Midwest Taphophile
@midwest-taphophile.bsky.social
Historian. Genealogist. Midwesterner. Among other things.
Sharing random cemetery and other historical research
And also anything else I like.
Sharing random cemetery and other historical research
And also anything else I like.
I love Avondale. Glenwood Cemetery gets all the love, but I think Avondale is more interesting. And my family is there.
And so is the Bump Family, including the unfortunately named Love Bump. More on her someday.
But I never realized that the Bump family has a zinc marker with inverted torches!
And so is the Bump Family, including the unfortunately named Love Bump. More on her someday.
But I never realized that the Bump family has a zinc marker with inverted torches!
April 11, 2025 at 9:04 PM
I love Avondale. Glenwood Cemetery gets all the love, but I think Avondale is more interesting. And my family is there.
And so is the Bump Family, including the unfortunately named Love Bump. More on her someday.
But I never realized that the Bump family has a zinc marker with inverted torches!
And so is the Bump Family, including the unfortunately named Love Bump. More on her someday.
But I never realized that the Bump family has a zinc marker with inverted torches!
I decided to go through all of my cemetery photos and find images of inverted torches.
I haven't gone through all of them yet, but after going through most, I've only found one.
One!
And I found it in the very first cemetery I started exploring as a teen:
Avondale Cemetery in Flint, Michigan
I haven't gone through all of them yet, but after going through most, I've only found one.
One!
And I found it in the very first cemetery I started exploring as a teen:
Avondale Cemetery in Flint, Michigan
April 11, 2025 at 9:04 PM
I decided to go through all of my cemetery photos and find images of inverted torches.
I haven't gone through all of them yet, but after going through most, I've only found one.
One!
And I found it in the very first cemetery I started exploring as a teen:
Avondale Cemetery in Flint, Michigan
I haven't gone through all of them yet, but after going through most, I've only found one.
One!
And I found it in the very first cemetery I started exploring as a teen:
Avondale Cemetery in Flint, Michigan
For the record, I requested changes to the first design but approved the revised design (even though I still wasn't crazy about it), but I promise the drawing looked neater than this.
Anyway, I ended up getting it fixed by someone else and am very happy with the result:
Anyway, I ended up getting it fixed by someone else and am very happy with the result:
April 11, 2025 at 9:04 PM
For the record, I requested changes to the first design but approved the revised design (even though I still wasn't crazy about it), but I promise the drawing looked neater than this.
Anyway, I ended up getting it fixed by someone else and am very happy with the result:
Anyway, I ended up getting it fixed by someone else and am very happy with the result:
Also, the painted stones left at the graves of Edith Lefever and Jessie Hanna Bond are gone. A reminder that unless you are a cemetery employee, you should never remove anything from a gravesite.
I know flowers and other decorations are often removed regularly, but I'm not sure about stones.
I know flowers and other decorations are often removed regularly, but I'm not sure about stones.
March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Also, the painted stones left at the graves of Edith Lefever and Jessie Hanna Bond are gone. A reminder that unless you are a cemetery employee, you should never remove anything from a gravesite.
I know flowers and other decorations are often removed regularly, but I'm not sure about stones.
I know flowers and other decorations are often removed regularly, but I'm not sure about stones.
A few side notes:
Adelia's younger brother, Hugh McCulloch Bond, was married to one of my favorite women buried in Lindenwood Cemetery: Jessie Elizabeth Hanna Bond. I'm planning on doing a post on her soon.
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Adelia's younger brother, Hugh McCulloch Bond, was married to one of my favorite women buried in Lindenwood Cemetery: Jessie Elizabeth Hanna Bond. I'm planning on doing a post on her soon.
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March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
A few side notes:
Adelia's younger brother, Hugh McCulloch Bond, was married to one of my favorite women buried in Lindenwood Cemetery: Jessie Elizabeth Hanna Bond. I'm planning on doing a post on her soon.
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Adelia's younger brother, Hugh McCulloch Bond, was married to one of my favorite women buried in Lindenwood Cemetery: Jessie Elizabeth Hanna Bond. I'm planning on doing a post on her soon.
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Adelia is buried in the Bond family plot. Most of the Bond grave markers are thick, uniform marble tablets. Adelia's is the exception. If you look closely in the photo below, you can see her light gray grave markers splayed out amongst the other reddish-brown grave markers.
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March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Adelia is buried in the Bond family plot. Most of the Bond grave markers are thick, uniform marble tablets. Adelia's is the exception. If you look closely in the photo below, you can see her light gray grave markers splayed out amongst the other reddish-brown grave markers.
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We found Adelia's grave on Saturday. It's collapsed but still in good shape. The stones don't appear broken, and it would be pretty easy to repair. The carving seems a bit more worn, though, and you can barely make out "Asleep in Jesus." As is, water will collect and freeze, causing more damage.
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March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
We found Adelia's grave on Saturday. It's collapsed but still in good shape. The stones don't appear broken, and it would be pretty easy to repair. The carving seems a bit more worn, though, and you can barely make out "Asleep in Jesus." As is, water will collect and freeze, causing more damage.
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Find a Grave has a 2018 photo of Adelia Mary Bond's grave, showing it as a cradle style marker. The headstone also has a carving of an angel carrying a child to heaven, similar to the motif on the Trinity Episcopal window. Her full name "Adelia Mary Bond" is displayed on the top.
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March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Find a Grave has a 2018 photo of Adelia Mary Bond's grave, showing it as a cradle style marker. The headstone also has a carving of an angel carrying a child to heaven, similar to the motif on the Trinity Episcopal window. Her full name "Adelia Mary Bond" is displayed on the top.
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7 children. Six survived to adulthood. Charles died in 1873 of typhoid pneumonia and Anna died in 1910 as a result of an accidental fall. (Her cause of death is recorded as "fracture of the patella."
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March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
7 children. Six survived to adulthood. Charles died in 1873 of typhoid pneumonia and Anna died in 1910 as a result of an accidental fall. (Her cause of death is recorded as "fracture of the patella."
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Charles Bond was a prominent banker and also very involved in the church, as was his mother, Adelia Darrow Bond, little Adelia's namesake. I'm not sure when the window was commissioned, but it was likely completed in the 1860s, not long after Adelia's death.
Charles and Anna had a total of
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Charles and Anna had a total of
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March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Charles Bond was a prominent banker and also very involved in the church, as was his mother, Adelia Darrow Bond, little Adelia's namesake. I'm not sure when the window was commissioned, but it was likely completed in the 1860s, not long after Adelia's death.
Charles and Anna had a total of
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Charles and Anna had a total of
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a sleeping child, with the words "He shall give His Angels charge over thee."
Naturally, I started doing research on my phone in the church pew.
Little Adelia Mary Bond was born October 9, 1859, to Charles Douglas Bond and Anna Lavina Ewing. Adelia died September 1, 1861. 1yr 10m 24d
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Naturally, I started doing research on my phone in the church pew.
Little Adelia Mary Bond was born October 9, 1859, to Charles Douglas Bond and Anna Lavina Ewing. Adelia died September 1, 1861. 1yr 10m 24d
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March 24, 2025 at 4:26 PM
a sleeping child, with the words "He shall give His Angels charge over thee."
Naturally, I started doing research on my phone in the church pew.
Little Adelia Mary Bond was born October 9, 1859, to Charles Douglas Bond and Anna Lavina Ewing. Adelia died September 1, 1861. 1yr 10m 24d
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Naturally, I started doing research on my phone in the church pew.
Little Adelia Mary Bond was born October 9, 1859, to Charles Douglas Bond and Anna Lavina Ewing. Adelia died September 1, 1861. 1yr 10m 24d
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But she was recorded as 2 years old, not 4 months.
So probably not.
So probably not.
March 12, 2025 at 2:41 PM
But she was recorded as 2 years old, not 4 months.
So probably not.
So probably not.
There is a Carrie B. Hagendorf in the county death records who died June 1877, but isn't buried anywhere else. There also aren't any other Hagendorfs in the Fort Wayne census records, so I initially thought that the baby was buried hastily and maybe there was a typo, either with the B or the H
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March 12, 2025 at 2:41 PM
There is a Carrie B. Hagendorf in the county death records who died June 1877, but isn't buried anywhere else. There also aren't any other Hagendorfs in the Fort Wayne census records, so I initially thought that the baby was buried hastily and maybe there was a typo, either with the B or the H
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Carrie's family. There is a county death index available for the years ~1870 to ~1920, but the searchable index online also gives no clues.
There might be clues in cemetery records or by browsing the index on microfilm at the library.
There might be clues in cemetery records or by browsing the index on microfilm at the library.
March 11, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Carrie's family. There is a county death index available for the years ~1870 to ~1920, but the searchable index online also gives no clues.
There might be clues in cemetery records or by browsing the index on microfilm at the library.
There might be clues in cemetery records or by browsing the index on microfilm at the library.
So, I guess my message is, learn how to read primary records, do your own research, trust (I guess) but verify, and when in doubt, trust people who do this type of research for a living.
January 3, 2025 at 4:00 PM
So, I guess my message is, learn how to read primary records, do your own research, trust (I guess) but verify, and when in doubt, trust people who do this type of research for a living.
The thing is, the more people on Ancestry that agree that two different people are the same person, the more likely Ancestry is to insist that they are the same person, thus coercing more people to add incorrect records to their trees.
This is how AI works, btw.
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This is how AI works, btw.
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January 3, 2025 at 4:00 PM
The thing is, the more people on Ancestry that agree that two different people are the same person, the more likely Ancestry is to insist that they are the same person, thus coercing more people to add incorrect records to their trees.
This is how AI works, btw.
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This is how AI works, btw.
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And Thomas married Mahala Bennett; Willis married Mahala Jones.
Thomas died before his Mahala.
Willis died after his Mahala.
And sure, some (not most) of Thomas and Mahala's kids have the same names as Willis and Mahala's kids, but that happens when you have hundreds of kids.
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Thomas died before his Mahala.
Willis died after his Mahala.
And sure, some (not most) of Thomas and Mahala's kids have the same names as Willis and Mahala's kids, but that happens when you have hundreds of kids.
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January 3, 2025 at 4:00 PM
And Thomas married Mahala Bennett; Willis married Mahala Jones.
Thomas died before his Mahala.
Willis died after his Mahala.
And sure, some (not most) of Thomas and Mahala's kids have the same names as Willis and Mahala's kids, but that happens when you have hundreds of kids.
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Thomas died before his Mahala.
Willis died after his Mahala.
And sure, some (not most) of Thomas and Mahala's kids have the same names as Willis and Mahala's kids, but that happens when you have hundreds of kids.
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My next grave story involves Thomas and Mahala Hodges who lived in AL and GA with their hundreds of kids. Ancestry is insisting in its suggested records that they are the same as Willis and Mahala Hodges who lived in AL and GA with their hundreds of kids.
But Thomas is named Thomas, not Willis
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But Thomas is named Thomas, not Willis
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January 3, 2025 at 4:00 PM
My next grave story involves Thomas and Mahala Hodges who lived in AL and GA with their hundreds of kids. Ancestry is insisting in its suggested records that they are the same as Willis and Mahala Hodges who lived in AL and GA with their hundreds of kids.
But Thomas is named Thomas, not Willis
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But Thomas is named Thomas, not Willis
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Also, side note.
I took my photo in 2012 and the findagrave photo is from 2016.
Are the graves at Langdale Cemetery sinking? Or did this one just get pushed down a bit?
I took my photo in 2012 and the findagrave photo is from 2016.
Are the graves at Langdale Cemetery sinking? Or did this one just get pushed down a bit?
January 2, 2025 at 4:26 PM
Also, side note.
I took my photo in 2012 and the findagrave photo is from 2016.
Are the graves at Langdale Cemetery sinking? Or did this one just get pushed down a bit?
I took my photo in 2012 and the findagrave photo is from 2016.
Are the graves at Langdale Cemetery sinking? Or did this one just get pushed down a bit?
BUT WHAT IF
and I'm just throwing this out there
if you take "Mrs. Rowton" out of the equation
What if it's not Littie Rowton, but Rowton Littie?
Because there ARE Litties living in Chambers County in the 1920s and 1930s.
Yeah, Mrs. Rowton does throw a wrench into that theory, but maybe?
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and I'm just throwing this out there
if you take "Mrs. Rowton" out of the equation
What if it's not Littie Rowton, but Rowton Littie?
Because there ARE Litties living in Chambers County in the 1920s and 1930s.
Yeah, Mrs. Rowton does throw a wrench into that theory, but maybe?
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January 2, 2025 at 4:26 PM
BUT WHAT IF
and I'm just throwing this out there
if you take "Mrs. Rowton" out of the equation
What if it's not Littie Rowton, but Rowton Littie?
Because there ARE Litties living in Chambers County in the 1920s and 1930s.
Yeah, Mrs. Rowton does throw a wrench into that theory, but maybe?
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and I'm just throwing this out there
if you take "Mrs. Rowton" out of the equation
What if it's not Littie Rowton, but Rowton Littie?
Because there ARE Litties living in Chambers County in the 1920s and 1930s.
Yeah, Mrs. Rowton does throw a wrench into that theory, but maybe?
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