Missouri. Census records show Algernon Sydney holding the occupation of railroad contractor in 1860, and miner in 1870. He was actually in Sacramento, CA in 1868 for some reason, likely having to do with one of those two professions, I suppose.

​As cemetery historian and preservation manager for Mount Olivet, I had written an earlier "Stories in Stone" piece a while back that touches on Algernon’s father, Gideon Bantz.
http://www.mountolivetcemeteryinc.com/stories-in-stone-blog/early-organizers-of-frederick-agriculture

​Gideon operated the Bantz Mill, which once stood on the north bank of Carroll Creek on the west side of Brewer’s Alley. This thoroughfare is known as Court Street today, and the former location in which Algernon Sydney worked as tanner is now the vicinity and home of the Citizens Truck Company, volunteer fire company. Heritage Frederick (former Historical Society of Frederick County) has a few photos of the early mill dating to the 1890’s at which time a fire had destroyed a warehouse.

​To review, Violet Isabelle Miller was the daughter of Harvey [Henry] P. Miller of St. Louis and Elizabeth Bantz (1862-1953). They married on September 28th, 1886 in Frederick, likely at Evangelical Lutheran Church. Elizabeth was the daughter of Algernon Sidney Bantz (1824-1894), a Frederick native who moved to St. Louis with wife Isabella (both also buried in Mount Olivet).

 I found the following mentions of V. Isabelle Miller in newspapers of the era. 

​Violet Isabella Miller never married. She retired in 1963 as mentioned earlier. She lived her final years in Westwood, NJ, located in Bergen County. She died in 1980 and was buried here in Mount Olivet with her mother and grandparents in Area G. Her great-grandfather’s obelisk towers above the family plot. Sadly, I haven’t located an obituary for this woman as yet, truly ironic because you think a museum curator would want to leave a record of herself.

​Thanks again to Mr. DeGregorio, the PhD candidate who made me look differently at these family graves which I pass by each morning.

For longtime readers of this blog, many know that we have definitive proof that the cemetery was visited by at least one sitting US president, William Howard Taft. Others could have made unpublicized or after-hours visits, while several ranging from George Washington and Ulysses S. Grant to Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman passed within feet of the front gate traveling the old Georgetown Pike.
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We at least know of President Taft’s trip here on November 15th, 1911. He was in Frederick to address the Maryland Boards of Trade at the old City Opera House, and his visit culminated by laying a wreath on Francis Scott Key’s gravesite, where the iconic monument had been placed just 13 years earlier. Of course, Key’s name is synonymous with our flag and it was none other than President Taft who signed an executive order in 1912 that officially standardized the American flag with thirteen stripes and 48 stars positioned into six horizontal rows of eights, with each star pointing upward. Of course, the design would later be altered with the additions of Alaska and Hawaii.

An article in the Frederick paper the day prior talked at length about the security for the event. Specifically, it mentions a small force of detectives who arrived in town in advance of Taft’s visit, along with a contingent of nine mounted policeman from Baltimore to guard the President along with his additional secret service entourage. When conducting research, I was hoping to find the name of John Groff, a Frederick native who spent his career in law enforcement, and spent the last two and a half years as a member of the guard staff of the White House. One of events that may have elevated him to this great position lies in the fact that he is credited with possibly saving a former sitting president’s life thanks to his actions.
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John Groff was born on April 19th, 1861, the son of Captain Joseph Groff and wife Susan Christiana Smith. I explained a bit of this family’s illustrious story in an article published May 6th, 2019 and entitled “From Flowers to Fisticuffs.”   

John’s parents are known in the annals of Frederick history as prominent hoteliers and local heroes of the Civil War. The Groffs ran the Arlington House, located on N. Market Street during the turbulent era of the 1860’s. John’s father was a shrewd businessman who also ran a brickyard and dabbled in real estate acquisition.

The Groffs would sell the Arlington House and operate the aptly named Groff House, a prime Frederick hostelry, at the site of the fountain atop N. Market Street where it intersected with 7th Street. A fine parking lot (sarcasm alert) adorns the former site of this grand structure that also served as the first home for WFMD radio station.

As for John, he was set on working in law enforcement, and his large frame suited him for the occupation. In the 1870 census, I found a gentleman named F. W. Schleigh, a police officer, who was a neighbor of the Groffs, living two doors down on N. Market Street. Perhaps he could have served as a role model and inspiration to John Groff in his youth.

A family legend shared by genealogist Alice L. Luckhardt holds that John Groff was content to be Frederick’s jailer, looking after prisoners incarcerated in the town’s “pokey.” He married Caroline Miller in the early 1890’s and had a child, Charles J., who sadly died as an infant aged seven and a half months.

​John also split his time as a farmer. His property is said to have laid just outside Frederick City and he specialized in raising horses. This was likely the area in proximity to Groff Park, maybe the location of today’s Selwyn Farms development at W. 7th Street and Fairview Avenue. Groff would become a sheriff’s deputy here in Frederick but was destined to leave at the turn of the century, taking a job with the Washington D.C. police department on May 3rd, 1901. The 1900 census claims that Groff lived in Emmitsburg at the time of his hiring which prompted a relocation.

John Groff was given many duties with the force in the nation’s capital. Among his first was that as a crossing guard at 9th street and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. His residence was a farm on the outskirts of DC. Eventually he would move into a townhouse located at 1228 N Street (NW) and put the farm up for sale arounf 1919.  I found some of his work exploits recorded for posterity in the local DC papers.

Nothing out of the ordinary really highlights the life of John Groff until the year 1913,  just about two years after President Taft’s visit to Mount Olivet. Taft was no longer in office, having been defeated by Woodrow Wilson in the presidential election of 1912. The new commander-in-chief took the oath of office on March 4th and one of his most pressing issues was monitoring events in Europe as we would slowly be drawn into the First World War.

​Apparently, President Wilson liked to relieve stress by taking evening walks in the vicinity of the presidential mansion. The following passage comes from Alice Luckhardt’s family history entitled Legends Family Stories and Myths: How to Discover Fact from Fiction:

Although it’s not known whether Officer Groff was awarded anything at the time, the incident could have been fondly remembered at the time of his interview or selection for a post at the White House seven years later—or simply good karma paying him back. Another talent that probably played in Groff’s favor was his background in farming, and especially in dealing with livestock. This would prove valuable since the president had kept a flock of sheep at the presidential mansion. The sheep were brought here in the spring of 1918, at the height of our involvement in World War I, and grazed on the White House Lawn.
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After America entered World War I, the sheep helped to save manpower by keeping the grass trimmed. It’s not exactly known who came up with the idea, but Dr. Cary Grayson contacted his horse racing friend Wiliam Woodward about getting some sheep for the president. Woodward sent along a small flock from his farm in Maryland by wagon. 

​Woodward understood that the idyllic appearance of sheep grazing on the lawn was part of the appeal of the project. Eventually, however, the flock was sheared, and two pounds of wool was given to each state.  With governors acting as auctioneers, the wool was sold to the highest bidders and the proceeds donated to the Red Cross War Fund.

In 1920, John and Mamie Groff can be found living at 1200 Fairmont Street in the northwest part of the district.

​Sadly, John Groff’s employ at the White House was short-lived. Earlier that year, President Wilson had left office after two terms. Warren G. Harding was Groff’s big boss now. In the early afternoon hours of December 14th, 1921, Officer Groff was in the location of the White House basement. Here he suffered what would be diagnosed as a heart attack. He would die within twenty minutes, surprisingly before the arrival of a physician. Groff, described by family members as a robust man, had known health and heart issues. He would die in his 60th year. 

​John Groff’s body was brought back to his hometown by train on the 15th, and a viewing was held at the Groff House at N. Market and W. 7th streets. On the 16th of December, John Groff was buried in the Groff family plot in Mount Olivet’s Area L/Lot 247. People walk by his gravestone each and everyday, as I, myself, have several times in the past, having no idea that American history could have been altered had John Groff not done his part to keep Woodrow Wilson out of harm’s way on that September evening in 1913.

​This time of year, visions of classic dancers can easily be had. Whether it’s the Rockettes performing their annual Christmas Show at New York’s Rockefeller Center, Tchaikovsky’s immortal Nutcracker Suite put on by a local theater company, or simply an old television rerun of a Lawrence Welk Christmas special.

The car radio, grocery store Muzak and holiday sing-a-longs can also conjure up visions of dancers and dancing. The classic Christmas carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas” features a ninth day boasting “nine dancers dancing.” I think most of us appreciate this holiday staple for the challenge of singing it, more than anything else. It’s somewhat reminiscent of the traditional reverse counting folk song of anonymous nature— “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall.” However, spiked eggnog is more of an accompanying drink du jour to “Twelve Days” over plain old beer at a “spirited” yuletide party. 

​For those not familiar, “The Twelve Days of Christmas” is an English Christmas carol that lists a series of increasingly grand gifts given on each of the twelve days of Christmas (the twelve days that make up the Christmas season, starting with Christmas Day). It does this in a playful, cumulative manner.

​The song is thought to be of French origin and was actually published in England in 1780 without music. Instead it began simply as a chant or rhyme. The standard tune now associated with it is derived from a 1909 arrangement of a traditional folk melody by English composer Frederic Austin.

​This week’s “Story in Stone” is about a former Frederick couple who constituted a dancing team that were well-known to locals and vaudeville audiences of yore across the country. They were known as “The Professor and Mrs. Karl Von Rabe.” Their full names were Karl Emil Rabe and Nora Jane (Deter) Rabe and they rest in peace in the shadow of a large oak tree on the southwest corner of Mount Olivet’s Area R. The first day I first visited their gravesite, I was entertained to see falling leaves “dance” across their grave monuments commonly known in the industry as “Hickey Markers.”  

​The  Rabes
Karl Emil Rabe was born October 5th, 1879 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He grew up learning the traditional dances of his home and surrounding countries in Europe. He came to America in October of 1898, settling in New York City. Karl married a Frederick girl named Nora Jane Deater a short time later on December 4th, 1900 in Troy, NY. According to naturalization papers filed a short time after, the Rabes lived at 305 W. 45th Street. In summer of that year, Nora born November 22nd, 1882) appears in the 1900 census living in Baltimore with siblings and listed her profession as that of an opera singer.

​In 1914, the Rabes were living in Chicago and employed as house artists in residence at the Bismarck Winter Garden, a prosperous dinner and dance club in “the Windy City.” This was the launch pad for them to become known as celebrated masters of dance. So much so, the Rabe’s were invited to attend a dancing masters’ convention in Cleveland, Ohio that summer. This chance opportunity led to national acclaim and attention for the couple as they soon became the darlings of the press. A wire feature in mid-July was done on the couple and their introduction of a new dance craze for the time entitled “The Aeroplane.” And to think of the novelty as the Wright brothers had done their thing only 11 years prior at Kitty Hawk. And in case you were wondering, the first airplane to land in Frederick occurred in 1911.  This article was published by hundreds of newspapers across the country.

​The following week newspapers featured the Rabes again with an illustrated article introducing “the Trasko Waltz.” A website entitled Sonny Watson’s Streetswing.com gives credit to the Rabes for introducing this ballroom dance here in the US. It was described as “basically a waltz with a pirouette” and said to be based on dances of Karl Rabe’s native home of Denmark.

​The Bismarck Gardens unto itself could have lent inspiration for our local Peter Pan Inn that inspired big band leader turned restaurateur, Richard Baumgartner. This once graced Urbana. In the case of Bismarck Gardens, the ethnic Germans of the old Lake View neighborhood of Chicago along with other parts of the city, liked to celebrate their heritage as it pertained to drinking.

Bismarck Gardens was located at the southwest corner of Grace and Halsted Streets in old District of Lake View. It opened in 1894 by brothers Emil and Karl Eitel to serve the sizable number of German-Americans living on Chicago's North Side. The park-sized space quickly became one of the city's most popular summertime beer gardens. It featured ample shade trees, electric lamps, an outdoor stage and dance floor, and plenty of beer and music. 

​An attractive entertainment hall was also built so to permit year-round operations. Bismarck Gardens did have issues with its neighbors much like the neighbors surrounding the venue—primarily parking and noise! Other issues that would severely impact the Rabes and their employment at the Bismarck over the next few years were World War I anti-German sentiment, labor strikes, and Prohibition Act of 1919. Bismarck Gardens had to renamed to Marigold Gardens by 1916, in response to rising anti-German sentiment in the city before and during the First World War.
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Speaking of the Great War, draft records (completed in early fall of 1918) show Karl Rabe’s completed form and lists him working as a vaudeville employee for the United Booking Company. Rabe recorded the Palace Theater on Broadway in New York City as his place of employment. At this time, he was living at 415 S. Market Street here in Frederick, however he registered in Savanna, Georgia.

​On Ancestry.com, I found records that show the Rabes visited Denmark in 1922 and in 1925, performed a tour in Australia. Outside of that, I haven’t been able to find any further articles or census records through the 1920s and 1930s. My hunch is that they were active in the Roaring Twenties but had to keep low profiles, and the Great Depression and 1930s provided lean opportunities for ballroom dance masters.
When the energetic couple decided to settle into retirement around 1940, the Rabes came back to Frederick and opened an antique shop at 47 E. Patrick Street—Nora Jane Antiques. The couple took up residence not far from Mount Olivet at 102 McMurray Street.

I found a small article announcing Karl Rabe’s illness and hospitalization at Frederick Hospital. It described the former dancer saying that he was best known around town by the nickname of “Karlie.” It went on to say: ”Mr. Rabe won the affection and respect of everyone with whom he met. His lively spirit and loving nature far surpassed any ordinary person."

Karl died March 31st, 1957. Nora Jane would only outlive her husband by nine years, passing on November 15th, 1966. Oh, to imagine the thrill and view from their perspective on the Bismarck Gardens dance floor back in the day performing to full houses in Chicago at Christmastime?

This certainly brings to mind the imagery and lyrics of another popular song about dancing during this holiday season. Performed by both Frank Sinatra and the amazing brother-sister vocal duo of the Carpenters, “The Christmas Waltz” is one of my personal favorites, and surely would have been enjoyed by Karl and Nora Jane had they had the chance to dance to it.
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It's that time of year when the world falls in love
Every song you hear seems to say
"Merry Christmas, may your New Year dreams come true"
And this song of mine in three-quarter time
Wishes you and yours the same thing too

(Author's Note: This story first was published in December 2019)
This week, we are readying for our second annual “go-round” of Wreaths Across America Day at Mount Olivet Cemetery here in Frederick on Saturday, December 14th. Along with the famed Arlington National Cemetery and 1,600 additional locations throughout the United States, and at sea and abroad, we are hosting an event in which volunteers and fundraising sponsorship partners will help enact the mission of Remembering, Honoring and Teaching through the placement of special wreaths on veteran graves.
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We have over 4,000 men and women buried here, having served in the US military and ranging from conflicts which include the American Revolution, War of 1812, the Mexican War, American Civil War, Spanish-American War, the World Wars, Korea and Vietnam. They are currently marked with small flaglets (since Veterans Day), something that also occurs here on Memorial Day thanks to our local Francis Scott Key Chapter of the American Legion. 

​Our goal is to have all of the graves marked by wreaths in future years, however we will be able to cover about one-third thanks to generous contributors who sponsored wreaths online or through our fundraising partners. Some of these groups include the Homewood at Frederick Auxiliary, Cub Scout Pack 287, American Heritage Girls Troop 3126, and the Upper Montgomery Composite Squadron Civil Air. 

Many know that there is another annual tradition with military-themed roots occurring on the same day this year as Wreaths Across America Day—the famed Army-Navy game. This annual football classic is one of the most traditional and enduring rivalries in college football. It involves a matchup between the Army Black Knights of the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, New York, and the Navy Midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy (USNA) at Annapolis, Maryland.
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The Black Knights (alternatively known as the "Cadets") and Midshipmen each represent their service's oldest officer commissioning sources. As such, the game has come to embody the spirit of the interservice rivalry of the United States Armed Forces. The first meeting was back in 1890. Today, the game marks the end of the college football regular season and the third and final game of the season's Commander-in-Chief's Trophy series, which also includes the Air Force Falcons of the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) near Colorado Springs, Colorado.

The game has been held in multiple locations, but outside the 1926 game in Chicago and 1983 game in Pasadena, California, it has been played in the Northeast, most frequently in Philadelphia, followed by the New York area and the Baltimore–Washington area. The series has been marked by several periods of domination by one team or the other, with Navy's 14-game winning streak from 2002 through 2015 being the longest for either side. Through the 2018 meeting, Navy leads the series 60–52–7, but has lost the last three games.
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A former Fredericktonian buried here in Mount Olivet will surely have his grave adorned with a wreath this weekend. Interestingly, he knew the Army-Navy game intimately and better than anybody in town. His name was Glenn C. Wilhide and he was a multi-time participant—as a player.

Born on June 30th, 1898 in Walkersville, Glenn Castle Wilhide was the son of David and Amanda Mae Hahn Wilhide. Young Glenn would attend, and graduate, from Boys’ High School, the predecessor to Frederick High School. He was a standout Frederick Cadet and athlete and went on to attend Gettysburg College just up the road from Frederick. He was here for one year and played football and baseball at Gettysburg, but I found out later from a news article that he wasn’t a starter while at Gettysburg. This would soon change.

​Glenn continued his education in 1918 by entering the United States Military Academy at West Point. Continuing to exhibit his athletic skills, Glenn not only played for the Black Knights varsity football and baseball teams. He played three years of football and four years of baseball. He served as team captain of the 1920 football team, and two years as captain of the baseball team. He played quarterback for the Knights in 1919 and 1920. Unfortunately, he did not celebrate victory over Navy on either occasion as his squad fell 6-0 and 7-0 in consecutive years.

Another interesting game that Glenn Wilhide was part of featured a matchup against Notre Dame on October 30th, 1920. Army hosted the Fighting Irish under Coach Knute Rockne. I Irish prevailed 27-17 in what has been called George Gipp's best game as a player. Known more famously by his nickname, "the Gipper" put on a superhero display with his punting, passing and running.

​In baseball, Wilhide excelled for Army as well, and specifically served as a second baseman. After graduation from West Point, he found time to play professional baseball for the Frederick Hustlers of the Class D Blue Ridge League. 

Following graduation in 1922, Glenn C. Wilhide entered the US Army and spent most of his military career in the Ordnance Corps. He would be stationed in various locations around the country, the first being Vancouver Barracks in Vancouver, Washington.  He also worked in the private sector and stops included Pittsburgh, Detroit, Columbus, Ohio and Hawaii. In 1942, Maj. Wilhide was the commanding officer of the Gary Armor Plate Plant located in Gary, Indiana. Along the way, he would marry his wife, Margaret Hagedorn of Portland, Oregon. The couple had two sons, Glenn C., Jr. and Robert.  Glenn would marry again, Clara Grove, a niece of our baseball stadium namesake, Harry Grove.  

In the military, Wilhide would attain the rank of colonel. His last assignment was as commanding officer of the Detroit Ordnance Arsenal. Following Col. Wilhide’s retirement from the military, he worked a short time with Garwood Industries in Detroit, Michigan, and later was with the T. Edgie Russell Company of Frederick, a major highway contracting firm. ​

​Glenn C. Wilhide had the opportunity to see the Army-Navy game in person, and to listen to on radio and eventually watch on television for the following 61 years after handling quarterback and captain duties for the Army Black Knights of West Point. He lived his final years in Newtown Square, PA, dying on May 6th, 1983 at Dunwoody Village Medical Center in Pennsylvania. Col. Wilhide’s body came back to Frederick and was buried on May 12th, 1983. He would be buried in Mount Olivet’s Area LL, Lot 191. 

​In 1979, Glenn Wilhide was elected to the Frederick County YMCA Sports Hall of Fame. I thought it was well worth the time to single out this particular Frederick athlete and Mount Olivet veteran this year, as this year's Army-Navy game marks the 100th anniversary of when he, himself,  lined up behind  center and led his Army team against the Midshipman for the first time back in 1919. And maybe, just maybe, his squad will get the victory again this year.   

NOTE: Many of the great images used here are courtesy of a comprehensive website dedicated to Army Football and called For What They Gave   www.forwhattheygave.com                                                                                                                                                                                                                forwhattheygave.com/2007/12/11/1920-football-team/

​Cyber this, cyber that! The term (cyber) is derived from "cybernetic," which comes from the Greek word κυβερνητικός meaning "skilled in steering or governing." You will commonly see it used as a prefix in words (with or without a hyphen) such as cyber-space, cyber-crime, cyber attack, cyber-bullying, and cyber-terrorism. Not all "cyber-things" have negative connotations as the list above seems to insinuate, just look at all the joy the newfound cyber-holiday of "Cyber Monday" brings!

A recent term of the "internet era," cyber is commonly used to describe policies and politics regarding computer systems and networks, as well as the greater information technology industry. Why there is even a term cyber-delic, a fusion between cultures of today (cyber-culture) and yesteryear (psychedelic). I was particularly interested in the official definition of cyber-space and found the following, (online of course):
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Cyberspace is the essence of interconnected technology. The term entered the popular culture from science fiction and the arts but is now used by technology strategists, security professionals, government, military and industry leaders and entrepreneurs to describe the domain of the global technology environment. Others consider cyberspace to be just a notional environment in which communication over computer networks occurs. The word became popular in the 1990s when the uses of the Internet, networking, and digital communication were all growing dramatically and the term "cyberspace" was able to represent the many new ideas and phenomena that were emerging.

Mount Olivet is a latecomer to the foray of cyberspace. We created our first business website in 2007. Five years later, the cemetery created a FaceBook page. Things were quite pedestrian at first—as few expect cutting edge content and graphic design from an historic cemetery web-page? 

Today, globes and handheld maps are disappearing. Compasses were once the "smartphone" of their day for explorers and travelers, alike. Life in the cyber-world is made so much easier thanks to GPS. This space-based, radio-navigation system (owned by the US Government) can show the exact position of a person or thing using signals from satellites in space. The smartphone or car-based navigation/tracking devices utilize GPS technology and tell us where to go and how to get there. They also can tell us where we've been, and can get us back home or to familiar surroundings. 

This may be a stretch, but I see a great analogy here to cemeteries, and gravestones. Its almost as if we have "old school" GPS here in our midst. Grave sites and respective monuments, markers and plaques denote the people of our past. They are a part of us, good, bad or indifferent, and we can find our biologic, social and cultural markers in them. They are permanently anchored so to speak, and wherever future generations may roam on the globe, their gravesite coordinates remain steadfast and unwavering. ​

​Each and every day, I see individuals coming to Mount Olivet to plan and purchase monuments for themselves and loved ones who have passed. Some designs are playful, others are serious. Most can best be described as traditional. I also see people decorating and cleaning grave stones, especially this time of year. For a modest fee, we are happy to professionally clean monuments with non-evasive techniques.  We are now in a position to embark on making high quality repairs and restoration efforts to vintage stones on our grounds.

​At times, it feels like Christmas in October as we host a gentleman named Jonathan Appell, one of the country's top experts in cemetery monument restoration. Jonathan owns Atlas Preservation, located in Southington, Connecticut and has annually presented workshops here on best practices in stone repair. In addition to providing history and context to gravestone culture and industry, he demonstrates his craft on monuments found here in Mount Olivet. He also explains what has happened to many of our stones over the years, while giving instruction and tips on how to repair and clean these historic artifacts and works of art.

Appell has over 25 years of experience preserving, restoring, and repairing gravestones and monuments. A recent work project of note is “the Knight’s Tomb” in Jamestown, quite possibly the oldest existing gravestone in America, dating back to the 1630s. He continues to spread his knowledge by participation in seminars and workshops around the country and assists historic cemeteries and burying grounds with recommendations on conservation equipment, tools and repair products.

Participants get to see four monuments get repaired and actually took part in cleaning about 20 stones themselves. 

Sponsored workshops are part of our Friends of Mount Olivet Cemetery initiative. This membership group is an extension of the Mount Olivet Preservation and Enhancement Fund and will continue to host activities like these designed to generate enthusiasm and fundraising through engaging and entertaining educational programs, research projects, gravestone preservation, special event planning and anniversary commemorations. Since the launch of our Friends group in 2019, we have had great success with our volunteer cleaning crew, lovingly referred to as "the Stoners," and have recently formed a group to repair gravestones.

The Power of the Internet
For as much sadness that I witness firsthand in my job, I see an equal amount of joyful remembrance for those who have passed. I also see family historians (from both the professional and amateur ranks) reveling in discoveries made through ancestral pilgrimages. Those "familial GPS coordinates" littering our grounds led them here to learn or experience more about their past, and themselves.

I know genealogy is not for the faint of heart, but the cyber-innovations of Ancestry.com, FamilySearch.com, Fold3, Newspapers.com and FindaGrave.com have been godsends, allowing ease in time and effort in finding pertinent resources. The latter of the sites mentioned certainly drives my point home, as you can make a "virtual" visit to a gravestone in a cemetery  anywhere in the world as long as its been documented by a FindaGrave volunteer. Here one can gaze upon the final resting place and stone of a long-lost ancestor. In some cases, you may also find exact GPS coordinates for headstones to boot. ​

A few years back, we launched a companion "sister-website" entitled www.MountOlivetVets.com. This website has a similar mission to FindaGrave.com and is designed to contain memorial pages for the over 4,000+ military veterans buried at Mount Olivet. Here you will find pictures of grave monuments and military-issued stones/markers and obituaries along with vital, personal and military record information. In some cases, we feature photographs of the deceased which allows users to put a face with a name, and so much more—a life. ​

​In 2018, we finished a first phase of creating pages for over 500 World War I vets. The site as a whole can best be described as "a work in progress," and will continually be added to. The hope is to find volunteer researchers in our Friends group in an effort to make pages for all the vets here in Mount Olivet. In addition, we humbly ask for the assistance of descendants, historians and friends to provide us with photographs and/or additional information of note. We also want to link to other sources of information regarding our vets, and the training and battles they participated in.

The internet will continue to dictate the success and strength of this information resource for not only users, but us here at the cemetery as it additional info, scans of pictures and documents can do nothing but add to our preservation of the history of those buried here. Important for those family historians, Tombstone Tourists and heritage travelers of the future without a doubt.

Some people go into cemeteries and simply see names and dates chiseled in stone. Many of us see much, much more. I continue to learn more about the lives of Mount Olivet’s residents through studying grave stones, researching our blog, collecting images and documenting stories told to me by visiting descendants (regarding their relatives). Our goal is to continue sharing this with you the reader and future generations.

​In addition, we continue hosting programming on Memorial Day and Veterans Day, along with planting flags on veteran graves in advance of both. Our Friends group, and other partners, sponsor wreaths (while encouraging others to do the same) as part of our mission in hosting Wreaths Across America. Our ceremony occurs at noon on the third Saturday in December. Donations and grants also led to our Never Forget Garden and World War I Memorial Gazebo located in the middle of the cemetery.

​For over a decade, the Mount Olivet Board of Directors had entertained the idea of establishing a preservation-themed fund with the Community Foundation. The idea was first pitched, and championed by the late Colleen Remsberg, longtime Board member and immediate past president. Ms. Remsberg passed away last May, but not before she saw the Mount Olivet Preservation and Enhancement Fund become an IRS accredited 501(c)(3) public charity in 2017. The mission reads as follows:

The mission of the Mount Olivet Cemetery Preservation and Enhancement Fund is to assist in the conservation of the natural beauty and historic integrity of Mount Olivet Cemetery and to increase public knowledge and appreciation of its unique, cultural, historic, and natural resources through charitable and educational programs.

Putting this in layman’s terms, we continue taking steps to preserve the history of this great “garden cemetery,” a community institution since the 1850’s. In doing so, we want to safeguard the cemetery’s historic records, structures and grave monuments herein. We have taken a bit of a head start as can be exemplified by the fore-mentioned “Stories in Stone” articles and MountOlivetvets.com website, along with public lectures and recent commemorative events relating to individuals such as Gov. Thomas Johnson, Jr., diarist Jacob Engelbrecht and suffragettes Florence and Bertha Trail.

As mentioned earlier, our Friends group members and volunteers hold the key to unlocking and preserving so much more of our cemetery's rich history. in the near future, this could expand to educational partnerships such as school field trips, interpretive historic wayside displays and unique commemorative plantings. Best of all, we will have the opportunity, and more so the financial support, to clean, preserve and repair broken and illegible gravestones and monuments in the cemetery’s historic section.

​We appreciate any assistance you can give, be it monetary, or simply volunteering family information and photograph scans of relatives interred here. Please click the links below to learn about contributing to our preservation fund, or joining our Friends of Mount Olivet group. Both make unique gift ideas for the holidays. We accept checks (made out to the Mount Olivet Cemetery Preservation and Enhancement Fund) and will supply paperwork for charitable giving tax purposes.

Feel free to reach out to me to meet in person to discuss, or drop me a line (via email or phone) to learn more about how you can help preserve this amazing outdoor and virtual museum of Frederick's history. ​

Area NN is an interesting one here in Mount Olivet. It’s shape is somewhat triangular as it sits against the western boundary of the cemetery, not far from the Barbara Fritchie and Thomas Johnson gravesites.  The section often raises curiosity among visitors as the stones within are somewhat positioned very closely together—almost too close together, but there is a reason. Most of those people interred here today, came from other burial grounds that once graced downtown Frederick.
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Some of these gravestones have death dates that predate the cemetery’s opening in 1854, and there are several examples written in German. The Colonial architecture is clearly evident and the rationale for these stones placed so close together lies in the fact that these comprise church group reburials dictated by the trustees of local congregations. Three different churches bought the bulk of the lots on NN to be exact— the Presbyterian, Evangelical Lutheran and Methodist Episcopal. These churches once had their own designated burying grounds downtown, but elected to transfer bodies via mass removal to Mount Olivet, allowing for reuse or resale of the former graveyard properties. 

This option took the congregations out of the graveyard business and deferred the job to an entity that solely was suited to handle the assignment. This was certainly not an uncommon practice for the time, and in the case of Area NN, most of this reburial activity occurred in 1907-1908.
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As for the makeup of the property, the Methodist are to the left, Lutherans in the middle and Presbyterians to the right. I plan to write future articles about all three congregations in context to their earlier burying grounds, but not here. I have only brought all this up because I found that there are several other burials on Area NN that are not affiliated with the three church re-interment projects. I discovered one recently by researching the final resting place of this week’s person of interest. He died 50 years ago this past week.

​Donald Lewis Bruchey
The grave of Donald Lewis Bruchey sits prominently in the foreground of the designated “church lots.” His gravestone type is called a slant face marker. To the immediate right is a larger stone for his parents: Harry W. (1885-1934) and Lydia Mae Strailman (1889-1963).
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On November 18th, 1969, Don Bruchey found himself visiting at the home of friends living in Pikesville, northwest of Baltimore. He had just been seen by thousands of television viewers days before, while performing his full-time job as a news anchor on WJXT-TV in Jacksonville, Florida. No one could have predicted the terrible circumstance that would soon beset this charismatic, 41 year-old who had returned to his native Maryland in advance of celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday. Don would suffer a heart attack and would die a short time later at Baltimore County General Hospital in Randallstown.

​The Frederick native had worked in the broadcasting business for more than half his life—21 years. Don Bruchey had started as an on-air announcer at Frederick’s WFMD radio station in 1948. This came three years after graduating from Frederick High School in 1945 where he was a theater standout and an outstanding baseball player who was signed to a professional contract by the Detroit Tigers.

​He would play catcher for their minor league affiliate in Thomasville, GA—the Thomasville Tigers. Baseball had to wait however, as Bruchey served his country in the Army in Europe during the waning months of World War II. 

The 1940 US census shows Don living with his mother Lydia at 312 E. Patrick Street in downtown Frederick. His father, a barber by profession, had passed away back in 1934 when he was six. He was the youngest of four children. 
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Don's professional baseball dreams were short-lived. He would play for local teams such as the Frederick Hustlers and the Junior Yanks for a few years.

​​Don would leave Frederick and WFMD in 1950, taking a job at Brunswick, Georgia's WGIG where he hosted his own show titled "Spinner Sanctum."  After a year he came back to Frederick and WFMD. It is most likely he came back for the love of his life, Miss Marilyn S. Kehne of Yellow Springs area of Frederick.  He took on employment at Baltimore's WFBR in 1952. Don took up residence on N. Calvert Street in Baltimore. The couple would marry on March 14, the following year.

Don’s impressive reputation as a former athlete sportscaster served him well. His theater background also allowed for him to bring dramatics to the events he was covering.  Bruchey’s obituary states that he had valued associations with several star athletes including Johnny Unitas, Gino Marchetti, Art Donovan, Don Shula, Chuck Thompson, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, and Brooks Robinson. Within a few years, he would transition to covering news.

Don successfully transitioned into news from sports and served as a reporter and finally a news anchor for Channel 2 (WMAR). On eBay last year, I found an ad featuring Don Bruchey in an old TV Guide dated July 27th, 1965. It was an intriguing find which led me to write this blog. He anchored the 11PM edition, the prime newscast of the station.

​In 1968, Don jumped at the opportunity for a change of venue, and more importantly, the chance to serve as lead news anchor for a station in Florida. After 13 years in “Charm City,” he relocated to Jacksonville in January, 1968, taking with him wife Marilyn and three daughters: Donna, Cheryl and Christine. An eitor's note in the Baltimore Sun in 1968 remarked that Don was homesick for Maryland.

​As I said at the outset, Don and family traveled back home to Maryland 50 years ago this week for Thanksgiving in 1969.  He would suffer a heart attack while visiting friends in Pikesville. Interestingly, his father had also died of a heart attack in his forties.

​Don Bruchey’s body would return to Frederick for burial. Services were held at All Saints’ Episcopal Church on W. Patrick Street on Saturday, November 22nd. Graveside service followed here at Mount Olivet within the historic backdrop of Area NN as he was placed to the side of his father and mother, Lydia, who had died earlier in 1963. As could be imagined, the service was largely attended and including relatives, friends, former teammates, former acting partners, and news colleagues.

​I was excited to see that one of his pallbearers was Stu Kerr, a legendary Baltimore television star I remember from my youth. He was a weatherman, afterschool movie host, played Bozo the Clown, emceed "Dialing for Dollars" and was the star of  local show "Professor Kool's Fun Skool."

Bataan
Many recall, or have heard about, one of the most unsettling events in the history of warfare. It is known as the Bataan Death March. This atrocity took place in the Philippines during World War II and included 76,000 prisoners of war (66,000 Filipinos, 10,000 Americans) forced at gunpoint to walk some 66 miles at the mercy of the Japanese military captors. It occurred in April 1942, during the early stages of World War II.

The name Bataan comes from the province situated in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines-Luzon being the northernmost island (of the Phillipines). Occupying the entire Bataan Peninsula on Luzon, Bataan is bordered by the provinces of Zambales and Pampanga to the north. The peninsula faces the South China Sea to the west and Subic Bay to the north-west, and encloses Manila Bay to the east.
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It’s complicated to give the backstory of this event to those unfamiliar, but it plays a very important role in understanding this week’s “Story in Stone” subject. Our “Story” also involves the famed US Army General Douglas MacArthur as well—the impetuous five-star general and Field Marshal of the Philippine Army, who had previously been a participant in World War I and served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s. He had even retired from the US Army in 1937.

MacArthur played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II after being recalled to active duty in 1941 as commander of United States Army Forces in the Far East. This move would reunite Philippine and US forces under one command. Unfortunately, a series of disasters soon beset Douglas MacArthur, starting with the destruction of his air forces at Pearl Harbor in December, 1941. Immediately after, the Japanese would set their sights on invading the US held Philippines.

The Philippines had become an American possession in 1898, a result of the Spanish-American War. After being ceded by Spain, an era of American colonization commenced, lasting nearly four decades. When the Commonwealth of the Philippines achieved semi-independent status in 1935, Philippines President Manuel Quezon asked MacArthur to supervise the creation of a Philippine Army. The two men had been personal friends since the latter's father had been Governor-General of the Philippines, 35 years earlier. With President Franklin D. Roosevelt's approval, MacArthur accepted the assignment. It was agreed that MacArthur would receive the rank of field marshal, in addition to his major general's salary as Military Advisor to the Commonwealth Government of the Philippines. 

The following summary can be found in Encyclopedia Britannica, written by Elizabeth N. Norman and Michael Norman:
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Within hours of their December 7, 1941, attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the Japanese military began its assault on the Philippines, bombing airfields and bases, harbors and shipyards. Manila, the capital of the Philippines, sits on Manila Bay, one of the best deep water ports in the Pacific Ocean, and it was, for the Japanese, a perfect resupply point for their planned conquest of the southern Pacific. After the initial air attacks, 43,000 men of the Imperial Japanese 14th Army went ashore on December 22 at two points on the main Philippine island of Luzon. Gen. Douglas MacArthur, the supreme commander of all Allied forces in the Pacific, cabled Washington, D.C., that he was ready to repel this main invasion force with 130,000 troops of his own.

MacArthur’s claim was a fiction. In fact, his force consisted of tens of thousands of ill-trained and ill-equipped Filipino reservists and some 22,000 American troops who were, in effect, an amalgam of “spit-and-polish” garrison soldiers with no combat experience, artillerymen, a small group of planeless pilots and ground crews, and sailors whose ships happened to be in port when Japanese forces bombed Manila and its naval yards. At the landing beaches, the Japanese soldiers quickly overcame these defenders and pushed them back and back again until MacArthur was forced to execute a planned withdrawal to the jungle redoubt of the Bataan Peninsula. This thumblike piece of land on the west-central coast of Luzon, across the bay from Manila, measured some 30 miles long and 15 miles wide, with a range of mountains down the middle.

In early January, 1942, the Japanese made their next major move on the Philippines. Altogether the Japanese landed at three separate places, each a finger of land jutting out from the rocky coast line of western Bataan into the South China Sea. The first landings came on January 23rd, as an overconfident MacArthur gave orders for the American and Filipino troops to begin falling back to a reserve battle position. The Japanese employed multiple assaults and an end run, amphibious style, with its objectives far to the south, in the Service Command Area. 

By March, the Japanese invasion had compelled MacArthur to withdraw his forces on Luzon to Bataan, while his headquarters and his family moved to Corregidor. The doomed defense of Bataan captured the imagination of the American public. At a time when the news from all fronts was uniformly bad, MacArthur became a living symbol of Allied resistance to the Japanese.

Fearing that Corregidor would soon fall, and MacArthur would be taken prisoner, President Roosevelt ordered MacArthur to go to Australia. A submarine was made available, but MacArthur elected to break through the Japanese blockade in PT boats.

​Upon his arrival, MacArthur gave a speech in which he famously promised "I shall return" to the Philippines.  The staff MacArthur brought with him became known as the "Bataan Gang". They would become the nucleus of his General Headquarters, Southwest Pacific Area. One senior member of MacArthur’s leadership team, however, would be left behind. He was a Frederick native who is buried right here in Mount Olivet.  

The Service Command Area
When the American line was first established on Bataan on January 7th (1942), defense of the southern tip of the Bataan peninsula was designated by the name: the Service Command Area. This task had been assigned to Brig. Gen. Allan C. McBride, MacArthur's deputy for the Philippine Department. McBride's command included, roughly, all of Bataan south of the Mariveles Mountains, and was divided into an East and West Sector by the Paniguian River which flows southward into Mariveles Bay.

The Service Command Area covered over 100 square miles. The distance around the tip of Bataan along the East and West Roads, from Mamala River on the Manila Bay side to the Paysawan River on the South China Sea coast, is at least forty miles. Inland, the country is extremely rugged and hilly, with numerous streams and rivers flowing rapidly through steep gullies into the surrounding waters. The coast line facing Manila Bay is fairly regular but the west coast, where the Japanese landings came, is heavily indented with tiny bays and inlets. The ground on this side of the peninsula is thickly forested almost to the shoreline where the foothills of the central range end in abrupt cliffs. Sharp points of land extend from the "solid curved dark shoreline" to form small bays.

An adequate defense of this long and ragged coastline would have been difficult under the best of circumstances. With the miscellany of troops assigned to him, the task was an almost impossible one for General McBride. Things were extremely tough for both American and Filipino forces over the next few months, and even worse after MacArthur and his staff pulled out in late March. By early April, McBride and tens of thousands of soldiers would surrender to their foes.

Back to the summary by Elizabeth N. Norman and Michael Norman:
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MacArthur had planned badly for the withdrawal and had left tons of rice, ammunition, and other stores behind him. The Battle of Bataan began on January 1, 1942, and almost immediately the defenders were on half rations. Sick with malaria, dengue fever, and other diseases, living on monkey meat and a few grains of rice, and without air cover or naval support, the Allied force of Filipinos and Americans held out for 99 days. Though they ultimately surrendered, their stubborn defense of the peninsula was a significant propaganda victory for the United States and proved that the Imperial Japanese Army was not the invincible force that had rolled over so many other colonial possessions in the Pacific.

It was against this backdrop that the Bataan Death March—a name conferred upon it by the men who had endured it—began. The forced march took place over some two weeks after Gen. Edward (“Ned”) King, US commander of all ground troops on Bataan, surrendered his thousands of sick, enervated, and starving troops on April 9, 1942. The siege of Bataan was the first major land battle for the Americans in World War II and one of the most-devastating military defeats in American history. The force on Bataan, numbering some 76,000 Filipino and American troops, is the largest army under American command ever to surrender.

Beginning on April 9th (1942) in Mariveles, a village on the southern tip of the Bataan Peninsula, the prisoners, including Frederick’s own Allan C. McBride, were force-marched north to San Fernando and then taken by rail in cramped and unsanitary boxcars farther north to Capas.

​From there, the men walked an additional seven miles to Camp O’Donnell, a former Philippine army training center used by the Japanese military to intern Filipino and American prisoners. During the main march—which lasted five to ten days, depending on where a prisoner joined it—the captives were beaten, shot, bayoneted, and, in many cases, beheaded. A large number of those who made it to the camp later died of starvation and disease.

Only 54,000 prisoners reached the camp, though exact numbers are unknown.  It is believed that some 2,500 Filipinos and 500 Americans may have died during the march, and an additional 26,000 Filipinos and 1,500 Americans died at Camp O’Donnell. 

The Life of Allan C. McBride
As America gasped at the news reports coming from the South Pacific, relatives and former friends of Allan C. McBride pondered his fate at the hands of the Japanese. He had been assigned to Army headquarters in the Philippines as plans and training officer over a year earlier on February 20th, 1941. His wife, Avis, was living in northwest Washington, DC at the time, and had only received a belated Christmas card from her husband in late January (1942), having been written a few days before Christmas when the Japanese initial invasion on the Philippines occurred. At the time, he said he was doing well on the protected confines of Corregidor.

Gen. McBride was well known here, even though his military career took him all over the world. He was the son of Andrew Clay McBride (1860-1910), a former Frederick County sheriff, and Annie Estelle Routzahn (1861-1927). Allan Clay McBride was born June 30th, 1885 in Frederick’s Middletown Valley and attended public schools. The family lived on a farm in Jefferson, and consisted of younger brother Edgar and sister, Carrie (Shafer). The McBrides would eventually move into Frederick City as Mr. McBride served as principal of the N. Market Street School for some time and also was one-time manager of the Washington, Frederick and Gettysburg Railroad. The family could be found living at 221 S. Market Street.

Allan would attend St. John’s Military College in Annapolis, graduating with the Class of 1908. He would join the Regular US Army on September 9th, 1908 and was given the rank of captain in 2nd Field Artillery unit. He would be assigned to the 4th Field Artillery and promoted to 2nd lieutenant by September. He was stationed at Fort Vancouver in Vancouver, Washington. By 1910, he was reassigned to Fort D. A. Russell in Laramie, Wyoming. 

Allan would marry Mary Avis Halbert of Baltimore on October 23, 1911. The couple welcomed a baby daughter in July, 1913, and she was named Avis Halbert McBride in honor of her mother. A few years later, McBride was promoted to major of field artillery with the National Army in World War I. 

Soon after, he was transferred to Headquarters of the 349th Field Artillery and gained the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He spent time overseas in the Great War from mid-June, 1918 until July, 1919. While in France, he took part in fighting within the Marbache sector and received multiple battlefield promotions as he spent time with the Headquarters unit of the 2nd Field Artillery and 13th Field Artillery. He commanded a battalion. ​

​McBride would be promoted to Adjutant General on January 11st, 1919 with the 4th Field Artillery Brigade. Upon his arrival back in the States, he was assigned to Fort Sill, Lawton, Oklahoma where he served as an instructor of Field Artillery. A son, Andrew would be born here in 1921. The McBride family moved back east and can be found living on N. Calvert St. in Baltimore in 1924. A daughter, Susanne was born in 1925. The family relocated to Washington, DC when Allan was accepted into the US Army War College in 1926. He next attended General Staff School and also Chemical Warfare School, Field Officers’ Course. 

Maj. McBride and family were back at Fort Sill and Lawton, Oklahoma by 1930. In 1935, they were in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and by 1940, Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. His last assignment came in 1941. Allan C. McBride was assigned to Army headquarters in the Philippines as plans and training officer February 20th, 1941. 

As news of the Bataan Death March unfolded, relatives and friends in Frederick received scant information about Gen. McBride in the local papers. His sister, Mrs. Carrie Shafer, resided on West Patrick Street. The family of his deceased brother, Edgar H. McBride, a well-known attorney and banker, also was also very concerned and eager for details.

I will let old newspaper articles tell the rest of his story.

Upon his arrival in Australia in March, 1942, Douglas MacArthur gave a speech in which he famously promised "I shall return" to the Philippines. After more than two years of fighting in the Pacific, he fulfilled that promise. For his defense of the Philippines, MacArthur was awarded the Medal of Honor. He officially accepted the Surrender of Japan on September 2nd, 1945 aboard the USS Missouri, which was anchored in Tokyo Bay, and he oversaw the occupation of Japan from 1945 to 1951. As the effective ruler of Japan, he oversaw sweeping economic, political and social changes. 

General McBride is one of 4,000 veterans whom we plan to honor on Veterans Day. We also look forward to adorning his gravesite with a wreath on Saturday, December 14th during our 2nd annual Wreaths Across America event. The WAA kickoff ceremony will begin at 11am only feet from Allan C. McBride's  final resting place at our World War II Memorial, erected in 1947 and dedicated on May 30th, 1948. Gen. McBride's mortal remains are joined by those of 29 other servicemen of World War II who died in active duty. Their military issue stones are placed in a semi-circle surrounding two large pillars and an eternal flame monument which reads:
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"Dedicated to the Men and Women of Frederick County, who by their unselfish devotion to duty, have advanced the American ideals of liberty and the universal brotherhood of man." It also reads, "The flame of love shall burn into our hearts the memory of our noble dead." 

Like many others, the Winchester family lot in Mount Olivet is particularly pretty this time of year, shrouded in fall foliage. It sits in Area C/Lot 53 near the original southeast boundary of the cemetery just as it stood at the turn of the 19th century. To the immediate east, one once saw the spacious John Loats farm on the other side of the Newly Designed Road (as it was first called). Today, this thoroughfare has been renamed Stadium Drive and offers a viewshed of the main concourse area in front of the entrance to Harry Grove Stadium at Nymeo Park.
 
Buried here in the Winchester family lot are Henry Kirkham Winchester, Benjamin Winchester, Mary Jane Winchester, Mary Winchester, and Mordaunt C. Winchester. The family has a lasting connection to Frederick as we named our seat of county government for them. Well, the actual namesake for the building located on E. Church St., Hiram Winchester, is buried in Cambridge, Maryland. But the name has stayed with us since Mr. Winchester lent his regal sounding moniker to the building he planned and built on E. Church Street between 1843-1844.

​More importantly, Hiram and brother Benjamin Franklin, made a profound impact on our community in the realm of education, and construction. These teachers were good for students, contrary to the Pink Floyd anthem, and it is fitting that they crafted their female pupils to be important building blocks for our community.

The son of Benjamin Winchester III and Rebecca (Wing) Winchester, Hiram (b. 1803 in Hardwick, MA) was one of five children. He had come to Frederick in the late 1830’s after teaching school in Connecticut and serving as a lecturer at a seminary in Baltimore located at 16 N. Frederick Street, this according to the 1835 and 1837 Matchett's city directories of Baltimore. He is said to have come to Frederick in 1839. It was this year that he would open the Frederick Literary Society located on Frederick’s N. Market Street in the old Bartgis Hotel, a space he had rented for the purpose of the school. This would evolve into what would become known as the Frederick Female Seminary, and Winchester knew he needed a larger space to work within.

This school was established by an Act of the Maryland Legislature. A lottery was raised providing an amount of $50,000 for the initial construction and endowment. The cornerstone was laid (for the current East Wing) in 1843. This was the year that Mr. Winchester was named principal. Charter and privileges were granted in 1845 and the first school catalog issued in 1846. A primary target demographic for school enrollment included wealthy children from southern states.

A second wing would be built onto Winchester Hall in 1856. Seven years later in 1863, the school closed due to the American Civil War as student numbers were down as many southern families cut back due to wartime activity. Union soldiers had occupied the West Wing the previous year. Meanwhile, Hiram Winchester had been forced to retire due to poor health. He would move to Cambridge, Maryland and took up residence with his oldest daughter (Eveline Kirkham Baugher) and son-in-law there. Hiram would die on July 5th, 1876 and was buried in the Cambridge Cemetery, joining his wife, Juliet Kirkham Winchester (b. 1806) who had been laid to rest there in 1868.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

In 1893, the Potomac Synod of the Reformed Church would buy the property and opened the Woman’s College of Frederick and came under the purview of Dr. Joseph Henry Apple. A former student of Mr.  Winchester was invited to live at the school with the school president and his family. This was newly widowed Margaret E. (Scholl) Hood, an 1849 graduate of the Frederick Female Seminary. Hood would leave the Woman’s College $30,000 upon her death in 1913 and a new campus was made possible on the northwest suburb of town because of her generosity. The school was soon renamed after the benefactress.
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As for the old school building constructed by Mr. Winchester, the structure would be bought in 1931 by the Board of County Commissioners for $35,000. Since that time it has served as Frederick’s seat of county government. 

Which Winchester?
You may ask: “If Hiram Winchester is buried in Cambridge, MD, then why are you writing a “Story in Stone” article on him?” Well, I am and I’m not. My premise though is the fact that I think Hiram, and wife Juliet, should have been laid to rest here in Area C/Lot 53, if not for their departure from Frederick and relocation to Dorchester County. I surmise this based on multiple facts, foremost the 12-plot lot was purchased by Benjamin Franklin Winchester, Hiram’s kid-brother who was born in 1810. Only four decedents are definitively marked on the central monument here, along with our interment lot card. However, our card shows that probing the lot nearly 70 years ago found the possibility of three others buried here.

Later research clarified that one of these burials is the gravesite of Hiram and Juliet’s youngest child, Henry Kirkham Winchester, who died a child at age six (1845-1851). He was originally buried in Frederick’s Presbyterian Cemetery, but was removed to Mount Olivet in 1887. His name was never added to the monument.
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We also have reason to believe that two infant children of the Winchesters are also buried here, although they don’t appear by name in our records. Again, we see that there are two additional spaces that appear to be occupied here in the Winchester lot. The hypothesis is that this grave site could have two youngsters within, also moved from the Presbyterian Church. The children in question are Caroline (1838-1839) and Juliet (1838-1842). 

​Lastly, the large monument placed upon the lot has two major faces on its south and west sides that have stayed blank after all these years. Benjamin's family names are on the east and north faces. I bet the other two were reserved for Hiram's decedents, but never placed on there, likely because Hiram and Juliet Winchester wound up being buried in Cambridge, Maryland.

​As for some backstory on the buyer/owner of this lot, we must examine the life of Benjamin Franklin Winchester. Earlier mentioned Hiram, appears to have pulled a few strings in getting his brother a teaching job at the Frederick Female Seminary in the school’s first decade in operation.  B. F. would follow is brother’s educational footsteps to Frederick as he taught Mathematics to the students. He was also a native of Hardwick, MA, and taught with his brother previously in Baltimore. He would find a greater career for himself after leaving the Frederick Female Seminary when Hiram decided to call it quits.
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B.F. Winchester owned a brickyard, located on the southeast part of town on E. South Street today. It appears both Hiram and Benjamin started the venture together in the 1860s, perhaps in response to the school's closure during the Civil War. 

​You would have found this venture near the intersection of E. South and the aptly named Winchester Street. Begun in the 1860’s, the Winchester Brick Works would be family-run up through the 1890s at which time it would take the new name of the Frederick Brick Works. The Winchester firm's bricks are still the prime building blocks used in a substantial number of buildings throughout the Frederick region. One such example was the original home of the Maryland School for the Deaf, located on the former grounds of the Frederick “Hessian” Barracks on South Market Street. Keep in mind that the Barracks grounds were also the first home of the Great Frederick Fair as well up through 1867. This locale was located just a few hundred yards west of the brick-works itself. 

We can get a glimpse of the scope of Mr. Winchester’s profitable venture through a passage recorded on July 3rd, 1875 within (Frederick diarist) Jacob Engelbrecht’s storied diary:

The State of Maryland Asylum for the Deaf & Dumb—The north wing of this asylum is nearly finished. It was commenced in summer of 1874 (the north wing). I inquired from Mr. B. F. Winchester, who furnished the brick, how many brick there were in the whole building. He said, nearly or quite 2 and a half million. He also said the new jail (now nearly up) will take about 800,000. Mr. Winchester furnished brick for both buildings. The bricks were made in the brickyard in East South Street adjoining the ground on the east side of the Deaf and Dumb Asylum. The cornerstone of the D. & D. Asylum was laid “May 31, 1871.”

​B. F. Winchester died in 1895 and buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery. Wife Mary Jane had passed five years earlier in 1890. Sadly the elderly couple had to endure the death of their only son (Mordaunt) in 1878 and sole granddaughter, Mary, who died in 1874. Benjamin’s obituary of May, 1895 labeled him as “a man of the highest integrity of character, possessing a well-storied mind and was endowed with eminent Christian traits.” He died at the age of 86 at the home of his nephew, whom he had been living with in West Camden, NY.

Patriotic Zeal
The Frederick Winchesters will be of special interest to those fans of the American Civil War. When President Lincoln called for recruits in 1861, B.F. Winchester volunteered and served under Benjamin Henry Schley and the Union Army. He is also listed as 1st Lt. Quartermaster, 1st Potomac Home Brigade Cavalry, and took part in the Battle of Monocacy in 1864. Benjamin ultimately attained the rank of Major.

Speaking of the Civil War and arrest, our old friend Hiram Winchester’s son of similar name had quite a life journey, only making it to his 38th birthday. More interesting is the fact that he died in the infamous frontier town of Tombstone, Arizona territory in 1881. Hiram Franklin Winchester (b. 1843) served in the Civil War under the Union flag. He was a 1st Lieutenant/Quartermaster for the 1st Potomac Home Brigade Cavalry from 1864-1865 under Col. Henry Cole. After the war, he would remain in military service, becoming a part of Maryland’s 6th US Cavalry and would be stationed at places such as Fort Richardson, TX, forts Riley, Hayes and Dodge (all in Kansas) and finally forts Huachuca, Lowell and Thomas (all in Arizona).  

Apparently, the trouble for young Hiram Franklin began when a new postmaster showed up at Fort Huachuca:

A post office was constructed in November and Huachuca received its first
postmaster, Fredrick L. Austin. By the beginning of 1880 Huachuca had telegraph
communications, daily stagecoach runs from Benson, and the Southern Pacific Railroad now
stopped at Tucson near Fort Lowell, just forty-seven miles distant. 

One of the unexpected difficulties that coincided with the arrival of a new postmaster was
the sale of liquor on the camp. In addition to serving as the postmaster, Austin also ran a sutler’s
store from which he sold whiskey. Whitside was sternly against intoxicants on the camp and
attempted to curb, if not shut down, Austin’s business. Unaffected by the post commander’s
protestations, Austin had the audacity to complain to Whitside that his troopers were slow in
paying for spirits bought on credit. Whitside summoned his senior noncommissioned officer and
told him to “take care of it . . . and let the la dies of the post know about it also.” The ploy
worked, and Austin left the post all but penniless seven months after arriving.

One of the troopers who imbibed of Austin’s whiskey was Captain Whitside’s second in
command, First Lieutenant Hiram F. Winchester. In addition to obtaining liquor at the sutler’s
store, Winchester could also be seen drunk in the saloons of Tombstone, located twenty miles
east of Camp Huachuca. The lieutenant’s intemperance caught up to him in the summer of 1880
when he was court-martialed for being absent without leave displaying “loud and indecent
behavior . . . in company with a prostitute.” Winchester was incarcerated at Fort Yuma,
California, for nine months. Apparently after completing his sentence in May 1881 and prior to
reporting to his unit, Winchester returned to Tombstone where he turned up dead on 29 May of a
“disease unknown.”

​The following obituary reports the mysterious and untimely death of 1st Lt. Winchester as it appeared in the Arizona Weekly Citizen of June 5th, 1881.

The younger Hiram Winchester died on May 29th, 1881. Interestingly, the village he had come to, Tombstone, had only been founded two years before in 1879. The boom town was only 30 miles from the U.S.–Mexico border and was an open market for stolen cattle from ranches in Sonora, Mexico. This feat was regularly accomplished by a loosely organized band of outlaws known as “the Cowboys.” Meanwhile, the legendary Earp brothers—Wyatt, Virgil and Morgan—as well as Doc Holliday, arrived in Tombstone in December 1879 and mid-1880.
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The Earps had ongoing conflicts with Cowboys Ike and Billy Clanton, Frank and Tom McLaury, and Billy Claiborne. The Cowboys repeatedly threatened the Earps over many months until the conflict escalated into a shootout on October 26th, 1881. The historic gunfight is often portrayed as occurring at the O.K. Corral. 

It’s fascinating to think that the son of the namesake of our Winchester Hall, a native of Frederick and young man who regularly walked the streets of downtown, may have had interactions with the Earps and Doc Holliday while he was there in Tombstone. If so, I sure hope they were positive encounters. We’ll likely never know.

Following the death of Hiram Franklin Winchester, his corpse would be brought cross-country and eventually be re-buried in the family plot at Cambridge Cemetery on Maryland’s Eastern Shore in Dorchester County.  He left a wife and daughter. (NOTE: For more on this provocative story, click this link: 

​And speaking of guns and shootouts, Hiram Winchester, the school principal and namesake of Winchester Hall, was distantly related to Oliver Fisher Winchester, a one-time shirt-maker who became incredibly wealthy as the inventor and manufacturer of “the gun that won the west.” This innovation is also known as the Winchester repeating rifle. Both Winchester men (Hiram 1803-1876 and Oliver 1810-1880) were Massachusetts natives who migrated to Baltimore as young men in the 1830s. Most important here is the fact that these men were cousins who shared the same GGG Grandfather— a man named John Winchester, Jr. (1644-1719) of Hingham, Plymouth County, Massachusetts. John’s father, John Winchester, Sr. (1611-1694) was the family progenitor who immigrated to Massachusetts from England in 1635.

Now, how's that for finishing with a bang? I'm sure I've given you plenty to think about, next time you visit, or drive by, Frederick's  Winchester Hall!

October 26th, 2019 marks an interesting day, one that pays cause to remember the many achievements of a life that impacted not only Frederick County’s history, but that of the state of Maryland. This date is the bicentennial, or 200th anniversary, of the death of Thomas Johnson, Jr.

Many may be familiar with the name as it has adorned one of our local public high schools since the fall of 1966. Meanwhile, less than a quarter of a mile away sits Governor Thomas Johnson Middle School in one direction, and, in another, Frederick’s “mecca” of doctors’ offices and medical practitioner headquarters—Thomas Johnson Drive.

As a proud member of TJ High’s graduating class of 1985, I have always been quite knowledgeable about my alma mater’s namesake, along with the the location of the school on the former Rose Hill Manor estate, and the significance behind the chosen mascot/team for the educational center— the “Patriots.”

My personal interest in Thomas Johnson was initiated by an elementary school field trip to Rose Hill Manor when I was a kid.  This historic house, today the centerpiece of a county park created in 1968, served as Thomas Johnson’s retirement home, and is located yards from the high school. 

​I've read the property dates back to a land patent created in 1746 named Rose Garden that went to early German settler Hans Peter Hoffman. Hoffman's heirs sold this to Thomas Johnson for 4,000 pounds money in 1778. 

I fondly recall my days at old TJ, and have the distinction of being part the last class to go through the same school building from 7th-12th grade, as Monocacy Middle and TJ Middle were still being built at that time. My classmates and I cruised through a lost bastion once known as “Junior High” here in Frederick County. As it did when I was in high school, more than three decades ago, the manor house stands as a beacon amongst the scenic backdrop of our football field's north endzone. 

​Thomas Johnson, Jr.
Thomas Johnson, Jr., the son of Thomas Johnson (1702-1772) and Dorcas Sedgwick (1705-1770), was born in Calvert County near the mouth of St. Leonard’s Creek and the Patuxent River. The date of his birth was November 4th, 1732. Interestingly, two of his most intimate friends, later in life, were born the same year—George Washington and Richard Henry Lee.
 
Thomas Johnson’s grandparents were immigrants from Yarmouth, England who had eloped and came to Maryland in 1687. They settled on the eastern shore of the Patuxent River and built a manor home they would name Brewhouse. Here is where Thomas, Jr. came into the world, one of eleven children. 

The original house was lost in a fire, as you will see, a recurring theme somewhat. However, a house was built on the footprint and retained the name.  A small family graveyard can be found on the property holding the remains of our Thomas' parents (Thomas and Dorcas).

All that I can glean from Thomas' appearance was that he was short in stature, and possessed reddish hair, the latter fact can be corroborated somewhat by the existence of a unique specimen in the collection of artifacts at Rose Hill Manor. This would be a lock of Dorcas Johnson's (Thomas' mother) hair kept as a lasting memento at her time of death. Yes sir, it is indeed red!

​Thomas was eventually sent to the provincial capital of Annapolis in the late 1740s, where he would receive his schooling. One of the major steps which set into motion Johnson’s exemplary career in public service was his early employment under Thomas Jennings, Register of the Land Office at Annapolis. Johnson performed the job of a writer in the office of the Clerk of the Provincial Court. This gave him an opportunity to meet, and witness, the most talented lawyers in the colony, while also learning court procedure along the way.

​You could say that Mr. Jennings had a hand in changing young Johnson’s life both professionally and personally. Thomas would marry his boss’ daughter, Ann Jennings, on February 16th, 1766. 

​By the age of 29, Thomas Johnson, Jr. was recognized as a leading member of the Annapolis Bar, and soon would be elected to the Provincial Assembly as a delegate from Anne Arundel County. Meanwhile, in his home life, Johnson found himself the father of eight children. One of his children (Rebecca) died in infancy and a second, Elizabeth (1780-1798), would die as a young adult. (NOTE: A later daughter would be given the name of Rebecca as well).

In the 1770s, Thomas Johnson, Jr. relocated to Frederick County. He had previously patented over 21,000 acres of land in Frederick between 1763-1765. It is said that his move was precipitated by the urging of his brothers who were doing quite well out here on the western frontier of Maryland. It has also been recorded that the move was one that allowed Johnson to be a bigger player in the Frederick court scene along with offering lucrative business opportunities. Best of all, this afforded the chance to bring him closer to siblings James, Roger, Baker and John who had moved to the Frederick area (or would come later).
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As a side note, James Johnson (1736-1809) was the original furnace-master of Catoctin Furnace (below Thurmont) and builder of Springfield Manor, now a wildly popular wedding destination owned by Amie and John St. Angelo. Roger Johnson (1749-1831) operated Bloomsbury Furnace along Bennett’s Creek at the southeast foot of Sugarloaf Mountain. Baker Johnson (1747-1811), a lawyer, practiced law here and eventually ran Catoctin Furnace in the early 1800s from his manor house named Auburn, which still exists on the west side of US15, at the point of the at-grade exit to MD806 that goes through the village of Catoctin Furnace. These three would serve in the American Revolution under brother Thomas.  John Johnson (1745-1811) was a physician with an office at one point on W. Patrick Street in Frederick Town and served as a surgeon in the Maryland Line during the Revolution.

Thomas Johnson, Jr. continued purchasing several tracts of land in the county. He bought the Rose Hill tract (originally known as Rose Garden) in 1778, and a year later (1779) another property that he would take the name Richfield. This latter holding would become his personal (and first) home place here in Frederick County.

According to former historian/archeologist E. Ralston Goldsborough, who grew up on this tract, “Richfield was built with bricks brought from England, was three stories high and contained mammoth proportions." Goldsborough's grandfather, William Goldsborough, bought the property from Johnson in 1800. Goldsborough recalled his grandmother saying the "hall running through the center of the house was wide enough to turn a wagon and four horses."

The Richfield home of Thomas Johnson, Jr. was once located adjacent an old wagon road that headed to the northern reaches of the county from Frederick Town. Today you can see the structure that took its place, but holds the same name of “Richfield.” This is just to the east of US15 (north of Frederick), north of Tuscarora Creek and near the intersection with Willow Road. In layman’s terms, its across from Beckley’s Motel and liquor store—a formidable landmark considering our subject was born in a place called "Brewhouse,” I guess.

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​An intimate friend of Thomas Johnson was George Washington, who actually stayed at Richfield on two occasions in 1785 and 1791. Johnson hoped the estate would be his place of retirement, but his wife died in November, 1794 at the age of 49. In 1800, Richfield was sold and the former governor moved to Rose Hill Manor, which he had built as a wedding gift for his daughter Ann Jennings (Johnson) Grahame and husband Maj. John Colin Grahame. 

​Sometime after that, Richfield burned. According to Goldsborough, “a servant girl tending the fireplaces placed an ash box under the stairs leading to the third floor. During the night, the box caught fire and spread through the house. Some fishermen on the Monocacy River saw the flames, ran to the house and managed to get the family out, along with a few furnishings and pieces of silverware, but the house was destroyed.”

The Winds of Revolution
​As mentioned earlier, Thomas Johnson, Jr. was a delegate to the Provincial Assembly in Annapolis. This was an interesting time to be in local government considering the period of unjust taxes being forced  on the colonial citizenry by order of the English Crown. Here in Maryland, Frederick gained a reputation as a “hotbed” of activity for the Sons of Liberty, and our Frederick County court justices were the first official body to repudiate the Stamp Act of 1765.

Thomas would lend his talents to be a leader in the crusade against taxation without representation. In 1774, the Maryland Assembly appointed Johnson a delegate to the First Continental Congress, and he would represent the colony once again the following year at the Second Continental Congress.  Of course, this body met at Philadelphia’s Independence Hall in Philadelphia. One account said of Johnson:
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“Biographers might well applaud him most of all for his clarity, soundness, and originality of his thinking. Not for him were the muddled emotionalism and uncomprehending flagwaving of some loudly vocal patriots. To him, things either made good sense or they did not. Sound reasoning served as his chief navigational instrument in charting a course of action. He was a conservative, hoping for reconciliation of the American colonies with the “mother country,” and became a devoted rebel only after hope for patching the breach began to fade.”

In the Congress, Johnson was allied with those who favored separation from Great Britain. In November 1775, this legendary body created a Committee of [Secret] Correspondence that was to seek foreign support for the war. Thomas Johnson, along with Benjamin Franklin and Benjamin Harrison V, was initially named to the committee.

Throughout his career, Johnson maintained a personal and political friendship with George Washington, which was solidified during his time in Philadelphia. He holds the distinction of nominating his friend to become the first commander in chief of the Continental Army in June, 1775. Many histories give the credit to another founding father, John Adams, but it was Johnson.

Judge Edward Delaplaine in his 1927 biographical work entitled The Life of Thomas Johnson states: "Thomas Johnson often told his nephew (James Johnson) the story along the lines that he and Richard Henry Lee wanted to nominate George Washington but even at that time there existed a division between the northern and southern colonies in the Congress. The war was seen as a northern battle, with all the confrontations in the northern states. Apparently, upwards of a half-century later Mr. Adams remembered that the delegates from Virginia had, from “delicacy,” declined to place Washington’s name before the House. In a letter written February 24, 1821, to Richard Henry Lee, grandson of the Richard Henry Lee who introduced the resolution to Congress to declare the United Colonies free and independent, Mr. Adams gave this explanation of why Thomas Johnson, of Maryland, made the nominating speech: ​

Later in 1775, Thomas Johnson drafted the declaration of rights that became adopted by the Maryland Assembly and later included as the first part of Maryland’s original constitution. It was adopted by the state's constitutional convention at Annapolis in 1776. Johnson would frequently leave Philadelphia and return to Maryland as he continued to lead simultaneous efforts in the Maryland Assembly, along with recruiting for the war effort. He was here in Maryland when the United States Declaration of Independence was signed, and did not have the opportunity to affix his signature to the legendary document—a feat which surely would have heightened his legacy.
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Meanwhile, Johnson’s skills in leading fighting men were called on as he would be elected the first brigadier general of the Maryland provincial militia and commander of the Flying Camp in 1776. His brothers supported the revolution by manufacturing supplies, ammunition and possibly cannon in their respective furnace operations. Some of the cannonballs used at the famed battle of Yorktown were made at the Catoctin Furnace.

It is generally thought that Thomas Johnson, Jr. commanded a force of about 1,800 men, under the name of the Flying Camp as mentioned earlier. His brothers James and Baker were appointed to the rank of colonel and headed a few of the battalions. Roger was a major. In early February of 1777, Johnson and his Flying Camp would be in winter headquarters near Basking Ridge, New Jersey. 

The first State Legislature of Maryland had convened in Annapolis. One of the important duties imposed by the new state Constitution of 1776 called upon the Legislature to select a Governor. This task was performed on February 13th, 1777 by a joint ballot involving both houses of Maryland’s legislature. A total of 40 out of 52 assemblymen cast their gubernatorial votes for Thomas Johnson, Jr. Delaplaine in his book goes on to say:

​“The overwhelming majority in favor of Johnson for Governor was an unquestioned tribute to his integrity, ability, and lofty patriotism.

​Johnson was given the extraordinary news while in camp with Gen. Washington. He penned an acceptance letter to Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, President of Maryland’s Senate:

​Thomas Johnson would be Maryland’s first elected governor of this new age after Independence was declared in 1776. The politician would make sure that his old friend George Washington was supported from this new state of Maryland, as well. Johnson had a hand in getting a gun-lock factory built in Frederick, along with the major construction of a barracks which would eventually house British officers, but is better remembered for the captivity of hundreds of German missionary soldiers who were called “Hessians.”

More Public Service and Retirement
Thomas Johnson was twice reelected as governor and served until 1780. He then served in the Maryland legislature. The Revolutionary War ended in 1783, and almost fittingly George Washington resigned his commission as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army in the Maryland State House in Annapolis, stomping ground of the guy who helped put him in the position in the first place. 

Soon afterwards, Johnson and George Washington formed a company to extend navigation of the Potomac River. Thomas also served briefly in the Maryland ratification convention, where he supported ratification of the federal Constitution, and then became chief judge of the General Court of Maryland.

In 1789, Thomas Johnson was appointed U.S. District Judge of Maryland by George Washington, and a year later became Chief Judge in Maryland District Court. In 1791, President Washington elevated him even higher as he was named to the U.S. Supreme Court and took his seat as an associate justice. He was 60 years old at this time.
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Johnson wrote the first documented opinion of the court. He also served the shortest term of any justice—14 months—citing health issues for resigning. 

In actuality, Johnson may have turned down more invitations to serve than he accepted. President George Washington asked him to serve as his secretary of state. Johnson declined citing his health and not feeling qualified for the job. Apparently, Johnson was not confident in his own speaking skills as an orator. His strong suits were that of writing and working with finances. Letters penned by Johnson also indicate he believed his eyesight was failing.
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After 30 years of public service, Johnson retired to private life. At Rose Hill, Johnson could reflect upon his many achievements and spend quality time with his favorite child and two grandchildren. He had missed the opportunity to see his own children grow up due to his work on behalf of Maryland and his countrymen.

Johnson can be found living in Frederick in the 1790, 1800 and 1810 census records. He would make his last public appearance in Frederick in early January, 1800. This was the time of George Washington’s death, and Johnson was charged with presenting the eulogy in the local memorial service for his dear friend.
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Johnson would live for another 20 years, however little is known about his activities. It’s been said that his bedroom was in the rear of Rose Hill and overlooked the gardens and mountains, as he once noted in correspondence to a friend. A few documents remain that indicate that the aged statesman continued to provide legal advice. He carefully labeled and packed his correspondence in barrels for preservation. Sadly, the next generation used the papers for kindling, according to Judge Delaplaine.

On the morning of October 26th, 1819 at the age of 87,  Maryland’s first-elected governor would pass.
The Frederick Town Herald paper commented:
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“His deeds are inscribed in the imperishable archives of his country; his wisdom, impartiality and integrity in the records of justice; his worth and virtue are preserved in the hearts of his countrymen; his kindness, affection and friendship in the memory of his family, relatives and friends; his trust for immortality rested in his Saviour and God. Washington was his friend. Eulogium can add no more.”

​Thomas Johnson’s body was buried at All Saints' Episcopal Churchyard in a family crypt located below ground and accessed by a stairway. This underground vault contained the remains of his wife, brothers James and Joshua, along with a few of his children. In 1894, the newly-founded Frederick Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, at the urging of Charter member and Johnson granddaughter, Ann Grahame Ross, would place a marble marker atop the ground above the Johnson family tomb.” 

​The All Saints burial ground was sold in 1913, and all bodies were moved here to Mount Olivet Cemetery.  Greatest interest was placed in the re-interment of Governor Johnson, and the process made front page news in the local paper. Apparently, the former governor was not where the principles of the project thought he was, and an arduous struggle of “Finding TJ” transpired over the summer of 1913. With the help of relatives, his corpse was finally identified and was the last to make the move to Mount Olivet in November, 1913. 

​With the re-interment of the first governor's mortal remains into a vault within Frederick’s “garden cemetery” in Area MM/Lot 38, came the tablet that Mrs. Ross and the DAR had laid upon the grave in 1894. Three of Johnson's brothers are also buried here in this particular lot as well: James, John and Joshua, the latter the father of first lady Louisa Catherine (Johnson) Adams, wife of President John Quincy Adams. Baker Johnson is buried in the cemetery's Area E about 150 yards to the north.

A new marker displaying Johnson’s many achievements was placed here, and a flag pole was also erected which proudly flies the Maryland flag over the grave of the first governor.  This has been the scene here ever since.

​An area to the immediate south of the mausoleum complex and along the highway was named in honor of Thomas Johnson. Come to think of it, so was a bridge over the Patuxent River, not far from Johnson’s birthplace. You can traverse this patriotic bridge when traveling from Solomon’s Island at the southern tip of Calvert County to St. Mary’s County on the other side. Interestingly, the TJ bridge was built for Southern Maryland in a trade to get rid of its slot machines in the 1960s. After slot machines were phased out in 1968, so the plan went, the new bridge would foster economic development for the rural area, which still relied on tobacco farming and working the water for crabs, fish and oysters.

​Nearly 104 years later, Mount Olivet received a bust of Thomas Johnson. This had previously resided in front of Frederick City Hall (the former Frederick County Court House) since its unveiling in 1929. The bronze sculpture is the work of Joseph Urner, a talented local artist who served in both world wars and was laid to rest in a family plot in Area AA.  Our superintendent cleaned it up, and we placed it up near the FSK monument in the front of the cemetery.

Today, many residents of Frederick have no clue who Thomas Johnson, Jr. was, and how important his actions were to not only shaping Frederick, but our State of Maryland and our country. He rose to the top in regards to his given legal profession. He was a successful businessman exemplified by his furnace, real estate and farming endeavors. Thomas Johnson was not only an influential leader in the fight for independence as a delegate to Continental Congress, but he commanded troops in the American Revolution.  He helped shape Maryland as a state and served as a faithful delegate and our first-elected governor. He was just as much a "patriot" as his close friend Washington, the legendary Jefferson, Adams, Hancock, along with our Maryland signers: Charles Carroll of Carrollton, Samuel Chase, Thomas Stone and William Paca.

If you know a student who attends TJ High or TJ Middle, please tell them the story of their school's namesake. That takes care of the younger generation. As for the rest of us, there will likely come a time we will need to visit a specialist with an address on Thomas Johnson Drive. If anything else, take a moment to think of our first governor and his legacy when you do..... as you will likely have a wait before your appointment anyway.

​Private practice, Annapolis, Maryland, 1760-1762
Member, Maryland Provincial Assembly, 1762-1774
Delegate, Continental Congress, 1774-1777
Brigadier General, Maryland Militia, 1776-1777
State Governor, Maryland, 1777-1780
Private practice, Frederick, Maryland, 1780-1790
Member, Maryland House of Delegates, 1780-1782, 1786-1788
Chief judge, Maryland General Court, 1790-1791
Associate Justice, US Supreme Court, 1791-1792
Commissioner of the New Capital, 1791-1794

A new tabletop interpretive exhibit will be unveiled in Area MM on Saturday, October 23rd at 1pm. Please join us or check out the marker on a later visit to Mount Olivet.

A unique surname that can be found in Mount Olivet is Firestone. Of course, this name is synonymous with a popular local restaurant/bar in downtown Frederick, but more so, it’s a name known nationally thanks to the tire industry. Interestingly, the Firestones (interred) here are most definitely connected to a local restaurateur, and the legendary tire family, and I found it fascinating that just like a tire, the family, in a way, has come “full circle” here in sleepy little Frederick, Maryland.

I was reminded of this fact back in early August as my son and I were heading to the NFL Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony in Canton. Twenty minutes north of our destination, we went through Akron, “the Rubber Capital of the World” and birthplace of numerous brands of American tires from Goodrich to Goodyear, Firestone to General.

A “fire-stone” is one that can withstand fire and great heat, and were once common in the building of furnaces and ovens. The family name in question derives from the German “Feuerstein,” of course meaning “firestone,” and was Anglicized to such by second-generation members of this family that immigrated to America. Our earliest of inhabitant of Mount Olivet with this name is one, Jacob Firestone (1775-1830). He can be found in Area H/Lot 92. His wife, Mary Madeline (Hummell) Firestone (1780-1832), is buried at his side.

Family Ties
I can’t tell you a great deal about Jacob other than he was a millwright by profession and was born in Frederick. His father, Mathias Feuerstein (1744-1829), hailed from Thal-près-Marmoutier, Bas-Rhin, Alsace, France. This German immigrant journeyed to America with his parents, Nicholas and Catharina (Nunnemacher) Feuerstein, at the age of nine. 
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Mathias Feuerstein, known to us as Mathias Firestone, sailed from Rotterdam (Holland) on the ship Peggy, arriving in Philadelphia on September 24th, 1753. The Firestones came as indentured servants but eventually started their own farmstead near Lancaster (PA). During the American Revolution, Mathias served as a private in Captain Thomas White's company, York County, Pennsylvania militia. His father and siblings also took part in the fight for independence.

Mathias married Anna Maria Bieber (1752-1827) in Paradise Township, York, Pennsylvania on April 4th, 1774. The couple had 14 children. They would re-settle on a farm in Frederick County, Maryland, sometime before March 31st, 1787, thanks to a land deed from a local named Richard Wood. In 1790, the first-ever US census shows that Mathias Firestone was head of a family with his wife, four sons under the age of sixteen, and four daughters.
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Mathias Firestone would relocate to Ohio and became one of the early pioneering settlers of Columbiana County after the war. He would die here in 1829. Some of Mathias’ siblings had gone to Ohio as well, including a brother, John. It was this gentleman’s great-great grandson, Harvey S. Firestone, who would make the name iconic through his work as an American businessman, and the founder of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company, one of the first global makers of automobile tires.  

Our primary subject, Jacob Firestone, remained in Frederick to live out his life. He is associated with the properties on, or near, Little Tuscarora Creek situated just northwest of the City of Frederick. These included “Hedges Delight,” “Yellow Spring,” “Chestnut Ridge,” and land that would eventually fall into the hands of relatives named Zimmerman who called their property “The Paper Factory.” This last parcel was originally tied to another Mathias, named Mathias Bartgis who in 1778 began publishing a newspaper here in Frederick, and would later branch out to Winchester, Virginia as well. In 1788, Bartgis established a regular bi-weekly private mail system which stretched from York to Winchester to facilitate the delivery of his paper entitled the Bartgis Gazette among other names.

Jacob Firestone took part in the War of 1812, serving under Captain John Brengle. He served from August 25-September 19th, 1814, being recruited by Brengle and Rev. David F. Schaefer of the Lutheran Church as both these men rode through the streets in an effort to recruit a company which would eventually participate in the Battle of Baltimore. This included the bombardment of Fort McHenry which, in a round-about way brought eternal fame to Francis Scott Key.

I decided to search Jacob Firestone’s name in Jacob Engelbrecht’s famed diary, a key resource in Frederick history pursuits of the early to late 19th century. I found an entry relating to Mr. Firestone dated April 13th, 1830:

Died yesterday in the 56th year of his age, Mr. Jacob Firestone (Feuerstein) of this county. Buried on Lutheran graveyard.

Ironically, Engelbrecht made another entry the very next day (April 14th, 1830), this one though possessed a bittersweet nature knowing now the first entry:

Married on Thursday last 8 instant by Reverend D. F. Schaeffer, Mr. Joshua Firestone to a Miss Christiana Stull, all of this County.

Jacob and Mary were first buried in the original Lutheran burying ground which once stretched from behind the church (fronting on E. Church Street) and stretched to E. 2nd Street. The couple would be re-interred in Mount Olivet on April 1st, 1907.

Firestones off the Old Block
Jacob and Mary Firestone had six sons as far as records show on Ancestry.com. Half of these boys are buried here in Mount Olivet and include Joshua Firestone (1802-1883), Henry M. Firestone (1804-1869) and Frederick Hummell Firestone (1819-1856). All three seemed to be engaged in continued operation of the family farm and mill on Tuscarora Creek under the original leadership of brother George (1811-1891). George would live out the rest of his life in Fredericksburg, Wayne County, Ohio, as would two additional brothers named John (1808-1887) and David (1805-1894). George and John are buried in the aptly named Fredericksburg, and John was laid to rest  in Barnes County, Ohio. 
 
Frederick Hummel Firestone appears to have been the first of his family to enter Mount Olivet. Originally laid to rest in the Lutheran Church graveyard with his parents, his body would be moved to Mount Olivet on October 12th, 1863 by direction of his wife Rebecca in her Whitter family plot located in Area A/Lot 25. Jacob and Mary’s son Henry was also buried in the Lutheran graveyard but was moved along with the remains of his parents in 1907. Joshua Firestone seems to have been the instigator in having his parents and brother buried in a lot purchased for his own burial and located in Area H/Lot 92. He would be placed here upon his death on December 5th, 1883.

​A third generation of Firestones are also buried here in Mount Olivet. They include two grandchildren of Jacob Firestone: Oscar Frederick Firestone  and Martin Luther Firestone. Oscar, (1852-1933), the son of the aforementioned Frederick Hummell Firestone and wife Rebecca Whitter, married Fannie E. Steiner and moved to Baltimore, living at 1711 W. Fayette Street. Oscar worked as a traveling salesman of machinery supplies. The couple never had any children. Oscar’s grave can be found in Area Q/Lot 70.  

​Martin Luther Firestone (1832-1920) was the son of Joshua Firestone and wife Christiana Stull, the union mentioned by Jacob Engelbrecht in his diary. Martin Luther continued the family tradition as a millwright on the old farmstead. He also worked at the Pampel Iron Foundry in town and was a participant of the American Civil War, serving in the Potomac Home Brigade, Company A in the Union Cavalry under Col. Henry Cole. He received an honorable discharge after a horse fell on him at Harpers Ferry in July, 1862. He suffered for the rest of his life with a debility involving his hip. Martin would live until 1920, and was subsequently laid to rest in the Firestone plot in Area H.

​Martin married Katherine Virginia Galle (1837-1917) and the couple had four children: Bion Hunter Firestone, Charles W. Firestone, Chrisse Byrd Dell Firestone (Bowers) and Sarah C. Firestone (Miller). Of these, only Bion Firestone can be found in the main Firestone lot on Area H, representing four generations of this family. Bion had a remarkable career as a musician in Frederick County during the late 1800's and early 1900's. He would earn a living as a professor of music, as a conductor in the Frederick Philharmonic Orchestra, and as an accomplished violinist, organist, and pianist. Some of his many involvements were working for the Signor Hazazer School of Dance and the Lutheran Sunday School Orchestra.

A fine picture of Bion can be found in the archives of Heritage Frederick for all to admire. He died on December 30th, 1962 at the age of 98. One of our loyal readers of “Stories in Stone,” Pete Bowers recently stated that Bion Firestone was his great uncle, one of his grandmother’s (Chrisse B. (Firestone) Bowers—Mrs. Grayson E. Bowers) brothers who lived a part of his adult life in the first-floor apartment at 22 North Market Street. Pete said that what he remembered about Bion was that “he was a very distinguished and reserved gentleman, talented about all things musical and possessed a huge sense of humor. In his early days he studied in Europe, mainly in Berlin.”

Another sidenote, Pete's father was Grayson Hunter Bowers, who served on Mount Olivet's cemetery board from 1941 through his death in 1996. This man, the son of Chrisse (Firestone) Bowers, spent 26 years as our board president.

The Restaurant
So where does Frederick’s Firestone’s Culinary Tavern (as it’s called) come into the story? Well, the eatery was opened in 1999 by a California transplant that actually grew up in Beverly Hills by the name of Kimball C. Firestone. Kim is the son of Leonard K. Firestone, one of five sons of Harvey S. Firestone, founder of the Firestone Tire & Rubber Company.
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Apparently, after further exploration, I discovered that the impetus for the tire company occurred when Harvey (Kim’s grandfather) left a job with a Columbus, Ohio buggy company to start a small enterprise based on a central tenet—replacing hard rubber wheels found on buggies with pneumatic tires that could be mounted on wheels, which in turn could be attached to motor cars. It also didn’t hurt that Harvey had forged a close relationship with pioneer car manufacturer Henry Ford. 

​You may recall, from earlier in this piece, that Harvey’s great-great grandfather was John Firestone, making him restauranteur Kim Firestone’s GGGG Grandfather. And to review, John Firestone was an older brother to Mount Olivet’s Jacob Firestone. The common relative was the father of John and Jacob, Mathias Firestone, German immigrant to America and son of progenitor Nicholas Feuerstein.

Lastly, a prime local “Firestone” family connection can be made by mainstay eateries in our beautiful Downtown Frederick. We’ve explained the connection to the self-named restaurant (Firestones Culinary Tavern), but we have several others that were once owned and operated by Fountain Rock Management headed by Phil Bowers including Brewer’s Alley, Isabella’s, and the former Acacia. Phil’s ancestors include the Frederick Firestone family members through his great-grandmother, Chrisse (Firestone) Bowers, the wife of Grayson E. Bowers.

​I guess when somebody asks about our culinary scene here, it would be appropriate to use Firestone’s famed slogan and tagline as it’s “Where the rubber meets the road.”

​Bernard Aloysius Winkel was the epitome of what one would call “a colorful character.”  He would run one of the “junkier” businesses in town, but delighted many as a jovial entrepreneur and master showman who looked out for the area’s black community in a segregated Frederick before the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s.

Born in Baltimore on May 7th, 1890, Winkel was the son of Eugene Joseph Winkel (1852-1911), a son of German immigrants and livery keeper by occupation. Bernie's mother was Mary E. (Waltz) Winkel (1877-1929) who served as mother to eight children, six sons and two daughters.

Bernie Winkel is reputed to have worked as an accountant for a plumbing business before coming to Frederick in the year 1924. This can be confirmed by the 1920 US census which shows Bernie living on Baltimore’s South Paca St. The 1910 census shows 19-year-old Bernie as a piano player. This perhaps played a hand in one of our subject’s later endeavors here in Frederick.  

Later in 1910, Bernie married Daisy Marion Isabella Grove, also of Baltimore. In 1917, he could be found in the Mt. Clare shops of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad employed as a machinist’s helper. The couple had no children. Bernie came to Frederick in the mid-1920s, and soon after he and Marion would separate in 1925, and eventually divorce. He is shown living as a boarder with the Jacob W. Castle family of Battletown in the 1930 census.

Once in town, Bernie opened a used car establishment on the western outskirts of Frederick on West Patrick Street. This was in 1924. Today, the site of Bernie’s old business endeavor (469 W. Patrick St.) comprises the footprint, and parking lot of the West Patrick Street Center. 

The surrounding neighborhood of Bernie’s Garage was better known as Battletown back then. This was a name dating back to the previous century as it was said to have been a rough & tumble part of town. Many residents were black, and Bernie hired several folks from this locale to be part of his staff. A business associate reported at the time of Bernie’s death that there were numerous times Winkel had helped children in the Battletown area through his generosity. This won him the devotion of many of his neighbors.
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From the used car business, Winkel expanded into automobile salvage. At one time (in the late 1930s), Bernie’s Auto Exchange was the largest business of this type in the state. He proudly wore the marketing moniker "Bernie, the Used Car King of Maryland."

​At the West Patrick Street location, Bernie eventually opened a gas convenience station that fronted on Patrick. It was said to have a car on the roof as a quirky marketing gimmick. Soon, Winkel came into ownership of another parcel on the southside of West Patrick. Today this is the home of Comcast, and former home of Frederick Cablevision/GS Communications. This latter endeavor was my workplace from 1989-2006.

Bernie had built an interesting structure here in 1932, actually an entertainment venue he would name "Hollywood Gardens." It was told to me that Bernie built this facility as not only a secondary business venture, but also as a venue where his employees and other residents of color in town could be entertained at a time when Frederick was segregated.

This wasn’t Bernie’s first foray into the world of entertainment, however it was more respectful and legitimate than what the late Frederick NAACP leader and social activist Lord Nickens told me that Mr. Winkel had offered in previous years—hosting after-hour cockfights at his “salvage yard” in previous years.
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To top things off, Bernie also was behind one of the first outside miniature golf courses in Western Maryland. He began promoting the business around 1930 at the 452 West Patrick street location, on the south side of W. Patrick. This was operated by Thomas Bowie who resided nearby, and was popular for a number of years. The original course is far below the macadam that makes the Comcast/Old GS parking lot found adjacent the cable-television  office building.

​The “Hollywood Gardens” was at one time, a very popular place of entertainment and a dance hall drawing such well-known entertainers as the Mal Hallet band, the Mills Brothers, Floyd Mills Band and the Commanders. Residents told me that the legendary Cab Calloway once performed here, and on another occasion, the night Ella Fitzgerald played Winkel’s club, the cars were apparently backed up for miles in both directions trying to get here. 

​Back in the 1930’s, Friday nights were big dance nights where Saturday night was alright for fighting—sanctioned of course by the proprietor for entertainment purposes. These began in 1934 and the venue name changed its moniker a year later to “Ideal Gardens,” when it came under the management of Charles T. (Cap) Cramer.
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The facility doubled as a home to dancing and boxing/wrestling, but received another name change in 1936. Known now "Bernie’s Arena," many fights were promoted by Winkel in conjunction with the local American Legion, Francis Scott Key Post 11. Jack Lipps performed matchmaker duties. One of the top draws was James J. Braddock, the world champion heavyweight and original "Rocky Balboa." The facility could comfortably hold hundreds of spectators. 

​This endeavor lasted until around 1940, at which time the building was leased and often times used as a dance hall. Throughout the next decade, Fridays and Saturday nights was the scene of barn dances here, admission costing patrons 35 cents.

Bernie did not participate in World War I on the account of a heart issue. However, he helped the war effort during World War II. Hios West Patrick Street salvage entity was a "scrap drive" all to itself, and the War Production Board came calling in 1942.

During the balance of the mid 1940s into the mid Fifties, Bernie Winkel had experienced failing health. He had made his home at 513 Lee Place in Frederick's new Villa Estates neighborhood built on the northwest suburb of town near Fort Detrick. Bernie had been sick from an illness over a week and a half before dying on Leap Day, February 29th, 1956. Surviving him were his ex-wife, Marion, two sisters, Mrs. William Fox and Mrs. Grace Kirby, and one lone brother, Jerome Winkel, all of Baltimore.
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Services were held at St. John's Catholic Church on March 3rd, 1956. Interment followed here at Mount Olivet Cemetery where the “Used Car King of Maryland” was laid to rest in Area GG/Lot 9. This location is beautifully secluded today, shaded by trees and set against a backdrop of shrubbery.

​An old friend of mine, the late Joseph Coady, first told me of Bernie Winkel nearly 23 years ago while I was researching for my documentary entitled Up From the Meadows: A History of Black Americans in Frederick County, Maryland. He relayed that Bernie would often be caught clowning around with employees, and was beloved by loyal customers. Joe said that Bernie was also a bit of a "wheeler-dealer "as you would expect a business mogul of his caliber, and in this line of work. “He could always find what you needed!” Joe said with conviction in reference to Bernie and his customers' quests for automobile parts. Joe also said that Bernie talked out the side of his mouth in a peculiar way, and my friend then went on to demonstrate. He would commonly act out a dialogue involving a customer asking Bernie how much a certain part would cost. Bernie would always look off in the distance as he was carefully doing computations in his mind, only to exclaim after a long pause, and looking in the patron’s eye,….”two dollars!” Of course, this highly anticipated reply would be uttered out the side of his mouth.

​​Joe also told me that Bernie had amassed some nice real estate holdings.  After Bernie’s death, the property of his salvage enterprise was sold to allow for the shopping center. Houses were also built on the far side of the yard all the way to the newly designed Carroll Parkway, Joe’s home being one of them. He said they hit plenty of rock in the construction of those houses. To backfill, dirt was apparently excavated from the salvage yard. He told me this allowed for an easy solution for the removal of junk automobiles on Bernie’s lot. They were simply rolled into the excavated cavities. Apparently, there are likely antique cars like Model T's and the like underneath that Patrick Shopping Center parking lot.

Without a doubt, the most famous resident in Frederick’s Mount Olivet Cemetery is Francis Scott Key (1779-1843). Marked by a grand monument, placed in 1898, his gravesite is basically the first thing visitors see as they enter through the “garden cemetery’s” front gates from Frederick’s South Market Street.

Our native county son, a lawyer by profession, found himself in “quite the pickle” while being held captive aboard a British “Sloop of War” in Baltimore Harbor on September 13-14th, 1814. He had a front row seat to view the “perilous fight” between the “Defenders” of Baltimore and British military forces at Fort McHenry. FSK decided to take pen to paper, and wound up writing a catchy little song about the survival of United States flag above the fort throughout the attack—and the rest, as they say, is history.
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The patriotic, hometown hero has many ties to Mount Olivet. We have over 100 veterans of the War of 1812, some that were present in Baltimore on those fateful September days back in 1814. The cemetery also has dozens of colleagues and clients from Key’s law-practice days. Most important of all are, you will find a number of relatives of this man who gave us “The Star-Spangled Banner.” 

Obviously Key’s wife, Mary Tayloe Lloyd Key (1784-1859), is buried beside him in a vault located under the impressive monument. In the couple's original burial lot (Area H/Lot 439), one can find FSK’s son, Francis Scott Key, Jr./ “Frank” (1806-1866). Two grandchildren are here in this gravesite as well:  John Ross Key (III) (1837-1920), a prominent painter of national reputation and son of John Ross Key II, and Alice Key Blunt (1847-1927), a Baltimore socialite and daughter of Ellen Key.

Fifty yards to the west of this spot is the location of Key’s parents—John Ross Key (1754-1821) and Anne Phoebe Charlton Dagsworthy Key (1756-1830). They are buried in what is called “the Potts lot,” located on Area G/Lot 47. It just so happens to be the only surviving "gated community" within Mount Olivet.
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Key’s younger sister is also buried in the cemetery, and located next to his parents. She is surrounded by three daughters, nieces of Francis Scott Key. Many are surprised to learn that this woman rests here, and not beside her famous (or infamous) husband in St. John’s Cemetery between Frederick’s East 3rd and 4th streets in Downtown Frederick. Her name was Anne Taney.

Dearest Sister
Anne Arnold Phoebe Charlton Key was born on June 13th, 1783 on the Key family plantation of Terra Rubra. Not far from the Monocacy River, and even closer to Double Pipe Creek,  this locale was in Frederick County at the time of Anne’s birth, but would become part of Carroll County when the latter was established in 1837.

Anne Key was described as beautiful, with a "bright mind and womanly graces." Sadly, I have not been able to find an image of her, however have read anecdotes that some do survive. Anne was the fourth of four children born to John Ross Key and wife Anne. Two of the Key children died in infancy, probably dictating the fact that Anne and brother Francis would have a close bond throughout childhood and adulthood. The little girl was a devoted playmate to her brother, and both received early schooling from their mother. Francis would be sent to St. John’s College of Annapolis in 1789. Meanwhile, young Anne would continue to experience her childhood on the family plantation, while making frequent trips to Annapolis to visit her brother and other relatives.

Judge Edward Delaplaine, in his work Francis Scott Key: Life and Times, wrote of Anne:

“One of Key’s contemporaries recalled that Anne had the most cheerful face and the most pleasant smile that he had ever seen.”

Delaplaine playfully relayed that their marriage “was likened to the union of a hawk and a sky-lark.”

Anne and her brother would remain close throughout adulthood, and Francis would continue to call Anne’s husband one of his closest, lifelong friends. After the wedding, the Taneys resided in Frederick and went on to have the following six children:
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Ann Arnold Key Taney (1808-1834) married James Mason Campbell of Baltimore
Elizabeth Maynadier Taney (1810-1873) m. William Stevenson of Baltimore
Ellen Mary Taney (1813-1871) never married
Augustus Brooke Taney (1815) died in infancy
Sophia Brooke Taney (1817-1885) married Col. Francis Taylor
Maria Key Taney (1819-1887) married Maj. Richard T. Allison
Alice Carroll Key (1827-1853)

​No one is exactly sure of the location of the Taney family home in Frederick, because the site of the Roger Brooke Taney House on S. Bentz Street has been found to simply have been attributed to Taney as an investment holding, as it is doubtful that he ever  lived there.

Another theory I have heard is that Taney lived at a property that bordered the St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church property/compound. He was highly active in this church and could have lived on or adjacent to their grounds in some capacity. A lady, whose grandparents once lived at 113 E. Church St., told me that Taney was reputed to have lived at that location. This is the building to the immediate left of the former FCPS administration building on E. Church St., before one gets to Chapel Alley.

​Lastly, others have said that Taney’s law office was in the first block of N. Market St., on the east side of the street.  The original townhouse is long gone, however the locale is today home to Cacique Restaurant. 

Speaking of church, Anne and Roger Brooke Taney reconciled religious differences by agreeing that their sons would be raised as Catholics, and their daughters as Anglicans. This explains why Anne and three daughters are resting here in Mount Olivet, and Roger Brooke Taney is in St. John’s Cemetery in between East Third and Fourth streets in downtown Frederick. He is buried beside his beloved mother, Monica.
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Anne and Roger maintained close ties with Anne's family. They enjoyed frequent family reunions with her brother's family and also her parents, John Ross Key and Anna Charlton Key, at Terra Rubra. In the summer, the Taney family would sometimes retreat to the country to visit Anne's cousin, Arthur Shaaff. Mr. Shaaff was an interesting bachelor, who was a leader of the Frederick Bar. His plantation, named Arcadia, was a short distance south from Frederick. It still stands today, just below the Frederick Detention Center and immediately adjacent MD route 85. Shaaff helped mentor both Taney and his younger cousin, Francis Scott Key.

The Taneys maintained close ties with Roger's family in Calvert County, as well. The lawyer's mother moved in with Roger and Anne during the War of 1812 period, and remained with them until she died in 1814. This particular year, Anne would also see her brother become an “American Idol” of sorts, thanks to his writing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Meanwhile, Taney’s reputation as a lawyer and politician was growing as well.
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Taney made influential friends earlier in life among fellow law students, and also classmates at St. John’s College, and the sons of prominent people who came to Annapolis for the season. Among them was William Potts, who planned to be a merchant in Baltimore. Young Potts was the son of Judge Richard Potts, of Frederick, who was to be one of the promoters of Taney’s professional and political career.

Anne and her husband would stay in Frederick until 1823, at which time Roger Brooke Taney received the job of circuit court judge after spending five years in the State senate. The couple moved to Baltimore, and another child would be borne to them here in 1827—Alice Carroll Taney.
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Additionally in the year 1827, Mr. Taney would be chosen as attorney general of Maryland. President Jackson appointed him Attorney General of the United States and he assumed office on July 20, 1831. He resigned the position on September 23, 1833. Taney was then appointed Secretary of the Treasury. In 1835 President Jackson nominated Taney to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He was confirmed by the Senate and would hold the office for the rest of his life — October 12, 1864.

 “The twilight’s last gleaming”
Anne and Roger had a very long and happy marriage. Roger wrote to her frequently when he was away from home on business. In his many letters, Taney shared with her the details of his public business, his belief in God, and his loneliness when away from her and his children. On their 46th wedding anniversary, Roger wrote Anne the following letter:
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Washington, January 7, 1852
I cannot, my dearest wife, suffer the 7th of January to pass without renewing to you the pledges of love which I made to you on the 7th of January forty-six years ago. And although I am sensible that in that long period I have done many things that I ought not to have done, yet in constant affection to you I have never wavered – never being insensible how much I owe to you – and now pledge to you again a love as true and sincere as I offered on the 7th of January, 1806, and ever shall be
Your affectionate husband,
R.B. Taney.

Taney was a dedicated and loyal husband to Anne, and his love was unwavering for her. Health issues plagued the couple throughout their twilight years. A popular vacation and retreat spot for the family was Old Point Comfort in Virginia.
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Old Point Comfort is a point of land located in the independent city of Hampton, Virginia. Previously known as Point Comfort, it lies at the extreme tip of the Virginia Peninsula at the mouth of Hampton Roads in the United States. It was renamed Old Point Comfort to differentiate it from New Point Comfort, 21 miles up the Chesapeake Bay. In the 19th and first half of the 20th centuries Old Point Comfort served as the terminus and connection point for passenger and express freight ships connecting cities of Chesapeake Bay by both water and rail routes with Boston, New York and along the southeastern coast. Rail lines, for example the New York, Philadelphia and Norfolk Railroad, provided rail car through ferry service from Old Point Comfort to Cape Charles on the Eastern Shore of Virginia for land route connections to points north.

​For most of the 19th and 20th centuries, Old Point Comfort was a summer and winter resort in the town of Phoebus in Elizabeth City County. It appears that in 1952, the residents of both the town and county would vote to be consolidated with the independent city of Hampton. Old Point Comfort is the location of historic Fort Monroe, the Chamberlin Hotel, and the Old Point Comfort Light.

I became intrigued with another work on Taney’s life, published in 1935 by Carl Brent Swisher. Entitled simply, Roger B. Taney, this book came out four years after a bust of the Supreme Court Justice was joyfully unveiled in front of Frederick County’s Courthouse. If you were unaware, the bust caused a bit of a “political correctness” –themed controversy a few years back. It now resides in Mount Olivet.
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As for Mr. Swisher’s biography, an in depth look at daughter Anne Key Taney’s final months can be inferred from letters included in the book from the hand of her husband, who was fixated on health epidemics and other contagious disease. The following passages come from Mr. Swisher’s book, and picks up in late spring, 1853:

“I am out of health and soon fatigued,” Taney wrote from Richmond. “Perhaps Old Point may do something for me as I can get through the court here. But I am sensible of a sad falling off in my strength this spring.” The Campbells (Taney’s daughter Anne’s Family) were preparing to make their annual trip to Newport, Rhode Island. As Taney looked forward eagerly to his return to Old Point, his youngest daughter, Alice, begged to be permitted to go to Newport with the Campbells. Campbell broached the subject with Taney, and the latter replied with as close an approach to brusqueness as he seems ever to have used with his family:

“I have not the slightest confidence in the superior health of Newport over Old Point, and look upon it as nothing more than that unfortunate feeling of inferiority in the South, which believes everything in the North to be superior to what we have. Yet I am willing that Alice shall go with you if she wishes it and her mother wishes it, and it will not cost more than $100. I would take that much from my increased salary but am unable to spare more without injustice to others. And it must be distinctly understood, that nothing additional must come from you. Until I see you have provided for your wife and children, I will accept nothing from you for mine.”
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Taney became so ill that he had to go to bed for three days before he finished his work at Richmond. He had been overworked, he wrote to Anne Campbell, and the fatigue of the journey to Old Point brought a relapse, so that he was in bed again for days. Yet he wrote about life at Old Point with no forebodings of disaster, no awareness that his attitude toward Alice’s desire to go to Newport, which had been such as to prevent her going, was to cost the life of one of those whom he dearly loved. Mrs. Taney was improving. Ellen and Maria were quite well. Alice, who had not yet joined them, had had a delightful visit with Elizabeth at some point outside Baltimore. Sophia was in Baltimore, shrinking from the disgrace which “that mean hypocrite,” her husband, had brought upon her. Taney hoped she would come to Old Point, “For I am afraid every day of hearing that the little boy is made sick by the summer heat of the town.”

The weather had been cool at Old Point, and it had been necessary to close the doors and windows against the wind, “which was rather too strong for one who loves gentle breezes as much as I do.” It had been so cool as to keep the figs from ripening, but he was doing well, and last evening had walked around the fort on the outside without fatigue, a distance of a mile and a half. All of them enjoyed the sea bathing every day.

Soon however, evidences of fearfulness became apparent in the letters. Rumors were drifting in concerning an epidemic of yellow fever. It had broken out in New Orleans, had been carried to Norfolk on ocean-going vessels, and was spreading back into the country. No one knew the cause. Taney attributed the disease to dirt. Bishop McGill, of the Roman Catholic church in Richmond, proclaimed that the Almighty had sent the yellow fever as punishment for the attacks of the Know-Nothings upon Catholics. It was of the irony of fate that the Taney family, wherein certainly no members of the Know Nothing party were to be found, even though the women were not Catholics, trembled alike with the heathen at the news of the spread of the menace.

“The ravages of the pestilence in Norfolk and Portsmouth have not abated,” Taney wrote at the end of the month of August, “and the scene there must be awful….There has been no case at the Point. And the apprehensions and anxieties of Mrs. Taney and the girls is much abated….I have just returned from witnessing the grand parade of troops here. This being the last day of the month and inspection day, and of course there was a full turn out. And with the number now on the Point, the muster is quite an imposing spectacle. I left Ellen and Alice (who went with me)) with some friends as they wished to see the end of it.”
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“I have set about no work here, although I almost every day think of it. I have certainly a propensity to be idle and work hard only as a matter of duty, when the work can be no longer delayed. I excuse myself to myself on this occasion by the uneasiness and painful excitement which the state of things in Norfolk and Portsmouth produced in Mrs. Taney and the girls. Indeed apart from any apprehension of personal danger, it has been impossible not to feel saddened and depressed, when so many were suffering and dying near you and every day told of new victims to the disease. One’s thoughts must frequently be called away from matters of mere business, and he would be a hard man, and one whom I should neither love nor respect who could cooly fix his thoughts on any other subject for hours together, and feel no interruption from the agony and sufferings of the multitudes so near him.”

Two weeks later Taney reported that the pestilence had given no signs of abatement. “But we hope the abundant rain and the sea breeze may operate favorably upon it. It has been a terrible and awful scourge without example in this country….We do not think that there is the least danger  that the infected atmosphere can extend to this place…The place is perfectly healthy, and the weather is fine and pleasant, and we are all I think improving, notwithstanding the sad and depressing influence of the scenes around or near us.”
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Another week passed, and still no special cause for worry had appeared. Taney, voracious smoker that he was, realized that he would need cigars for the month or six weeks which he might yet spend at Old Point, and placed an order for a quarter-box of two hundred and fifty to last him through that period. The heat of the summer seemed to be over, and the weather was pleasant. “We all continue well here,” he wrote to Ann Campbell, “Mrs. Taney certainly much stronger, but I grieve to say that her difficulty in speech and defect of memory still remains, and I fear is not materially better. The constant uneasiness she unfortunately feels about the fever, and the sad amounts of suffering and death which she is continually hearing must be in some measure injurious to her health. Yet she has never wished to leave here, and indeed would be unwilling to go in any of the steam boats between this place and Baltimore or Richmond, as all of them have been filled with persons flying from the infected towns.”

​Three or four days later, Mrs. Taney, apparently already a victim of paralysis, suffered a severe stroke. In panic, Taney wrote to daughter Ann urging that medical aid be sent from Baltimore. Not trusting the mail service, he sent another note by private conveyance. “I wrote to you by mail today to tell you of the illness of my dear wife,” he said pitifully, “and to implore Doctor T. Buckler to come and see her. Fearing the letter may miscarry I write this note to give you this sad intelligence.”

​Mrs. Taney grew worse in spite of medical aid, and Alice suddenly fell seriously ill. On September 29th, Mrs. Taney died. It was believed at the time that paralysis was the cause, but it was reported later that after death the evidences of yellow fever were present in the body. A few hours later, on the morning of the following day, Alice also died, unquestionably the victim of the masquerading disease, leaving Taney crushed with another terrible blow. 

​There was no possibility, at this time, of moving the bodies of victims of the dread contagion, to a cemetery at a distant place. Accordingly they were temporarily interred in a grave on Colonel Segar’s farm, near Old Point. Joseph Segar was a Hampton (VA) attorney and co-owner of the Hygeia Hotel which comprised the Point along with Fort Monroe.

Some time later, at Taney’s request, his friend David M. Perine had the bodies moved to Frederick, where they were re-interred in the lot of the Potts family in Mount Olivet Cemetery, along with Mrs. Taney’s parents.

Additional Burial Notes
Unfortunately, here is where I take issue with Mr. Swisher’s account as it appears the bodies of Anne and Alice Taney underwent an additional burial to the two mentioned. Our Mount Olivet records say that both women were buried first at All Saints’ Episcopal Church burying ground, where I assume they were placed next to Anne’s mother and father, or within an underground family tomb. Richard H. Marshall, a prominent Frederick lawyer and founding member of the Board of Managers of Mount Olivet was listed as the responsible party for the move of the bodies here. The Marshall Lot today forms the eastern half of today's combined gated Potts-Marshall Lot within the cemetery. Marshall, a Charles County native, got his start as a lawyer under Roger Brooke Taney, whom he proclaimed his chief mentor.
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Marshall had made the arrangements for Anne Taney’s parents, John Ross Key and wife Anne, to be re-interred into Mount Olivet from All Saints’ on September 25th, 1857. Two months later, Anne and Alice Key were finally laid to rest in a shared grave to the immediate left of her father. This is in Area G/Lot 47.

The broken-hearted family boarded a boat for Baltimore from Old Point Comfort. Taney was leaving this special place, the scene of many happy summers, countless memories and now, one terrible tragedy, never to return. While there on this trip, he had also been working on his memoirs, writing of the story of his life. This work was never to be resumed.

So great had Roger Brooke Taney’s devotion to and dependence upon his wife that now, at seventy-eight years of age, there was a real danger that he would collapse completely when deprived of her companionship. It was here that his religion, an intimate spiritual reality rather than a mere commitment to creed, came to his aid. When a few days after his return to Baltimore a friend stopped at his house to take him for a drive he courteously refused to go. “The truth is, Father,” he said to the Catholic priest who happened to be with him at the time, “that I have resolved that my first visit should be to the Cathedral, to invoke strength and grace from God, to be resigned to His holy will, by approaching the altar and receiving holy communion.”
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Roger Brooke Taney sold his home in Baltimore in December (1855). Early in January, a month after the term of the Supreme Court had opened, Taney ventured in Ellen’s company to make the trip to Washington, and Maria whose husband was then at sea. In the nation’s capital, Taney took up quarters over a candy shop on Pennsylvania Avenue, between 4th and 5th streets. Taney’s office was partitioned off by a calico curtain from another apartment in which family cooking was done. He would eventually relocate to 23 Blagden’s Row on Indiana Avenue, near the Court House. 

Roger Brooke Taney was able to attend court only a small portion of the term during which he removed there, though within that portion he heard the first argument of the Dred Scott case. He described himself at this time in a letter to his sister Alice in August (1856):  “At my time of life and broken constitution I have no right to expect again anything like the good health of earlier life.” Adding to his own health anxiety was the fact that his daughter Ellen was also experiencing health issues.
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The famed Dred Scott court case would begin arguments in February, 1856. Taney was still grieving for his wife and daughter who had only been gone less than five months. The case was argued from February 11 to 14, by Montgomery Blair of St. Louis, son of Francis P. Blair, for Dred Scott; and by Henry S. Geyer, formerly of Frederick County and at the time a US senator from Missouri, and Reverdy Johnson of Maryland for Sanford.

The website Oyez, a multimedia judicial archive of the Supreme Court of the United States, says the following about the career of Roger Brooke Taney:
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Taney’s most infamous decision was the Dred Scott v. Sanford opinion. Ironically, Taney freed the slaves that he had inherited; however, he believed that the federal government had no right to limit slavery. He mistakenly thought he could save the Union when he ruled that the Framers of the Constitution believed slaves were so inferior that they possessed no legal rights. He held the Missouri compromise unconstitutional, claiming that as property, slaves were protected under Article V.  In addition to this unpopular opinion, Taney became even more disliked when he challenged President Lincoln’s constitutional authority to apply certain emergency measures during the Civil War. Lincoln saw him as an enemy, and even defied one of Taney’s judicial decisions.

​Anyway, I could go on about the Dred Scott case and Taney’s accomplishments, but no need at this juncture as: 1.) I’m not trying to be a Taney apologist; and 2.) He’s not buried in Mount Olivet, its half of the rest of his immediate family, all of whom did not make decisions on behalf of the highest court in the land.
 
I will say that his career was simply amazing, and he reached the zenith of his profession by becoming the fifth Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, along with involvement in thousands of cases over his lengthy career of roughly 64 years. His closest Maryland-born equal in the realm of law was the legendary Thurgood Marshall, who also served on the Supreme Court, and subsequently got more than a Frederick city street and apartment complex named for him. No Thurgood Marshall he got an international airport, and deservedly so.

I would ask that people of today, especially those without a firm grasp on the history of this period, to frame their thoughts and opinions about the human being Roger Brooke Taney while using the lens and context of the time that the Dred Scott Case was heard (1850s). It's extremely complicated and major political ramifications were at stake. Go figure, the same is true today—hence the concern with the political and philosophical leanings of Supreme Court appointees, and the battles fought to either confirm or block confirmation. Compound this with health issues, the loss of a spouse and daughter less than a year earlier and you have a jurist who may not have an un-clouded mind. Again, not making excuses, just sayin'. To read more about the Dred Scott case, check out the links below: 
https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/dredscott.html
https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/supremecourt/antebellum/landmark_dred.html

Ironically, since we are talking about slavery, and the history of slavery in our country as it is directly connected to Taney's most famous case, I would be remiss not to pass on the fact that the 400th anniversary of the first African slaves brought to the colonies occurred in August, 1619. The place, Old Point Comfort, Virginia, where Taney lost his spouse and youngest daughter. History can just be amazing, don't you think?

​As for the controversial fellow, himself, Roger Brooke Taney died on October 12th, 1864, at the age of 87. He had served as chief justice for 28 years, 198 days, the second longest tenure of any chief justice. Taney was nearly penniless by the time of his death, and he left behind only a $10,000 life insurance policy and worthless bonds from the state of Virginia.
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I found a news clipping that described the funeral procession in Washington, DC that accompanied Taney's corpse to the B & O Train depot for transport to Frederick and subsequent burial in the small burying ground on the campus of Frederick's Jesuit Novitiate.  (His remains would later be removed to St. John's Cemetery in 1904.) President Lincoln attended the viewing at the Taney home and attended the body to the station. He would have likely attended the funeral, however we were still in the midst of the Civil War, and he was not to leave Washington for such a trip. An interesting show of respect from such a bitter rival. Sadly Lincoln would be destined to the grave just six months later. 

​What I’d really love to know is how often Roger Brooke Taney visited the gravesite of his wife and daughter over his last nine years, if at all. In addition, in this same Potts Lot, he could find his in-laws, mentor Arthur Shaaff, and the man he mentored, Richard H. Marshall.

As he took responsibility for the wildly unpopular Dred Scott Decision, I’m sure he firmly believed he was making the right call for the time, as six other justices agreed with his rationale, and only two dissented.
However, Taney most likely despised and regretted full-heartedly his  “decision” to stay at Old Point Comfort in the summer of 1855, not to mention the fact that he "guilted" young Alice into coming to Virginia instead of her intended plan of staying with sister Ann Campbell at Newport, Rhode island. These issues surely haunted him until his dying day nine years later.

​In time, two daughters would additionally be buried in the plot with their mother and younger sister.  Ellen Mary Taney never married and died at the age of 58. This occurred on September 26th 1871, just days prior to the 18th anniversary of her mother’s death. She was buried on September 30th. Maria Key Allison would die on April 15th, 1887 and was buried three days later.

“The greatest man is he who chooses the right with the most invincible resolution; who resists the sorest temptation from within and without; who bears the heaviest burdens cheerfully; who is calmest in storms, and most fearless under menaces and frowns; whose reliance on truth, on virtue, and on God is most unfaltering.”
​-Seneca the Younger (c. 4 BC - AD 65) 
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A couple years ago, I came across a few old postcards of the cemetery, and found one that I hadn’t seen before. It contained a view that featured a freshly “closed” gravesite, covered in flowers. And when I say “covered in flowers,” I mean, really covered in flowers.

I thought about this particular card earlier this year, twice, as I wrote story on early Frederick postcards, and another on pioneering florists of town. In both cases, I wondered why this slightly depressing view of a flowered-grave would be considered for use as a postcard. And more so, who would send this as a jovial greeting to friends or relatives with a snappy salutation like: “Hi all, having a great time, wish you were here at Mount Olivet Cemetery!”

I decided to go “in search of” this postcard's exact location. The card itself was labeled on its face as being in “Area G” which helped a great deal. I was quick to find an obvious, and highly recognizable, feature to the far right of the photo—gravestones that were part of our famed Confederate Row. Soon, I found myself on the actual scene of the postcard in Mount Olivet’s Area G. I tried my best to match the present- day landscape to an 8 x 11.5 printout copied from the original postcard image.
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I began to study nearby monuments in an effort to pinpoint the approximate location of the camera responsible for taking the particular picture. Of course, there are a lot more stones (in the vicinity now), than there were then. And when I say "then," I’m talking about the year 1909, a fact deduced thanks to a series of photographs that can be credited to that particular year by photographer Charles Byerly, Sr. (1874-1944). As an aside, Charles was the grandson of Jacob Byerly and son of J. Davis Byerly, both great early photographers of Frederick in their own rights. 

Young Osborne lost his mother when he was four years-old. He grew up in Washington, DC where he received his elementary education in private schools and later attended the Rittenhouse Academy. He would move on to Episcopal High School, near Alexandria, VA and subsequently graduated from the University of Virginia in 1860. In the fall of the same year, Osborne Ingle entered the Episcopal Theological Seminary of Virginia, where he remained until the spring of 1861.

​On account of the American Civil War, Ingle returned to the nation’s capital, and taught school for a short time. In January 1862, he entered the Philadelphia Divinity School, from which he graduated in the summer of 1863. Later that year, Osborne was ordained as a deacon of the Episcopal Church.
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Soon after his ordination, Mr. Ingle became assistant rector at old St. Peter’s Church in Baltimore where he remained until June, 1864, when he was ordained into the priesthood in Philadelphia. He then became rector of Memorial Protestant Episcopal Church, back in Baltimore. Here, Osborne stayed until the summer of 1865. On May 13th, of the following year, Mr. Ingle became rector of All Saints’ Episcopal Church here in Frederick.

​The City of Clustered Spires
Mr. Ingle came to Frederick with “family in tow” after a turbulent time for the city. Just over four years earlier, Frederick had been the first major town that Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee would bring his Army of Northern Virginia. This occurred in September, 1862 and would include a multi-day occupation that eventually led to the nearby battles of South Mountain and Antietam. Less than a year later, the Union Army took over the town while en-route northward to Pennsylvania in hopes of intercepting Lee’s army who had crossed into Pennsylvania. Both North and South forces would clash at Gettysburg in early July, 1863.
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One year later, the Battle of Monocacy, was fought on July 9th, 1864. Town leaders had thwarted possible disaster by garnering funds to pay off a $200,000 ransom demanded (or suggested) by Confederate Gen. Jubal Early. Nearby fighting, south of Frederick, was fierce, and residents got to see the carnage of war up close and personal as corpses and wounded soldiers were regularly brought back into town. Many would be tended to in the All Saints’ church building itself, as it had been commandeered for use as a makeshift hospital.

After the fighting had stopped in 1865, peace and reconciliation had to be made between southern supporters and northern supporters, This, in many instances, involved relatives, friends and neighbors. Rev. Ingle certainly had his work cut out for him as I’m sure many residents had "lost their religion" over the four-year duration of the conflict. Rev. Ingle was charged with pacifying a torn community with the “Word of God.” For this, he was offered a yearly starting salary of $1,200/year, plus use of the church rectory as his living quarters.

Rev. Ingle’s first sermon resonated with his new congregation as he based his text on the bible passage of Acts 10:29 which reads:  “Therefore came I unto you without gainsaying, as soon as I was sent for:  I ask therefore for what intent ye have sent for me?”
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God’s purpose would certainly play out over time for the holy man. It’s also not an understatement to say that Rev. Ingle would come to know the confines of Mount Olivet Cemetery quite well over his 44-year tenure in Frederick. As his profession dictated frequent visits here, there would also be bittersweet personal tragedies that led the man once called “the Minister of Frederick” through the burying ground’s iron front gates. 

Right from the start, Rev. Ingle was called upon to officiate funeral services here in Mount Olivet. Interestingly, among the earliest, was the re-interment of Francis Scott Key who had been removed from Baltimore’s old St. Paul’s Cemetery and brought to Frederick’s relatively new “garden cemetery” in October, 1866. Thirty-two years later, Ingle would serve as officiating clergyman during the highly- attended unveiling of the Francis Scott Key monument.

A passage from the second edition of Ernest Helfenstein’s History of All Saints’ Parish, published in 1991, states:
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“The parishioners were not slow in appreciating the personal qualities of their new rector and he soon won a place in their interest and affections which, with the passing of years, ripened into a devotion, unique in character and productive of incalculable good. The early days of Mr. Ingle’s administration were featured by his strong desire to broaden the influence and benefits of the parish.”
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Mr. Ingle received the degree of Doctor of Divinity from St. John’s College, Annapolis, Maryland.

“the heaviest burdens”
As for Osborne Ingle’s personal life, he had previously married Mary Mills Addison, daughter of Anthony Addison of Prince George’s County, on August 11th, 1864. The couple had been warmly welcomed to Frederick and four children were born in the first four years of residency, prompting the church to assist Rev. Ingle in finding larger living quarters than the original rectory in the first block of W. Church Street provided. The Ingles would soon relocate to a dwelling on West Patrick Street, but would eventually land at 113 Record Street in 1878. This was the former residence of Dr. William Tyler who had entertained Abraham Lincoln 16 years earlier while the president was on a brief visit to Frederick to check on the recuperation of an old friend, Maj. Gen. George L. Hartsuff.

​Rev. Ingle’s first born child, Elizabeth "Bessie" Dulany Ingle, died on April 5th, 1881 shortly before her 11th birthday. The child, nicknamed Bessie, died as part of the terrible diphtheria epidemic that would grow in destruction over the next several months, particularly August, 1881-February, 1882. During this period, Frederick lost 125 of her residents to the diseases. 

​January, 1882 was particularly cruel to the Ingles as five children would be taken by the dreaded disease. These included: Gertrude Mills Ingle (Jan 6th, 1882 at the age of 7), Osborne Ingle, Jr. (Jan 10th, 1882 at the age of 3), Caroline Ingle (Jan 11th, 1882 at the age of 5), Susan B. Ingle (Jan 14th, 1882 at the age of 10), and Antoinette Addison Ingle (January 19, 1882 at the age of 6). This was a horrific happenstance that Rev. Ingle faced in a steadfast and strong manner. All of these children would be buried in Area G/Lot 154.

The Ingles and their three surviving children counted their blessings and pledged to move forward. However, another tragic event would sting this pious family shortly thereafter. On January, 28th, 1883, Mrs. Mary Ingle would die in childbirth, along with her infant child.  They would be buried together in the same space within the Ingle plot in Area G/Lot 154.

​After this heartbreaking event, Rev. Osborne Ingle found himself a single parent of three surviving children. He successfully raised these into adulthood. They included Maria, Mary Addison, and James Addison.

An article found in the Frederick Post on April 9, 1976 by Judge Edward S. Delaplaine shares:
“The grievous ordeals Osborne Ingle suffered while serving as rector of All Saints’ Church in Frederick, together with the lasting sympathy of the members of his flock, served to cement the bonds of affection.” 

​This was exemplified five years later in 1888 when the congregation raised funds to send Rev. Ingle on a 3-month vacation to Europe with his daughter Mary as traveling companion. It was thought that this trip would help his grief and health. It was a smashing success.

​“The last storm”
Seven months after Maria’s wedding, Rev. Ingle presented his son, James Addison, as a candidate for deacon in the Episcopal Church. James had attended the local Frederick schools, then graduated from the Episcopal High School of Virginia at Alexandria, Virginia. He obtained his B.A. degree from the University of Virginia in 1885 and his M.A. from the same institution in 1888. After teaching at a private academy in Charlottesville (1886-1887), Ingle decided to study for the priesthood. He graduated from Virginia Theological Seminary in 1891, and was ordained deacon at his home parish of All Saints Church, January 29th, 1891 by Bishop William Paret. James Addison Ingle would be assigned to serve as a missionary to China. He left for the Far East by boat in October, 1891. 

​James Addison Ingle served for ten years. He returned to the US on furlough in 1894, at which time he came back to Frederick to renew relations with friends and family. James Addison married Charlotte Rhett Thomson of Charlestown, SC. The wedding was presided over by the groom’s father, of course.  Back in Frederick, James Addison used the break to refresh himself while sharing his stories of life in China to townspeople. He also co-officiated a Thomas Johnson, Jr. commemoration sponsored by the Frederick DAR Chapter. The younger Rev. Ingle gave the keynote speech at Johnson’s gravesite in the old Protestant Episcopal burying ground in between Carroll Creek and East All Saints Street. 

James Addison Ingle returned to China in 1895 and would eventually publish the Hankow Syllabary in Shanghai in 1899. Meanwhile, James’ father was continuing his efforts to lead the All Saints’ congregation, while making necessary improvements to the church building and related accoutrements and programs. Rev. Osborne Ingle was also very active in municipal affairs and served as chaplain to several organizations such as the Independent Hose Company, Frederick Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Francis Scott Key Memorial Association. With this latter affiliation, Rev. Ingle was chosen to preside over the heavily-attended unveiling ceremony of the Francis Scott Key monument in August, 1898. Just thirty-two years earlier, Ingle had been on hand for the first burial of Francis Scott Key in Mount Olivet in the year 1866.

​A memorial service was held in James Addison Ingle’s honor at Emmanuel Church, Baltimore, during which Rev. Arthur M. Sherman mentioned Rev. Ingle’s dedication to building a native church, and his efforts after the Boxer Rebellion. His Frederick, Maryland parish donated funds to establish a scholarship at the Boone Divinity School in China in his memory, which was mentioned at the All Saints' day services in both his parishes. A memorial to Osborne's son can be found in the form of a memorial pulpit at Frederick's All Saints' Church.

​The year 1906 brought two very special and joyous occasions. In January, All Saints’ Episcopal would celebrate its 50th year in the present church structure fronting on W. Church Street. The opportunity was also taken at this time to properly consecrate the church as well. In May, the congregation celebrated once again. This wasn’t done for the church or structure, but solely for the man who had come to Frederick 40 years earlier to lead its members.
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In his Frederick Post article (April 9th, 1976), Judge Edward Delaplaine explained the actions of the church during this landmark occasion:

The vestry on the 9th of May, 1906, adopted the following resolutions expressing the feeling of the parish that no man could have rendered “more blessed ministrations.” In the resolutions, Rev. ingle was praised for his life and his preaching amid the joys and the trials of 40 years, asserting that there had always been one figure—both in sunshine and in shadow—who had guided and comforted them all. They assured Mr. Ingle not only of their boundless confidence and love but also their prayers that his life would be “extended to the uttermost.”
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Rev. Ingle was also urged to take a summer vacation and was given a gift of $565 in gold, contributed by the members of the congregation. The 70 year-old minister was said to have been overcome with gratitude. Delaplaine commented: “He expressed his thanks and spoke feelingly of the many kindnesses which had been bestowed upon him during his 40 years in Frederick.” As for the vacation, Rev. Ingle and daughter Mary traveled out west and visited Yellowstone National park and returned home via Canada and the Great Lakes.

Rev. Ingle’s physical strength and resolve would decline rapidly over the next few years. He would give his last sermon from the All Saints’ Church pulpit on August 15th, 1909. Just over a month later, he would be gone—dying on September 20th.

​Rev. Ingle would be further honored and memorialized by his congregation with stained glass windows and a memorial tablet in his church, and a white marble cross on his grave. Twelve years later, Maria Ingle Webb would be buried next to this cross in the Ingle plot following her death in 1921.

​The sympathetic members of Frederick’s All Saints’ congregation never forgot the ordeals through which the beloved rector had passed. Some 58 years after the deaths of Mrs. Ingle and her seven children, a stained glass window was installed in the church in memory of his children. This event took place in 1940 and was presided over by the remaining member of Rev. Osborne Ingle’s family—Mary. She would pass in 1955, and was buried beside her parents and siblings at Mount Olivet at that time.

Have you ever wandered through Mount Olivet (or any other historic cemetery) and eyed a bluish-gray colored headstone or monument that appeared to be in stellar condition? Upon closer inspection, you likely noticed that it wasn’t derived from a rock material such as the traditional suspects of marble, granite or sandstone?
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Hopefully you went one step further and used a few other of your senses—that of touch, and that of hearing. It should feel like metal, and when knocked on with your hand or (gently) tapped with a metal object such as a key or screwdriver, you should hear a hollow “clang.” Chances are you found something very popular and stylish in the last few decades of the 19th century and known as “white bronze” markers.

​These standout funerary memorials were the brainchild of a man named Milo Amos Richardson (1820-1900) and business partner and brother-in-law, C. J. Willard. Mr. Richardson worked as a cemetery superintendent in Chautauqua County, New York, and had observed the need for a new and better material for cemetery monuments. He set out to develop a solution of creating a material for memorials that would repel moss, algae and lichen, invasive and unwelcome guests that takes up residence on traditional  gravestones, especially  monuments in shady locations within cemeteries characterized by abundant tree cover or dampness.

Richardson and Willard’s formula centered on the use of zinc carbonate and found its home at a foundry in Bridgeport, Connecticut called the Monumental Bronze Company. Richardson, along with two business partners, tried to get a company off the ground but failed.  In 1879, the rights were sold and a new company, the Monumental Bronze Company, was incorporated in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
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One more innovation (that white bronze made possible) resided in the opportunity for customers to employ a myriad of popular symbols and designs of the late Victorian period on these unique monuments.  These beautifully ornate memorials became a high-selling novelty especially in the northeast, and the examples that have remained are well over a century old and look virtually new, so to speak! The name “white bronze” was given as it certainly sounded more elegant than zinc.

Characteristics of a White Bronze Marker
As already mentioned, the headstone will be a lovely bluish-gray, or dare I say “powder-blue” in color. The lettering on the marker will stand out as being made in a cast and put together in panels. The assured way to tell is to literally knock on the marker itself. Tombstone tourists have affectionately refer to these monuments by a nickname coined at the time of their popularity—“zincies.”
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In some cases, these specimens were often viewed as a status symbol for the deceased solely based on their uniqueness from the norm found in a burying ground. In other cases, they were frowned upon as cheap imitations as white bronze monuments offered a less expensive alternative for a custom designed and detailed gravestone as opposed to a solid granite stone.  Some cemeteries even banned them, likely due to the urging of local granite and marble monument companies. 

Cost ranged anywhere from $10.00 to $5,000.00, depending on design. If attainable, there were often difficulties in finding a salesman in particular states, especially as you headed south and westward. Branches of the Monumental Bronze Company were established in Chicago (American White Bronze Company), Des Moines (Western White Bronze Company), New Orleans (New Orleans White Bronze Works), and St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada (St. Thomas White Bronze Monument Company). 

Here in Frederick, customers could go to Lough's  Excelsior Monumental Works on S. Market St. to order a white bronze marker. The firm began their affiliation with Monumental around 1883-1884.