Pioneer cemeteries, Door County Wisconsin

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PIONEER CEMETERIES DOOR COUNTY WISCONSIN

MEADOW LANE PUBLISHERS Box 188 Baileys Harbor Wisconsin 54202 414-839-2477 $12.50

Text: JOHN M. KAHLERT Photographs: ALBERT QUINLAN Copyright 1981 Mail orders add $1.50 for postage and handling

CONTENTS PIONEER DOOR COUNTY CEMETERIES ....... . .... . ....... . ... . ... . ... . ........ . . ... . . . ......... . . .. 1 DEATH IN PIONEER DOOR COUNTY ......... . . . . . . ... ................ .. . ... . ................. .. . .... 3 INFANT MORTALITY .. .. . . . . ... . .. .. . ....... ..... ...... . . .. .. .. .. ... . . . .. . . . . .. . . . .. . . .. . .... . . . . . .. 9 FUNERALS . . . . . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. ... . ... . .. . . ..... . . .. .. .. . ..... . .. . .. . . .. ..... . .... . .... . 14

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CEMETERIES ... ........ . . ... . . . ..... . . . . ..... ....... ... . .... . . ... . . .. . .. . . .... . ... . . . .. ..... . ... . .. 23 RO CK ISLAND CEMETERIES-LIGHTHOUSE, MINER, SAND BEACH . ...... . .. . ... . . . ... ... .. .. . . ... 27 WA SHINGTO N ISLAND TOWN CEMETERY . . .. ... ........... . . ... ....... . ....... . . . . . . ... . ........ 33 EPHRAIM MORAVIAN CEMETERY ........ .. .... . . . . . ........ . .... . . . ......... . . .. . . . . . . ... . ...... 39 E AGLE ISLAND CEMETERY . ......... . . .. ...... . . ... . .. . ..... . ....... . ..... . .................. ... 43 CLAFLIN-THORP FAMILY CEMETERY .. . ... ... . . .... . ................................... . .. . .. . . .44 INDIAN MEMORIAL . .. ......... .. ......... ... . .. . . ... . ......... . ....... . .. . . .. ..... . .. . .... . . .. . . 49 STEVEN S AND OTHER FAMILY CEMETERIES . . . .. .. . . . ... .. ... . . . .. . . . . . . .... . .. .. . ... .. . .. . . .. . 53 BLOSSOMBURG CEMETERY . . . ... . . ... .. . . . . . . . . ....... . ..... . . . . . .... . ...... . .. .. .. . .. . ... . . .. . . . 57 EPISCOPAL CEMETERY .. . .. . . .. . . . .. . .... . . .. . .... .. .......... . ......... . .... . .. . . . ... . . . . .. ... . 59 BAYSIDE CEMETERY ..... ..... . . .......... . . . . . .. . ....... . . . .. . .............. . .... . .... . ... ...... 61 STURGEON BAY TOWNSHIP CEMETERY .. ....... ........ . ..... . . . ............. .. ................. 63 GEISE CEMETERY ..... . . ..... ....... . .. . .. ..... .............. . . . ... . .......... . .. . ....... . .... . .. 66 TORNADO MEMORIAL ..... . .. . . . ....... . . .... . . ..... . ...... ... . . ... . ........... . . . . ... . .... . ..... 69 ST. MARY OF THE SNOWS (OLD) CEMETERY . . . . . ... . ...... .. .. . . ... .......... . .. . . . .. . .... . .. ... 73 WHITE STAR SPIRITUALIST CEMETERY .... . . .. ...... . . . . . . .. . ... ... . .. . .. . . . . .. . . . ... .. .. .. .. .. 74 ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST (ABOVE GROUND) -ST. JOSEPH CEMETERIES . . .... . . .... .... . ..... . . . .. . 77 CHURCH OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD ....... .. . . . . .. . ......... . .. .. . ..... . ....... . . . . . .... . ..... .. . 83 ST. F RANCIS DE PAUL CEMETERY ....... .. . . . .. . ........ . .. . .... . ...... . ... . . . . . ........ . . . . .. . . 87

SYMBOLS ...... .. ..... . ... .. . ................ . ...... . .... . ... .... .. . .... . . . . .. . . . ... . . .... ... . .. . . . .89 ANGELS . . .. . ... ...... .. .... . . ... . . . ............... .. . . . ... . ..... .... . .. .. . ..... . . . ..... . ..... . ... 93 THE GOOD BOOK ..... .. . . . .. . . .... . . . ..................... . .............. . .... . . ....... . .. ... .... 97 THE CROSS ... ......... . ..... . ... .. . . . ............... . ... . . . .. ................. . .. .. . . . . . . .. . .... 101 DOVES ... .. .. . . ............. .. . ................ . . .. . . ... . . . .. . . ..... .......... . ... . .. . . . . . . . . ... 107 FINGER POINTING TO HEAVEN ..................... . ... . ...... . .... ... . .. . .. .. . ....... . . . . .. .. . 111 F LOWERS . .......... ..... . ...... . .. .... . ...... . . . ... .. . .. . . ....... .. .. . ......... ... .. .. .... . .... 115 HOMEMADE MARKERS ... .. . .......... . ...... . . ...... .. ... .. .. . .. . ................... .. . ... .. . . . 118 LAMBS ............. .. . .... . .. . .. ...... . ...... . .... . ... .... . ..... . . ................. . . . .. . .. . .. . . 123 OBELISK ......... . . . ..... .. .. . . . .. . . .. . . . ..... . ... . . ........... ......... . .. .. ......... .. ... . .. . . 126 HAND CLASP ..... . . .... . .... . . . . . ... . ....... . ..... . . ... . ... .. . . . .. . .. . .. .. . ........ .. . .. . . . .. . . . 131 TREE OF LIFE . ... . ... . . . .... . . . .. . . . .... . ..... . ........ . . . . ... . . .. . . . . .. .. . .... . ... .. . .. . . .. . . . . 137 WEEPING WILLOW ... ..... . .. . .. . . . . .. .. ...... . .. .. . .. . . .. . . .. . . . ... .. ............. . .... .. . . .. . . 141 COMMUNITY LEADERS . ... .. .... .............. . . . . .. . ... . . . . . . . .. . .... . .... . . . .............. . . .... 145 HENRY MINER ... .. . ... ..... . .... . ...... . .. . . . . .... . ........ . . . .. . .. ..... . ..... . .... .. ... . .. . . .. 147 JOHN ELLISON (ELIASON) ........ . . . ... . . ... . ........ . ... . ... . ....... . ........ . . .. .... . .. . . . . . . . 151 ANDERS SEAQUIST (SJOQUIST) ......... . ... . .. . ... .. .. . .......... ... . ... .. ........ . . .... . . . .... 153 ANDREW ROESER .. .. .. . .. ....... . ...... . .. . . .......... . ......................... ... . . ....... . .. 155 REV . ANDREW (ANDREAS) IVERSON ..... ... ........................ . .... . . . ..... ... . . .... . ..... 157 OLE LARSEN ....................... .... .. . ... . ..................... ..... . ....... . . . .. . . ......... 163 MEET ME IN EPHRAIM ................... . .. . . . ... ......... .. .. ............. . ...... . ..... . ...... 167 THE THORP BROTHERS - ASA. LEVI AND JACOB ..................... . ..... . .... .. .. . . ... . .. . ... 171 MOSES KILGORE ........ . . . .. . ...... . ............. ..... . . . . .. ... ... . ... ..... . ... . ........ . ...... 175 THOMAS REYNOLDS . . . . ........ .. . .. . ..... . . ... ..... . ... . . .. . . . ..... .... ........... . ........... 177 JOSEPH HARRIS ... . .. . . . ..... . . ................ . ... . ...... . . .. .. . .. ........ . ....... . ............ 179 ROBERT GRAHAM .... . . . . . . .... . .. ....... . . ................ . ...... . .. ........... . ..... . ......... 182 A.W. LAWRENCE ..... . . ..... . .. . . . ..... . . . . : ...... . . . . ... . . . ... .. . . ................. .. . . . . .. . . . . 184 CHARLES SCOFIELD ...... . .. .... . ....... . . . .... . . . .. . ... . . .. . . . .. . .. .. ....... . ..... . ... . . . . . . .. 188 ULA NOBLE ...... . ... ... . . . . ... .......... . . .. .. . . . .. .. .. .. . .. .. . . . . . .... . ........ . .. . . . . . ...... . 190 INCREASE CLAFLIN . .. . . . .. . . ... . ... .. .............. . ......... . . . .............. . .... ... . ... . . . . . 192 FRANCOIS PIERRE ... . . .... . ....... . .. . .............. .. .. .. . . .. . . . ... .. .. . .. . .. . .... . . . . . ... . . .. 194 MAP .. .. ..... . .. . ...... . ................ .. . .... . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . . . . . ... . .......................... . .. 199 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .... . ... . .......... . ......... . ... . ............ ..... ...... .... ..... .... ..... 200 REFERENCES ......... . ... . ... . .. ..... .. .................... ........ .. . ........ . .................. 202

Cemeteries are sometimes referred to as the art galleries of the poor, at least during the 19th century, since there were few public buildings where art work of any kind was assembled for public viewing. In cemeteries, everyone could see elaborate monuments skillfully executed. The most distinguished piece of sculpture in Door County is the group of figures representing the Crucifixion which is found in the Catholic cemetery of St. Joseph in Sturgeon Bay. This cemetery is shared with the Corpus Cristi parish on the west side of the city. The first church of St. Joseph was a small frame building built in 1866. In 1888-89 it was replaced by spacious church of brick construe-

tion but the congregation grew, and despite numerous alterations in the building and the creation of a second parish, it became obvious that a new and larger sanctuary was needed. The present stone building was built during 1908-10. In 1920 there was a general campaign to improve the cemetery, and this handsome sculpture was brought in as part of the effort. It is believed to have cost about $1,300 but exact data are not available. The name of the sculptor, or where it was obtained, is not known. Rev. Alphonse Broes, pastor of St. Joseph's often expressed the wish that he be buried at the base of the sculpture. His wish was granted when he died in 1930, after a pastorate of 43 years.

PIONEER DOOR COUNTY CEMETERIES In this book we take a look at one facet of life in Door County during its pioneer years. The term "pioneer" does not lend itself to precise chronological definition because some areas grew and progressed more rapidly than others , probably because of more opportunities for contact with the changing outside world. In other pockets of the community the "old ways" lingered long after the opening of the twentieth century. Although there were a few hardy souls living in Door County in the 1840's, we perhaps arbitrarily think of the pioneer years as the half-century between 1850 and 1900. In parts of the county some aspects of pioneer conditions disappeared as early as 1875 but in others they persisted until about the beginning of World War I. This makes it hazardous to generalize about pioneer conditions except those existing during the earliest period, so in describing customs and patterns of behavior, dates are meant to be used flexibly as indicating a general point in time. There are approximately 65 cemeteries in Door County. The

count depends a good deal on how a cemetery is defined. Should the count include a family burying ground, known only to a few people, where only a handful were buried? How about a cemetery that is no longer in use? Our decision has been to count them all, regardless of whether they are used today or not. Not all of them are interesting. Not all of them contain features of historical importance. We have selected 20 cemeteries to comment on in some detail, but in several instances more than one cemetery is included under one topic. For instance , there are three small cemeteries on Rock Island, but here they are discussed together . The cemeteries of St. John the Baptist and St. Joseph in Gardner Township are discussed together because one, in effect, was an outgrowth of the other. In connection with the Stevens family cemetery about which very little is known we have noted several comparable burial grounds, most of which have been, like the Stevens plot, abandoned. The Clay Banks Town Cemetery on the bluffs of the eastern shore of Lake Michigan

Wh e n the first settl e rs died, they often were bu ried in the nearby woods.

has a dramatic location offering splendid views of the surrounding countryside, but the cemetery itself is essentially impossible to photograph except from a helicopter. Reluctantly, we passed it by. It is the tombstones which make a cemetery interesting, reflecting, as they do, a level of Victorian artistic design and sentiment. During the latter part of the eighteenth century American taste was dominated by Victorian fashion. Tombstones were characterized by great diversity, elaborate ornamentation and often by maudlin sentiment. There were no stone cutters in Door County so that other than a few homemade markers contrived from poured cement or native stone boulders, gravestones were purchased from dealers . In the earliest days, gravemarkers might be made from wood but they deteriorated rapidly and more often than not do not seem t o have been replaced. Sears Roebuck began listing gravestones in their catalogue in 1897. The dealer also could supply suitable inscriptions which local people could incise, although this service might be provided for a small charge by the

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dealer, Sears included. We then decided to include brief profiles of at least one pioneer leader from each community. The selection for the most part was obvious since in most communities t he earliest leader, the founding father, the one who made it function had long bee n identified. Regrettably some of these individuals left t he community and were buried elsewhere, but there were others who qualified. We found that the accepted story of t heir contribution to the community was not always correct, and in some cases a good deal of research was involved in getting it straight . Cemeteries are a way - not the 2

only way, of course - of remembering people and our association with them. These associations may have been deep and full of meaning, or they may have been routine. They may have been full of hostility. A cemetery becomes a way a community remembers also. It helps us remember the people who first settled in a given spot and were responsible for the origin of the settlement. It r ecalls those who provided leadership to make it prosper. It recalls some of the rascals, too, and perhaps the poor and downtrodden. Old cemeteries reflect a cult ure and a way of life which has disappeared. Usually they are quiet tranquil places where one is in-

clined to reflect on both the enduring and the evanescent qualities of life. Thus this book is about remembrance. Many old cemeteries are themselves forgotten and in need of remembering. In calling attention to them we pay tribute to the pioneers in Door County who lived, more often than not, in privation and isolation. We get a glimpse of their sorrows and hardships, but also of the courage and endurance and faith it took to survive in a basically hostile pioneer environment.

DEATH IN PIONEER DOOR COUNTY In 1859 Wisconsin enacted a law which provided for the voluntary registration of deaths at the county level. Probably this reflected a dawning realization of the need for vital statistics in determining what services the State should provide and where. It was not until 1907, almost 50 years later, that registration of deaths became mandatory and more complete data became available.

In the office of the Door County Register there is one volume containing all registrations of death from 1859 to 1880. There are 240 of them, not all deaths in Door County during that period, but all the death registrations in 21 year·s . The registration is patently imcomplete. For instance, there are no registrations from Washington Island. There are none for the 128 men, women and children who perished in the great fire of 1871. Nevertheless an analysis was made of the data these registrations provided, even t hough they were incomplete. They seemed to be reasonably well distributed throughout the geographical area. Why should people register? Perhaps because they were law abiding citizens and this was some-

thing they were asked to do. Perhaps there was some thought that a record would be useful in case of legal proceedings. Possibly some simply wanted a notation made that a relative or friend had died so that his identity would not be completely lost. Even so, registrations were regretably haphazard. If a person in an outlying area died during the winter his death might not be reported until the following summer. When a local official or a doctor had an occasion to come to Sturgeon Bay, he would register all the deaths that had occurred in his community during the previous season. In some instances there was an interval of up to ten years between the date- of death and the date of registration. Parenthetically, one might add that people were equally careless about recording transfers of property titles. During this same period of time almost 1,750 births were registered on a voluntary basis - about 7 times the number of deaths. How to account for this? For one thing, settlers coming into a new country were usually of a child-bearing age although old people who could not conveniently be left behind might accompany a close-knit young fam-

ily to it's new home. Large families were an asset because of the vast amount of labor required to clear the land and earn a livelihood. At the same time there is no reason to believe t he number of birth registrations was any more accurate than the registrations of deaths. For instance, on December 27 , 1876 there were 38 birth registrations from Forestville, some for as far back as 1862 (14 years). On one date there were 125 registrations from Gibralter Township. No explanation for this irregularity is available. Thus while the 240 death registrations cannot be said to be a scientifically selected sample, such as would be expected today from a public opinion poll, they nevertheless are a sample, the best one available, and t hey provide some interesting informat ion. One startling fact immediately became apparent. Of all t he registrations, almost one-fourth were of children less than one year old, with age ranging from a few hours to a few months. Forty-six percent or almost half of all registrations were of the deaths of children under school age . There were 3

more registrations from Sturgeon Bay than from the southern or northern townships. It was asumed this was because Sturgeon Bay was the largest village in Door County, and the place of registration was close at hand. Another concentration of deaths occured among adults 20 years of age and over . Adults between 20 and 75 accounted for about a third of the total. In thirty cases the cause of death was unknown or not reported. A substantial percentage of these were infants, but a number were adults including elderly people who just died of "old age." A baby lives a few hours. An old person passes on. No doctor was in attendance. Who knows why he died? It is too late to do anything. What difference does it make? Persons reporting deaths were asked to give t he cause of death. Some of the diagnoses were unintelligible to a layman so Dr. Gertrude Howe, retired physician living in Fish Creek, was asked to review them. Mostly she said t hat what had been taken to be madeup diagnoses by poorly infor med practitioners actually were valid and in some cases fairly sophisticated. But having made an adequate diagnosis, what could a frontier physician with few tools to work with and few facilities for care do about them? P reventive medicine seems to have been unknown, although wide use was made of home remedies . A doctor Around turn of the century; Courtesy State Historical Societ y

usually was called only when it was thought the ill person was dying. The largest single cause of death reported was diphtheria which seems to have been particularly hard on children of all ages. Diphtheria, of course, is a highly infectious disease, but the nature of infection was not understood. There were reports of two families in Nasewaupee who each lost seven children from diphtheria in ·two to three weeks. The Heilman family lost 12 year old Anna on September 26, 1880 . Six year old John died the next day on September 27. Nine year old Emma and eleven year old Frederick died three days later on September 30, with four year old Jam es and Lovi dying on October 4 and one year old George on October 16. The Senift family lost thirteen year ol