Gravel Run Cemetery

Okay, just one more cemetery (for now). By this time, my parents and I had had a steak dinner and a beer, and we were all much more interested in this location. I can never find this place on my own, but my Dad, who has GPS built into his brain, took four curvy dirt roads, including a detour for a bridge that was out, and pulled right up to it. This is Gravel Run Cemetery, close to Cambridge Springs, but really, not close to anything. Which is why the assortment of people buried here is so stunning to me. There was a brand new grave in the corner, but we found many stones that dated to the 1700's, with veterans of every war beginning with the Revolutionary War. Apparently there was a mill close by when the first people were buried here, but now, it is extremely remote and serene.

 

 

 

 

 

These are my mother's grandparents, whom she grew up next door to. I have vague memories of my great grandmother, but they are more like the memory of a scent than pictures in my mind, as she died when I was 2. I have always felt close to her, however, probably because of my Mom's memories of her, but also because of the quirky way your genes create kismet. For example...I grow morning glories, love to attend auctions ( and always think I'll match up a set of dishes) wear floral aprons and have a piano exactly like the one I see in a picture of her house. Her birthday is a week after mine, and my great grandfather's birthday is a week after Robb's.
I have one memory of my great grandfather...he bought us Christmas presents and brought them to our house one day before Christmas. I must have been five. He died that year. They are buried with their youngest daughter, Carlotta, who died of either pneumonia or a water snake bite. She was about 2 years old. I believe she is pictured with my great grandmother in the last photo, but I'm not certain.

 

 

 

 

Finally, these are two old photos in my collection. The school picture from Shady Lawn shows the tallest girl, Coral Belle Hale, for whom my grandmother, Coral and my sister are named. The other picture reads "Mrs Fred Humes." According to my research, that would have been my great, great grandmother. What is confusing is that all of my records and research name Coral Belle Hale as Mattie Lucille's mother. But my mother and grandma told me she was named for her aunt. The two pictures could possibly be the same woman, but I can't tell for certain. Coral Belle died in 1924 at the age of 30.