Remember, Jesus Leads: A Family Buries a Son, 1894

This compelling image of mourning, love, and hope depicts a family gathered at the grave of a loved one who was recently buried. A sign at the head of the grave underneath a floral arrangement says “Remember Jesus Leads”. Each person cast their face down, gazing at the mound that covers their beloved.

This standard-sized cabinet card photograph was done by H. B. Cady of Waitsfield, Washington County, Vermont. Written in pencil on the back, in period handwriting, is “Ernie W. Colby / Died Sep 4=1894 / Aged 20”. Based on a review of the 1880 census of Addison County, Vermont and the 1900 census of Washington County, Vermont, I believe the parents are George and Francis C. Colby, the oldest daughter standing next to them is Lydia Colby (born c1868), the younger man next to her is Albert Colby (born c1876) and the girl is Lou Colby (born c1884). The 1880 census identifies the deceased as "Westly E. Colby" born c1874.

Farewell Till We Meet Again

Here’s a few images of burials and cemeteries that were professionally taken and mounted on photo boards – the same mounting as for cabinet cards, but these images are different sizes. All of these images most likely date to the 1900-1910 era.

The first is one of my favorites, both for one special feature in it, as well as the story of how I got it. In 1996, I stopped at a dilapidated old motel along Interstate 20 east of Abilene, Texas because there was a hand-lettered sign out front advertising “Junk and Antiques”. The building was awful, and so was the merchandise – clearly more junk than antiques. As I was leaving, I noticed this old photograph under a pile of debris, which included a can of paint. I pulled it out and liked it, due to its subject matter, but then I saw cockroach excrement over much of the mounting board and some of the image. I was putting it down when the little banner (which appears to be supported by sticks) near the head of the grave caught my eye: “Farewell Till We Meet Again”. How could I leave that gem behind? The price was two dollars, so I took it. When I got home, I cut off most of the mounting board and worked at cleaning the image with a damp cloth. The worst of the matter was in the center, above the grave, and you can see where I removed some of the emulsion in my efforts. Other stains remain on the upper edge, but I cropped them out. This image was taken by Harrik’s Studio of Schulenberg, Texas and I assume it was made in or near Schulenberg. Notice how the photographer altered the negative to outline the grave and floral offerings, and obliterated the upper portion of the image.


Below are four images, three of interments and one of a cemetery. None of these are identified as to location or photographer, but the one that shows the burial with the head and foot marker already in place (which must have been ordered and erected prior to death) is marked on the back “Eugene South’s grave”.





© 2010, copyright Stephen Mills

Real Photo Postcards of Interments and Cemeteries

First, let me share a pet peeve. I frequently see obituaries that refer to the “internment” of the deceased. That is not the correct term. According to Merriam-Webster, “interment” means the act or ceremony of putting a dead body in its final resting place, and a synonym for interment is burial. “To inter” means to bury or entomb. “Internment” means the act of confining or the state of being confined, especially during time of war, and synonyms for internment are captivity, confinement, and imprisonment. (A correct usage of “internment” would be “The internment of Americans of Japanese descent during World War II is one of the more shameful chapters in United States history.”) Yes, the terms are somewhat similar in meaning, but they are definitely not interchangeable.

Anyway, today I thought I’d share some real photo postcards of interments. A real photo postcard is exactly what you’d think it is – a postcard bearing an actual photograph. These were common from about 1910 to 1950 – the photo could be professional or amateur, and anyone could have negatives printed with the inexpensive postcard backs. They were suitable for mailing, and many were mailed, although the images shown below are postally unused. Postcard collectors refer to them as RPPCs or RPs. For more information about the world of postcard collecting, you can visit the Capital of Texas Postcard Club, of which I’m a member. For detailed information on RPPCs, this link to Playle’s is outstanding.

None of these images are identified as to cemetery location or name of deceased. These cards all date to the 1904-1920 era, based on the design of the stamp boxes on the backs (see the Playle's link for more information on dating RPPCs using stamp box design). The first image shows a wonderful old graveyard with some seriously large floral tributes, including one from the International Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF), of which the deceased would have been a member. The other arrangement looks to be symbols of Masonry; I don't know how common it was to be in both societies.

This image shows a cemetery with graves uniformly outlined with bricks. This is an interesting old tradition, which is frequently not seen today, since it’s much easier to maintain a cemetery that does not have grave outlines. You also see old graves that are outlined with rocks, shells, iron or wood fencing, or that are mounded to form the outline. The modern version of outlining is the use of concrete grave covers and/or curbing.

The last image shows a close-up of a burial with floral offerings and grave markers in the background.

© 2010, copyright Stephen Mills

Scottsville Cemetery, near Marshall, Harrison County, Texas

The Scottsville Cemetery is four miles east of Marshall, Harrison County, Texas and is filled with wonderful, artistic old funeral monuments. These two antique photographs were taken about 1910 by the Parker-Corti Studio in Marshall. One shows the cemetery entrance with the chapel in the background and the other is a close-up of the chapel. Each is identified on the back and one has the notation “Mrs. P. Youree”. I assumed they belonged to Mrs. Youree who died in 1934 and is buried at Scottsville. This is a very old Texas community, founded by the William Scott family who moved to this area in 1840.

Select this link to view cemetery listings and photographs of many of the monuments. Scottsville is several hundred miles from my home, but is definitely on my list of cemeteries to visit and photograph.

© 2010, copyright Stephen Mills