The Old Dartmouth Burying Ground

ON a very old, iron-bearing slate stone in the Dartmouth Cemetery, erected to the memory of Levi Washburn, one may read: Here youth and beauty lose their grace in this recluse and gloomy place Till ye Angelic trumpet sound To wake this saint from underground.

One may read also on the stone which marks the burial place of Mrs. Achsah Tilden and which bears the date 1776: Remember Friends as you pass by as you be now so once was I as I be now so Must you be Prepare for death & follow me.

Had I been disposed to indulge in gloomy sentiment or to remind the reader of his doom, this brief account of the Dartmouth Cemetery never would have been written. Rather it is the intent to stress the natural beauty of the place and the wealth of history associated with it. Many urban cemeteries may be more elaborately landscaped but, withal, remain cold and forbidding. Few, if any, have been so richly endowed by nature. Many of those who by their effort made Hanover and the College what they are today, rest in the old burying ground. Some, in the earliest days, came to conquer the wilderness and to teach the Indian. Some were born in Hanover and lived their whole lives here; others,-born here, went forth to do their life work only to return later.

Of special interest to the College is the fact that seven of Dartmouth's first nine Presidents, including Eleazar Wheelock, are buried in the Dartmouth Cemetery. Besides Eleazar, they are John Wheelock, Francis Brown, Nathan Lord, Asa Dodge Smith, Samuel Colcord Bartlett, and William Jewett Tucker. Within the Wheelock lot and near it are the inscribed stones of many others who figured prominently in the earliest history of the College.

The history of the origin of the cemetery is clear barring certain minor details. Frederick Chase, in his History of Dartmouth College, recorded the following: "The village of course had been laid out substantially in its present shape before any of these lots were appropriated. This must therefore have been done early in 1771, probably by Jonathan Freeman.... The central feature was a parcel of seven acres and a half, having its sides squared as nearly as possible to the cardinal points of the compass, set apart in the most eligible portion of the plain and opened for a Green. Around and near it were laid rectangular lots varying in size from a half acre to an acre. In the rear of the lots west of the Green an acre was at the same time set apart for a burial-ground.... The parcel was formally sequestered and confirmed for that object by the trustees in 1774."

The first burial, now marked by a table stone in the Wheelock lot, was that of John Maltby, son of Captain William and Sarah Davenport Maltby and stepson of Eleazar Wheelock, who died in 1771. He was greatly beloved by Wheelock and had been thought of as his successor in the Presidency of the College.

John King Lord, in his History of theTown of Hanover, wrote: "North of this (that is north of the lot where College Hall now stands) on the corner of Cemetery Lane the lot, eight rods by ten, was granted in 1774 to William Winton.... The graveyard on the College Plain comprised an acre of level land, set apart in the original Survey of the village in 1771 and formally sequestered by the College Trustees in 1774 for a burying ground for the use of the College and the inhabitants of the vicinity."

The writer has found no record of action by the Trustees on the cemetery in 1774 but at their meeting of August 27, 1777 the Trustees took the following action: "Voted that the President be empowered to make a proper sequestration of an acre of land westward from Mr. Winton's for a burying ground for the use of the College and the inhabitants of this vicinity."

It is evident that the Town took no part in the matter since there is no reference to the cemetery in the records of meetings of the Proprietors (1761-1766) nor in those of the Selectmen for the years following 1766.

HISTORY records for the Dartmouth Cemetery those same vicissitudes which many village cemeteries have shared in common. A letter, written by Sarah Olcott Porter Brinley during the summer of 1821 and quoted in the Life of William.T. Porter, described the cemetery as it appeared to her at that time: "A little removed from the village on the westerly side a narrow, beautifully shaded avenue led gently to the common burying ground. It was of the genuine New England pilgrim stamp, its monumental tombs and graves abandoned to weeds and nettles and relentless gloom; inclosed by a plain board fence stained with the damp and moulds of time; hemmed in and choked up by the high grass, rank shrubs and matted ivy which rambled over it. A few stunted trees were scattered here and there, but these were shrivelled into lifeless skeletons, as if unable to resist the inexorable destiny written all about them. The situation of the old burial place, however, was beautiful upon the verge of a deep gorge between two hills lined with a thick growth of young forest trees. At this day the spot has participated in the general spirit of improvement of burial places throughout New England and is not only embosomed soft in trees but includes within its limits the wooded gorge which already enshrines within its shaded depths the sleeping dust of inestimable worth and virtue."

In 1845 the Dartmouth Cemetery Association came into being. Its general purpose was "to provide, hold and keep in repair suitable grounds and other conveniences for the burial of the dead in Hanover." Its initial corporate property was sixty shares of $5.00 each, and one of its first objectives was "to purchase and improve the whole or a part of the parcel of land now owned by Prof. Alpheus Crosby and lately owned by John Cram."

The first meeting of the Association was held on October 17, 1845. The Rev. Nathan Lord was elected president, William Tenney vice president, Stephen Chase secretary, and Joseph Emerson treasurer. Five directors were Rev. C. B. Haddock, Timothy D. Smith, Prof. I. Young, Alfred Morse, and Prof. S. G. Brown. The Dartmouth Cemetery Association was to guide the destiny of the burying ground until 1943—a period of nearly one hundred years.

Once organized, the Association set about the varied duties of improving the existing grounds and acquiring additional areas as circumstances required. Through the years, parcels of land were acquired and improved, roadways planned and developed, and terraces built into the steep walls of the ravines.

The burden of maintaining the cemetery became more and more onerous as costs mounted and income from invested funds decreased. After a long history of work well done, the Association at its meeting of April 27, 1943, voted: "That the President and Treasurer of the Association or both of them are hereby authorized and directed to convey all of the property of the Association ... to the Town of Hanover." By an Act of the Legislature the Corporation was dissolved, effective as of May 16. The deed, transferring the property to the Town, bears the date June 18, 1943.

Space precludes the mention of all who carried on without lapse through almost one hundred years. To mention some would be an injustice to others. It is a weakness of mankind to take for granted those who labor for the common good. Lest we forget, this Association preserved this burying ground for nearly a century while many village cemeteries of New England reverted to pasture and the jungle.

Nature, left to itself, is its own landscape architect. When man enters upon the scene he must become responsible for the intrusion. The Cemetery Association met this responsibility admirably and to such extent as their resources permitted.

The Town of Hanover, long since, assumed the care of many of the burying grounds located within the township. The Pine Knolls Cemetery and the Dartmouth Cemetery are now Town property. An Article was inserted in the Warrant for the Town Meeting of 1951 to deed the Etna Cemetery to the Town. The Article was acted upon favorably and all of the ten cemeteries in the township are now in the care of the Town, although there is no evidence that five of them were ever deeded to the Town.

In recent years, the Town has been gene rous in supplying the funds to maintain its cemeteries. Expense of caring for the Dartmouth Cemetery for the year 1950 was met by funds amounting to $3,124. Of this, $2,759 was appropriated by the Town and $365 accrued from Trust Funds in principal amount of $15,726. Even though these are substantial sums, they are not excessive. They are adequate only if the needs are met little by little and year by year. As one instance of repair that must be deferred, the gates at the entrance of Sanborn Lane are badly in need of attention. The granite posts have been thrown out of position and the rusted iron gates swing on their hinges in abandon.

The old-growth pines, scattered through the cemetery, must not be forgotten. Many visitors comment favorably on their beauty and dignity. One of these trees, taken down several years ago, was more than 100 feet in height and showed approximately 125 growth rings. It is not improbable that at least some of these old sentinels are Mrs. Brinley's "young forest trees" of 1821. If so, they have resisted the elements for 130 years. They gave a good account of themselves during the hurricane of 1938, but they are badly in need of care. Dead limbs and stubs of broken limbs high above the ground are a menace to the health of the trees and to the stones beneath. Well cared for, these old-growth pines should endure for many years.

FROM time to time surveys of the cemetery have been made by interested persons. The first of these was William Worthington Dewey's List of Deaths in theVicinity of Dartmouth College IncludingLikewise the Hamlet Usually CalledGreensborough. From A.D., 1769 to theLast Date on the Register. John Richards, long interested in the Dartmouth Cemetery and a member of the Association, wrote Records of Deaths, Interments andInscriptions 1771-1858. These records were presented to the Association by Thomas B. Booth, grandson of John Richards, and were gratefully accepted at its meeting of February 5, 1914. Asa Wright Fellows compiled a list of names, dates and ages in the cemeteries of the whole township from the earliest times to 1924.

On file in the office of the Selectmen is a map of the cemetery, copied by D. H. Sherman, bearing the date 1862 and showing the plan of the cemetery as it was at that time. The writer is not aware of any further data relative to the origin of this map.

At its meeting on April 25, 1908, the Association accepted the resignation of Frank Asbury Sherman, Superintendent, and expressed appreciation of his successful work over a period of 21 years. In the following year Ralph M. Barton filled the vacancy and reported on a new survey of the cemetery. At the same time a plan of the survey was exhibited. It is my belief that the plan presented at that time and the map dated 1911 and now on file are one and the same.

In 1911 Adna D. Storrs was elected Superintendent to render faithful service for 32 years. By now, an appreciable number of entries had been made in the record book of burials. It would be of more than passing interest to know by whose hand those earliest entries were made. The penmanship is exquisite, and names, dates and ages alike of the deceased were transcribed with surprising accuracy.

George Parker Cowan read all the inscriptions in the cemetery during the summer of 1913 and, undoubtedly, his records furnished data for subsequent entries.

My own interest in the Dartmouth Cemetery was first aroused when, as a freshman in Dartmouth College, I wandered through it in 1898—more than fifty years ago. When, in March 1948, I became a member of the Board of Selectmen, the supervision of the cemeteries to me. It soon became apparent that, when inquiries were made at the office regarding burials in the Dartmouth Cemetery, the answer could be found only by roundabout methods, if indeed at all. Hence it seemed that a card index of all known burials in the cemetery might be of value.

In setting about this work it seemed that if the work was to be done effectively all inscriptions should be read. It soon became evident also that the charts of the cemetery—the one made in 1862, the other in 1911—were antiquated since many lots had been graded and occupied since those charts were made.

As the reading of inscriptions on stones and monuments progressed, it was found that many inscriptions could be read only with difficulty (especially was this true of the coarse granite stones which came into use following the iron-bearing slate); surface layers on some of the old slate slabs had long since split away carrying their inscriptions with them; stones which were noted in earlier records have disappeared. Therefore, it seemed that in years to come, a diagram of each lot, showing the relative position of monuments and stones and the inscriptions which they bear, might be of value.

A new chart of the cemetery, dated February 1950, has been completed and copies of it are on file in the office of the Selectmen.

For such reasons the work assumed greater proportions than was originally intended and four years have passed since it was begun. It is now completed to date. But "completion" is an erroneous term. Burials were made but never recorded and stones were never placed or, if they were, time over a period of 180 years has wrought its changes and the stones have disappeared. It seems reasonable to assume that the burials in four of the lots in the cemetery will never be known. Also, here and there are unmarked graves whose occupants I have been unable to identify. Those who might have remembered and who could have contributed valuable information have, in turn, passed on.

Much valuable help has been given by Albert W. Conner, faithful servant of the Town for 45 years (1904-1949) as Sexton, and by Percy R. Conner who worked with his father in the cemetery for many years and who took his father's place in 1949 when his father resigned.

Errors have been found in almost every source of reference. Stones are no exception. Dates and ages found in the Town records do not always agree with those recorded on stones nor do those recorded in genealogies agree with those from other sources. Doubtless, by the same token, errors will be found in this work. I can only hope that with due care in such matters as rereading inscriptions and in attempting to reconcile differences in source material, some errors which may have appeared will be eliminated.

MATTERS of historical interest sometimes appear when and where least expected. Since the fragmentary record of one Gershom Bartlett reaches into the Dartmouth Cemetery, I venture to include a brief account of this itinerant artisan.

In the summer of 1950 Dr. Ernest Caulfield of Hartford, Conn., wrote Dr. J. F. Gile to inquire if he had any knowledge of this man who was the most popular stone-cutter of his time in Connecticut and who migrated from Connecticut to Vermont in 1771 or 1772. Dr. Caulfield stated that the cemeteries in Connecticut abound in stones carved by him from about 1750 to 1770. Later in the summer Dr. Caulfield visited Hanover and found stones carved by Bartlett in the cemetery on Christian Street, Norwich. By a chance visit to the cemetery in Pompanoosuc he discovered the Bartlett family lot in which Gershom Bartlett was buried in 1798.

This stone-cutter was an elusive person as Dr. Caulfield, who has spent much time and effort in an attempt to bring the facts to light, can testify. I have read the records of Town Meetings of Norwich from 1770 to 1800. From these records one learns that he lived in the northerly part of Norwich in School District No. 6 and that he was elected by these meetings a member of committees for laying out highways, Surveyor of Highways, Lister and Fence Viewer. He was a Private in Olcott's Regiment of Vermont Militia in the Revolu- tionary War.

Gershom Bartlett was an artisan of no mean skill, for his carving is exquisite. He cut deep into the stone and, if the face of the stone has withstood the elements, his inscriptions are as clean-cut as when they were made. Dr. Caulfield states that, in Connecticut, Bartlett used a gray Bolton schist. In Hanover and vicinity he carved on iron-bearing slate which was in use in his time. All his stones, at least so far as I am aware, bear a skull in the central arch at the top of the stones. The eyes and nose are so arranged that they bear a close resemblance to the eye of a hook-and-eye used in women's wearing apparel. For this reason, according to Dr. Caulfield, he was known in Connecticut as "The Hook-andEye Man."

The degree of D.D. is attached to Bartlett's name but no record of the donor has been found. Evidence points to the fact that he was well known to Eleazar Wheelock. Dr. Caulfield states that he carved a stone for one of the Wheelock children before leaving Connecticut and there are two stones which bear inscriptions typical of his carving in the Wheelock lot in Hanover.

M. E. Goddard and Henry V. Partridge made the following statement in a Historyof Norwich, Vt.: "Using the results of the census (1771) in connection with the list of subscribers to the Dartmouth College Fund we are able to ascertain with considerable certainty the names of each of the forty men, heads of families, living in Norwich in 1771." Gershom Bartlett is included in the list as a contributor to the Fund. In view of these facts, it may be that Eleazar conferred upon him privately the D.D. degree in recognition of his skill and as a reward for favors rendered the College and the Wheelock family.

Dr. Gile and the writer have found his stones in many of the cemeteries on both sides of the Connecticut River from Windsor, Vt., to Bath, N. H., including the cemeteries on Christian Street and Meetinghouse Hill, Norwich, and the Dartmouth Cemetery.

It must be conceded that the maintenance of cemeteries is a financial burden on the Town. However, if in some way more funds could be made available so that it could be maintained in a somewhat better condition, the Dartmouth Cemetery could well be a fitting memorial for the College and the Town, as well as for all those who gave so fully of their lives and labors and now rest there in a spot of unusual natural beauty.

THE WHEELOCK LOT: In these nine graves, marked by table stones, rest Mary Brinsmaid and Eleazar Wheelock and their kin. Over Eleazar's grave, in the upper left corner of the lot, the inscription, in both Latin and English, reads: "By the gospel he subdued the ferocity of the savage. And to the civilized he opened new paths of science. Traveler, go if you can and deserve the sublime reward of such merit/'

STUDENTS' ROW: Before the railroad was put through to Norwich and Hanover in 1848, undergraduates who died at college were buried in the Dartmouth Cemetery. Thirteen student graves are in this row.

AN ESPECIALLY FINE EXAMPLE of the stone-cutting of Gershom Bartlett is given by this headstone of Levi Washburn, who died in 1776 at the age of 18 while a student. This is one of the earliest ironbearing slate stones in the old cemetery. The characteristic carving of the eyes and nose on the skull in the central arch caused Bartlett to be known as "The Hook and Eye Man."

A stone's throw to the west of the campus is a spot relatively unknown to students and many others in Hanover; yet it is one of the few direct links with the earliest years of the College. Here, in the 180-year-old Dartmouth Cemetery, is the resting place of Eleazar Wheelock and others prominent in Dartmouth history. Professor Olivers' interest in the historic old burying ground led him to undertake the prodigious job of checking all the cemetery records in the College and Town archives, correcting errors, and bringing the records up to date, with new files and charts. This work extending over the past four years provided the basis for his Alumni Magazine article, and it also led to the concern he expresses over inadequate maintenance funds for one of Hanover's truly historic points.