Including citation proofs {**} that these folks are buried here!
Marguerite Marree Mathews, Raleigh, North Carolina - Floyd Research 1990-2000.
Re-Printed Here With Written Permission of Mrs. Mathews.
All photos on this page taken and copyrighted by
Mrs. Mathews - © 2000-2001.
CHARLES FLOYD (Capt.) born 04 March 1747 in Northampton Co., VA (son of
Samuel Floyd & Susan Dixon, both of Northampton Co., VA); husb. of
Mary Fendin; father of Brig.-Gen. John Floyd; moved from SC to McIntosh Co., GA in 1795; moved to Camden Co.,
GA in 1800; died 09 September 1820 at Bellevue Plantation, Camden Co., GA; bur. in Floyd Family Cemetery nr. the site of Fairfield Plantation, Floyd's Creek, Camden County, GA.
**Tombstone intact
MARY FENDIN FLOYD born 15 April 1747 in St. Helena Parish, SC (dau. of
John Fendin Jr. of St. Helena Parish, SC & Elizabeth Thomas); wife of
Charles Floyd: mother of Brig.-Gen.
John Floyd: died 18 September 1804 at Bellevue Plantation, Camden Co., GA: bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA - oldest marked visible grave.
**Tombstone intact
JOHN FLOYD (Brig.-Gen.; promoted to Major-Gen.) born 03 October 1769 at
Hilton Head Island, SC (son of Charles Floyd & Mary Fendin); husb. of
Isabella Maria Hazzard; died 24 June 1839 at Bellevue Plantation, Camden
Co., GA: bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Tombstone intact
ISABELLA MARIA HAZZARD FLOYD born 03 January 1773 in St. Marys,
Camden Co., GA (dau. of Richard Hazzard III Esq., of Beaufort Dist, SC & his
1st wife, Phoebe Loftin of FL): wife of Brig.-Gen. John Floyd: died 18
August 1859 at Bellevue Plantation, Camden Co., GA: bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem.
**Diary of Augusta Gallie Floyd-Vol. Ill Oct. 1880-Jan. 1886
JOHN FENDIN FLOYD born 25 January 1802 in Camden Co., GA (son of
Brig.-Gen. John Floyd & Isabella Maria Hazzard); husb. of
Ann Hunt Alston;
died 25 January 1830 in Darien, GA: bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA. Less than eight weeks after his marriage, he was shot while walking down the
street in Darien by a man with whom Gen. John Floyd had a political
misunderstanding: "His remains were borne to the residence of my brother,
Charles, where he was conveyed to the burial ground and interred by
torchlight without the knowledge of our dear mother...it was a terrible blow
to our precious mother...nothing could allay her grief until she had her
beloved one disinterred, placed her hand on the wound that had cost him his
life, and cut a lock of beautiful hair from the head it adorned" (A Little
Family History).
**A Little Family History by Mary Hazzard Floyd Hamilton -p. 19 & 20
**The Southern Recorder 06 Feb. 1830 pub. weekly at Milledgeville, GA
MELINDA ISABELLA FLOYD HOPKINS born 12 March 1812 at Fairfield
Plantation, Camden Co., GA (dau. of Brig.-Gen. John Floyd & Isabella Maria Hazzard): wife of
William Proctor Hopkins: supposedly poisoned by her maid;
died 14 October 1831 at the Hopkins home place in McIntosh Co., GA - one
month & six days after she was married (Floyd Volumes, comp. by Alice Collar Tonge - copies in Atlanta Archives, Atlanta, GA & in Bryan-Lang Historical
Library, Woodbine, GA): bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Tombstone Intact
WILLIAM HENRY FLOYD born 02 May 1808 at Fairfield Plantation, Camden
Co., GA (son of Brig.-Gen. John Floyd & Isabella Maria Hazzard); died 15
October 1811 "of bilious fever" at Bellevue Plantation, Camden Co., GA (A
Little Family History)", bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Tombstone intact
AIME/AIMEE DELAROCHEAULION/DELAROCHE (M.D.) born 08 June 1797 in Dinan,
France: husb. of Sarah Catherine Wigg Floyd (she is bur. in Savannah - dau.
of Brig.-Gen. John Floyd & Isabella Maria Hazzard): died 06 October 1858:
bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Tombstone intact
ANNE "Annie" FENDIN MAXWELL born 1745 in SC (dau. of John Fendin Jr. &
Elizabeth Thomas); sister of Mary Fendin Floyd & Sarah Fendin Taylor Hobkirk;
m. 1st Benjamin Parmenter & m. 2nd Mr. Maxwell; died January 1807 in Camden
Co., GA; bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Tombstone intact
SARAH FENDIN HOBKIRK born ? (no dates) in SC (dau. of John Fendin Jr. &
Elizabeth Thomas); sister of Mary Fendin Floyd & Anne Fendin Parmenter
Maxwell; m. 1st Mr. Taylor & m. 2nd John Hobkirk; died ? (no dates) at
Bellevue Plantation "Mrs. Hobkirk died at the house of my father and so did
Mrs. Maxwell, and both are buried near their sister, Mrs. Charles Floyd" (A
Little Family History)', bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**A Little Family History, by Mary Hazzard Floyd Hamilton -p. 13
CHARLES RINALDO FLOYD (Brig.-Gen.) born 14 October 1797 at "The Thickets" nr. Darien, McIntosh Co., GA (son of
Brig.-Gen. John Floyd & Isabella Maria Hazzard); m. 1st Catherine Sophia Powell; m. 2nd
Julia Ross Boog; died 22 March 1845 at Fairfield Plantation, Camden Co., GA; bur. under a pine tree at the site of Fairfield Plantation, Camden Co., GA. The US Govt. [or the soldiers who served under him] erected a marble monument in his honor.
**Marble monument intact
JULIA ROSS BOOG FLOYD born 16 April 1815 at Kings Bay nr. St. Marys, Camden Co., GA (dau. of
John Boog of Golspie, Scotland & Isabella King Kelly Turner of Falmouth, Jamaica); 2nd wife of
Charles Rinaldo Floyd: died 30 January 1852; bur. [either] in Floyd Fam. Cem. nr. the site of Fairfield Plantation, Camden Co., GA - or bur. beside her husband at the site of Fairfield Plantation (according to
James Boog Floyd Russell of White Oak, GA).
"Diary of Augusta Gallie Floyd - Vol. Ill Oct. 1880-Jan. 1886
MORDINA JANE BOOG FLOYD born 14 December 1823 in St. Marys, Camden Co., GA (youngest dau. of
John Boog of Golspie, Scotland & Isabella King Kelly Turner of Falmouth, Jamaica): 2nd wife of
Henry Hamilton Floyd; died 24 February 1862 at Clinton nr. the present-day community of Colesburg, Camden Co., GA: bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Floyd Volumes, comp. by Alice Collar Tonge - copies in Atlanta Archives & Bryan-Lang Hist. Lib., Woodbine, GA
"Diary of
Augusta Gallie Floyd-Vol. Ill Oct. 1880-Jan. 1886
JOHN FLOYD CAESAR HAMILTON born 14 November 1819 at Fort Creek, Hancock Co., GA (son of
Everard Hamilton of Hancock Co., GA & Mary Hazzard Floyd of McIntosh Co., GA - dau. of
Brig.-Gen. John Floyd & Isabella Maria Hazzard); died of "the thrush settling on his
bowels" 29 June 1821 at Bellevue Plantation: bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**A Little Family History, by Mary Hazzard Floyd Hamilton - p. 35
Part of grave of Charles Rinaldo Floyd at Fairfield Plantation.
SARAH FRANCES CHARLESSINA HAMILTON born 07 November 1828 in Milledgeville, GA (dau. of
Everard Hamilton & Mary Hazzard Floyd); died 06 June 1830 at Bellevue Plantation, Camden Co., GA: bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**A Little Family History, by
Mary Hazzard Floyd Hamilton - p. 37
RICHARD WILLIAM HAMILTON born 07 November 1832 in Milledgeville, GA (son of
Everard
Hamilton & Mary Hazzard Floyd); died 16 October 1854 "of yellow fever at his grandmother's" [Isabella Maria Hazzard Floyd] at Bellevue Plantation, Camden Co., GA; bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**A Little Family History, by Mary Hazzard Floyd Hamilton - p. 38
ISABEL AUTOSSEE FLOYD born 01 November 1833 in St. Marys, GA (dau. of
Charles Rinaldo Floyd & his 2nd wife, Julia Ross Boog): died 13 August 1834 at Fairfield Plantation;
"My little daughter, Autossee, after much suffering expired this morning at 4:00 o'clock. She was buried this afternoon at Fairfield" (Journal of
Charles Rinaldo Floyd); bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Journal of
Charles Rinaldo Floyd
ELIZABETH SMITH HAZZARD CREWS born ca. 1780 (dau. of Richard Hazzard III Esq. & his 2nd wife,
Jeanette McCloud); half sister of Isabella Maria Hazzard Floyd; wife of
Joseph Crews; died 15 June 1841 "at Bellevue" Plantation, Camden Co., GA; bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**Diary of
Augusta Gallie Floyd-Vol. Ill Oct. 1880-Jan. 1886
CATHERINE ISABEL "Kate" FLOYD born 09 November 1825 in Camden Co., GA (dau. of
Charles Rinaldo Floyd & his 1st wife, Catherine Sophia Powell); died 21 November 1842 at
Bellevue Plantation "at the age of seventeen at the residence of her grandparents" (A Little Family History)', bur. in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
**A Little Family History, by
Mary Hazzard Floyd Hamilton -p. 18
ISABELLA MARIA HAZZARD FLOYD EVANS born 29 September 1858 in Camden Co., GA (dau. of
Henry Hamilton Floyd & Mordina Jane Boog); wife of
William John Evans of Canada:
died 22 May 1889 "of consumption" at the home of Augusta Gallie Floyd in Moccasin Branch, FL (where she was recuperating in a more humid climate); bur. 29 May 1889 in Floyd Fam. Cem., Camden Co., GA.
"Diary of
Augusta Gallie Floyd-Vol. Ill Oct. 1880-Jan. 1886
**Camden Co., GA Episcopal Parish Register p. 114- copy in Bryan-Lang Historical Library, Woodbine, GA.
Graves (7 legible & 2 illegible) inside confines of brick wall of Floyd Fam. Cem. = 9
Others (no visible tombstones) buried in Floyd Fam. Cem. = 12
Monument (Charles Rinaldo Floyd) at site of Fairfield = 1
TOTAL = 22 (probably more)
NOTES on the FLOYD FAMILY CEMETERY
By Marguerite Marree Mathews, Raleigh, NC - Floyd Research 1990-2000.
HISTORICAL SYNOPSIS: In 1795, the four Floyds (Charles Floyd & his wife, Mary Fendin; their son, John Floyd & his wife, Isabella Maria Hazzard) moved from Beaufort Dist., SC to McIntosh Co., GA. In 1800 they moved to Camden County, GA, where Charles and John Floyd purchased large tracts of land in the area now called Floyd's Neck - situated north and south between the Satilla River and the Crooked River, and, east and west between what is now I-95 and the marshes of St. Andrews Sound. The Floyds built two plantations about a mile distant of one another. John Floyd built Bellevue Plantation (The Anchor House), located within view of the marshes of Todd's Creek for his father, Charles. He built Fairfield Plantation on Floyd's Creek for himself. After Charles Floyd died, John moved into Bellevue. He gave Fairfield to his eldest son, Charles Rinaldo Floyd. During the Civil War, both plantations were bombarded by gunboats entering St. Andrews Sound. Nothing is left of Fairfield, and of Bellevue, only the tabby ruins remain.
(Anchor House @ Bellevue.)
The cemetery, the Fairfield Plantation site, the monument to Charles R. Floyd and the ruins of Bellevue Plantation are now on property owned by Union Carbide; however, permission to gain access was once obtained through Aventis Crop Science USA (formerly Rhone-Poulenc Ag. Company) on Harrietts Bluff Road, Woodbine, Camden County, GA. Jim Myers, Human Resources/Training Manager at the Woodbine Plant, had the responsibility of maintaining these sites. For the family reunion held in April each year, he guided Floyd descendants and friends through the isolated woodlands, all the while relating historical background of the area, and best of all, accounts of Floyd lore.
THE FLOYD FAMILY CEMETERY: Located near the site of the former Fairfield Plantation in Camden County, GA. Oldest marked grave: Mary Fendin Floyd (wife of Charles Floyd), who died at Bellevue in 1804. Second oldest marked grave: Anne Fendin Maxwell (sister of Mary Fendin Floyd), who died in 1807. Third oldest marked grave: William Henry Floyd (son of Charles & Mary), who died at age three in 1811. Today (April 1999), there are nine visible gravestones within the confines of a low rectangular stone wall. One grave is so small that it obviously belonged to an infant, however, the lettering is now entirely obliterated. Eight adult graves remain: One ground-level slab is illegible: seven others rest on the tops of raised red-brick beds, and, fortunately, their epitaphs and inscriptions are still legible.
CHARLES RINALDO FLOYD MONUMENT: Located at the site of the former Fairfield Plantation - a marble monument was placed in honor of Charles Rinaldo Floyd (son of John Floyd & Isabella Maria Hazzard Floyd), who died at age 48 in 1845. The U. S. Government erected a marble shaft commemorating his patriotic service, his distinguished military career, and his remarkable personal achievements. According to various Floyd family members, it is uncertain who placed the monument at this spot or when it was erected. The body of Charles R. Floyd was wrapped in the folds of the U.S. Flag and he was buried under a pine tree adjacent to Fairfield Plantation.
ABOUT THE WALL & THE GATE: The rectangular wall surrounding the Floyd Family Cemetery was built sometime in the early 1900's. The new wrought iron entry gate with "Floyd" carved across the top was commissioned and put in place in 1992 by Harry C. Russell Jr. and his brother, James B. F. Russell.
The wall surrounding the Charles Rinaldo Floyd Monument is made out of the same blocks as the wall at the Floyd Family Cemetery. The gate was purposely removed.
Phone conversation in November 1999 with James "Jim" Boog Floyd Russell. White Oak. GA: "Around the early 1900's Harry C. Russell Sr., James F. Russell, Harry Noyes, Hazel Noyes, Frank Noyes and perhaps Marmaduke Floyd, decided that something had to be done regarding the Floyd Family Cemetery. The cemetery had fallen into a state of sad disrepair. Tombstones were vandalized, broken into and some were left in broken pieces. They marked off what was left of the areas which had visible remaining graves, arranged the scattered bricks in their proper places, straightened out the slabs that were askew and placed them back into alignment on their red-brick beds. They put up a wall using John Swan Russell's block molding device. These home-made blocks were twice the size of cinder blocks, had a wavy type of pattern, beveled edge, and convex front. When I [Jim B.F. Russell] grew up at Incachee - they still had that mold for making the blocks. The blocks were made of sand and cement. They got the sand right there at the cemetery site. They took the cement and the mold by boat to Floyd's Creek - landed at Fairfield Point. Nearly every place in Camden County was accessible by boat. The cemetery is about 100 to 150 yards from the bluff at Fairfield Point and it was fairly easy to deal with the cement and the equipment. The mold was a trough of metal in which one poured the concrete. The blocks were loosened and then they slid out. The process was repeated: Pour in another batch until there were enough blocks. The Russell [John Swan Russell] house in St. Marys, GA, was made of these special blocks. The reasons for putting up a wall were to discourage vandalism and the Floyds knew that this land was to be sold and they wanted to establish and lay claim to the area by surrounding the cemetery with a wall. The plan to fix the tombstones and put up a wall emanated from a meeting of the Floyd family members in St. Marys. Although, many years after the new wall was in place, sometime during the 1930's, the vandalism still occurred. People in the area heard about the lifestyle of General John Floyd and they dug up the graves hoping to find gold or jewelry - but they found only brass buttons."
"Years later [approximately 1992], my brother, Harry Russell, arranged for the wrought iron gate to be custom-made by a metal worker. We felt that the cemetery would look better with a gate. The Floyd Reunion Fund provided for the cost - about $180.00. After Harry picked up the finished gate, I attached it onto the brackets on each side of the entry. I am in possession of a photo taken of the cemetery in the 1920's. There was a cedar tree in the very front of the cemetery - it is still there today, although it is dead."
[Photos in newspaper articles, books and in other printed sources have been erroneously attributed to the Floyd Family Cemetery].
"The Charles Rinaldo Floyd Monument glorifies him and tells all of his good points. All four sides are written on which elaborates what he did. This monument area is encased [walled] in with the same block stone as the cemetery, but with a crown saddle cap on top of the wall. It had a gate at one time when Thiokol Chemical Co. owned it. People would capture hogs - then shut the gate. To prevent this, the gate was removed. The monument was pushed over by vandals and the top spire or monolith broken. I [Jim B.F. Russell] brought it home. My wife [Elinor] objected to it laying dormant in our front yard for over a year. So, I took it back in my pick-up truck. It was in two pieces and at the site, I fixed it using a mason drill - drilled in opposite directions in the marble and put a metal dowel to hold it together to keep it from slipping. Then I used an A-frame to hoist it back onto the pedestal. This was about thirty-five years ago."
Phone conversation in January 2000 with Harry Clement Russell Jr.. Brunswick. GA: "In the early 1900's the Floyds felt a responsibility to see that the family cemetery at Fairfield was taken care of and straightened out."
[I asked about the location of a slave cemetery on Floyd property - for there must have been one but no one seems to know]. "The Southern portion of Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Marys has a Black area - a section was Floyd sponsored. Some of the slaves retained the last name of Floyd and you will see many with this name who were buried here."
"It was a chore to find someone to custom-make the wrought iron gate for the Floyd Family Cemetery. This was a small job and after much haggling, I finally found a man who would do the work - someone in Brunswick. This was about six or eight years ago. My brother, Jim [James B.F. Russell], put it in his truck and hauled it to the cemetery. He is the one who attached it. It looks good!"
(Anchor House @ Bellevue. Click on image to see larger version.)
LETTERS (extracts only) between: WILLIAM G. McADOO JR. & JOHN A. FOSTER: (Original letters in possession of Margaret "Bitsy" E. Noyes, Georgetown, TX)
06 May 1910 - from W.G. McAdoo, Hudson & Manhattan Railroad Co., President, Executive Offices, Hudson Terminal 30 Church Street, New York, NY - to Mr. J.A. Foster, Yellow Pine Lumber Co., Savannah, GA: "My dear Mr. Foster: I would like very much to know just what reservations were made respecting the family cemetery when my Mother sold her interest in the Floyd's Neck property, and it is easier to get this information from you than to try to get copies of the deeds, etc. I will be very much obliged if you will send me a line on this subject at an early date..."
12 May 1910 - from W.G. McAdoo, Hudson & Manhattan Railroad Co., President, Executive Offices, Hudson Terminal 30 Church Street, New York, NY-to J.A. Foster, Esq., Hilton & Dodge Lumber Co., Savannah, GA: "Dear Mr. Foster: I have your letter of the 9th instant, for which I am very much obliged. I hope to see you when you come to New York."
19 May 1910 - from C.W. King, Secretary, Hudson & Manhattan Railroad Co., Executive Offices, Hudson Terminal 30 Church Street, New York, NY-to J.A. Foster, Esq., Hilton & Dodge Lumber Co., Savannah, GA: "Dear Sir: Your favor of the 17th instant, enclosing letter from Judge Atkinson in reference to the Cemetery at Fairfield, has come to me in Mr. McAdoo's absence. He sailed yesterday for Europe, to be gone several weeks..."
23 March 1920 - from William G. McAdoo [of] McAdoo, Cotton & Franklin, Attorneys At Law, 120 Broadway, New York, NY-to J.A. Foster, Esq., Savannah Bank & Trust Co. Bldg., Savannah, GA: "Dear Mr. Foster: Your letter of the 2nd of January came in my absence from New York... I am extremely sorry that you did not get a prompt reply. Do not worry about the inscription on my grandfather's tomb. I think I have this in the book containing the Floyd family history which you compiled and of which you so kindly sent me copy {A Little Family History, by Mary Floyd Hazzard Hamilton]. I shall look it up the next time I am in my library..."
ADDITIONAL NOTATIONS:
Contrary to the statement by William G. McAdoo in his 1920 letter to John A. Foster, the inscription written on Charles Rinaldo Floyd's tombstone is not in A Little Family History.
William Gibbs McAdoo Jr. born 1863 in Marietta, GA, son of William Gibbs McAdoo Sr. & Mary Faith Floyd (dau. of Charles Rinaldo Floyd & Julia Ross Boog); he m. 1st Sarah Houstoun Fleming; m. 2nd Eleanor Randolph Wilson; m. 3rd Doris Isabel Cross; he died 1941 in Washington, DC & is bur. at Arlington Nail. Cem. John Alexander Foster "Jack" born 1852 in Savannah, GA; m. 1st Georgia Estelle Floyd (dau. of Henry Hamilton Floyd & Mordina Jane Boog); after she died he m. 2nd Augusta Gowen Russell (dau. of John Swan Russell & Catherine "Pat" Sophia Floyd); he died 1948 in Savannah, GA & is bur. at Bonaventure Cem.
John Alexander Foster felt strongly about Camden County, GA history, particularly the history of the Floyd family. In 1906, at his own expense, he arranged for a limited number of copies of the book: A Little Family History, written by Mary Hazzard Floyd Hamilton, to be printed and published. He then distributed these copies among the descendants of General John Floyd.
My grandmother, Marguerite Jule "Rita" Pacetty Brown, was one of the cousins who received an original copy of this book. After her death, I (Marguerite Marree Mathews) gave her book to the Bryan-Lang Historical Library in Woodbine, GA.
EPITAPHS FROM FLOYD FAMILY CEMETERY - CAMDEN COUNTY. GEORGIA
(Visible gravesite inscriptions verified by Marguerite Mathews, Tara Fields and Jean Manning on a visit to the Floyd Family Cemetery in April 1999):
Here lies the body of Mr. Charles Floyd who was born in North Hampton County on the Eastern Shore of Virginia on the 4th of March Anno Domini 1747 and departed this life on the 19th of Sept. 1820 in the 74th year of his age.
Here lies the body of Mrs. Mary Floyd who was born on the island of St. Helena in the State of South Carolina on the 15th day of April Anno Domini 1747 and departed this life in Camden County on the 18th of Sept. 1804 in the 58th year of her age.
Here lies the body of Mrs. Anne Maxwell, a native of South Carolina who was born Anno Domini 1745 and departed this life in January 1807 in the 62nd year of her age.
Here lies the body of Master William Henry Floyd who was born in Camden County on the 2nd of May 1808 and departed this life on the 15th of October 1811.
Genl. John Floyd born in S.C. October 3rd 1769. Died in Georgia June 24th 1839. Sacred to the memory of Isabella M. Hopkins consort of William P. Hopkins, Esq. and youngest daughter of General John and Isabella Floyd. Born March 12th 1812, Fairfield, Camden County. Married Sept. 8th and died October 14th 1831.
For those who throng the eternal throne
Lost are the tears we shed.
They are the living, they alone,
Whom thus we call the dead.
Sacred to the Memory of Dr. A. Delarocheaulion who was born in Dinan, France 8th June 1797 and died in Camden County, Georgia 6th October 1858.
He died as he had lived, a Christian.
To his memory this slab is raised by his wife and daughter.
MARBLE MONUMENT IN HONOR OF GENERAL CHARLES RINALDO FLOYD AT FAIRFIELD PLANTATION SITE IN CAMDEN COUNTY. GEORGIA - WAS ERECTED BY SOLDIERS WHO SERVED UNDER HIM:
To the memory of
General Charles R. Floyd
who departed this
life on the 22nd,
March A.D. 1845
Aged 48 years
and 5 months
A gallant soldier, a devoted friend, a true patriot, called upon by his country as a military man. He was distinguished by his ability, promptness and courage. To a sound judgement [sic] was united firmness and intrepidity that insured success. A poet, musician and painter, he was one of those rare men who possess the power of excelling in whatever they undertake. In him to will was to accomplish: His genius was of the highest order. He combined the talent to invent with the stability to succeed. His country's flag enshrinds [sic] his mortal remains which rest beneath this monument and around which cluster the strongest affections of a widowed heart, weeping orphans, and devoted friends.
Tis human weakness to indulge in tears
In thoughts ungrateful & in gloomy fears
But let us not forget beyond the grave
God's word, His mercy, & His power to save.
Let hope revive, & past the tomb portray
Fair scenes of bliss & never ending day
Cannot our fancy see our Lov'd friends there
Exempt from all the evils suffered here.
Reason should guide our thoughts & grief beguile
Calmness restore & bid the mourner smile
Exalt our thoughts to Him who gave us breath
And reconcile us even unto Death.
And what is death, the King of terrors called
At whose dread name the bravest are apall'd
Death is but silence absence of all care
Perpetual ease without a thought of fear.
And if death leads to scenes beyond this earth
May we bless it for a better birth
Who would not die & greater live elsewhere
Than trudge forever as a mortal here.
[END]