President's Note: "...a snapshot of our culture"

by Norma Kraemer

The Lawrence County Historical Society has been preserving our local history since 1969 through the efforts of its members.  One of its most notable achievements was a history book compiled and printed in 1981 titled Some History of Lawrence County.  The book is out of print and can sometimes be found as a used book in local stores.  

However, thirty years have passed and much has happened in that intervening time.  Public history is thriving with the Adams Museum, High Plains Heritage Center, and the Days of 76 Museum to name a few of the local venues.  However, the members of the Lawrence County Historical Society need to realize that they all need to participate in some way to persevere our history before it is lost. While the activities of one of your family members might seem relevant to only your immediate family, they are all part of the larger history of our area and need to be saved.

Many years ago, my sister took me to visit the main cemetery in Atlanta, GA, when she was living there, for a Sunday afternoon.  While we knew no one there, it certainly gave me an education in the culture of the Civil War, the Victorian Era, and the way people saw death up through the 1960’s.  Locally, Mt. Moriah Cemetery gives a different snapshot of our culture.  The Atlanta cemetery’s overwhelming lesson for me was that women, while cherished by the number of stunning angels gracing their tombstones, were still without historic significance in the view of society.  Most Victorian tombstones with the angels were inscribed “Mother” but she had no name of her own.  Under the moniker of “Mother,” it might say that Susie and Johnnie were her children.

 

Lawrence County is dotted with small cemeteries, often in disrepair.  Past groups of members have cleaned up cemeteries and tried to keep them from becoming a victim of a mining project.  The future will be more of the same vigilance to keep this most basic of history preserved.  One cannot hope that surviving relatives of the departed can do this job because often, there is no one left in the family.  The larger community must assume that role.  Therefore, if you know of a cemetery that needs attention please let us know so efforts can be organized to preserve those memories. 

If cemeteries are not your priority, there are also other activities that will preserve our Lawrence County history.  Just bring your ideas forward to see if we can collectively keep our history from being lost.  

Davis busy on speaking trail

LCHS life member Vernon Davis has been a busy man for the past few weeks, speaking before a couple of audiences in Lawrence and Butte counties.

On January 3rd, Davis spoke to about 75 members of the Spearfish Area Historical Society in Spearfish about his great uncle, "Buckskin" Johnny Spaulding, who was a key figure in the history surrounding the old Spearfish stockade.  It was just one of many chapters of history about Spaulding, who was among early pioneers in this region of South Dakota.

Then on January 7th, Davis was on the speaking circuit again -- albeit to a somewhat smaller group -- regarding cemetery preservation.

You can read more about his cemetery presentation in Belle Fourche by simply clicking on this link to the online Butte County Post.

Terry Cemetery area targeted

With gold prices nearly double what they were 10 years ago, Wharf Resources indicates they're moving forward with plans to expand their mining operations near Terry Peak -- and that could have implications for the Terry Cemetery.  

Although Wharf started its application process in September, it's been pretty much under the radar ever since.  That is, until a story by Kevin Woster emerged last week in the Rapid City Journal.  Woster wrote that the proposal "worries some nearby landowners and could force the relocation of more than 200 graves in the Terry Cemetery."

Above is a bit of history regarding the Terry Cemetery as depicted in the LCHS 1994 publication "Cemeteries and Graves in Lawrence County and Environs," edited by Irma Klock.

We suspect Wharf's proposal will gain additional attention in coming days as folks have an opportunity to comment on their plan.  If you wish to be heard, you should act by Tuesday, January 11th.  For a wealth of information -- and an opportunity to comment -- go to the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources web site.

As a sidebar, we are reminded of the appropriate steps taken some years back by Hershey Food Corporation when they discovered an old cemetery on land they were preparing to convert to a parking lot near their west plant in Hershey, Pennsylvania.  As it turns out, it was an old Hammacher family cemetery, ancestors of many Hamaker families now living in western South Dakota and western Nebraska.  Hershey stepped up to the plate and did the right thing by taking leadership in helping to preserve this historic cemetery.  We believe their actions serve as a model of corporate and civic responsibility.  

We hope Wharf Resources will display the same kind of leadership, but a public nudge in that direction might help.  

Revisiting Roubaix Cemetery

A recent inquiry about the cemetery near Roubaix, South Dakota prompted us to explore a bit.  We started with the narrative below, extracted from the 1994 booklet, Cemeteries and Graves in Lawrence County and Environs, published by the Lawrence County Historical Society and edited by Irma H. Clock.  The original information was provided by Ruth Kotti.  We then visited the cemetery, which is perched on a hilltop along Elk Creek Road just north of its intersection with Nemo Road.  We snapped a few photos, which are included below.

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It was not unusual that even in the most unsettled areas of the American West, burial sites, the ordinary method of disposing of the dead came into being. It has long been observed that a hill or a knoll near frontier settlements was the common selection. The Roubaix Cemetery is located in a wooded area at the top of a hill, a short distance from the non-existent town of Roubaix, which was also known as Perry.

Even though some interments are recorded prior to the 1900’s, it is rumored that the land, possibly a mining claim, was originally donated for a cemetery by the Sawyer family after the death of their infant daughter, Bertha Ellan Sawyer, who was buried on January 1, 1906, at the age of 6 days. However, researching the Lawrence County Record of Burials reveals possible earlier burials at the site. Among these were: Patrick Mahr of Brownsville, buried near Brownsville, on May 14, 1884; Henry Hilturen, 10 years old, buried at Perry, in August 1885; Oleans Johnson, age 38 years old, buried near the Sam Mine on September 7, 1885; and

Mrs. Sophie Amanda Pietila, born in 1850, and died October 5, 1888.

Although these people are recorded in the Record of Burials,  nothing substantiates these graves. The only confirmed burial is that of Mrs. Pietila, who has a large granite tombstone marking her grave, as well as the graves of two infant sons, Nels A., who died in October, 1887, at the age of 49 days, and Frank J., who died on October 26, 1888, at the age of 21 days.

Grave markers confirm that there were three infant burials in the1890’s. They were Hilda Balander, who was born in 1889, and died in 1890; Henry W. Pinske, born and died in 1895; and Mary A. Pinske, who was born and died in 1896.

Sometime in the 1970’s, in October, a visual survey was done by Mrs. Esther E. Salmon. She located at least 27 unidentified graves, several of the wooden markers were weathered and worn past reading. When another walking survey was done in 1990-1991, the results compared, the cemetery was found to have two hundred sixty-six marked graves that were identified and listed.

Besides the Sawyer infant, there were 12 other tombstones -- verified burials in the 1990’s. The burials include 7 infants/children and five adults, 3 males and 2 females. 

An early day resident recalled the funeral procession (of) one of these young mothers. A team of horses pulled the heavy lumber wagon carrying the homemade pine coffin. Neighbors sang a mournful dirge as the cortege (procession) wound its way up the steep hill to the cemetery for committal.

Inscriptions on grave stones disclose that there were 22 burials between the years of 1910 to 1919, generally. According to the information etched on the gray granite monuments marking the graves of two WWI soldiers who died in 1918, one died in Fort Riley, Kansas, and the other died at Camp Johnston, Florida. During the flu epidemic of 1918-1919, indoor public gatherings were prohibited. An early-day former Lead mortician remembers one particular outdoor funeral ceremony, where the minister, bundled in a heavy coat complete with fur hat and mittens, stood in the box of a spring wagon as he preached. Mourners, shivering and shaking in the bitter winter cold, listened to the long sermon, which seemed longer because of the weather.

The Roubiax Cemetery is mainly the resting place of early day residents of the Roubaix, Elk Creek, Brownsville, Box Elder and Custer Peak vicinities.  Today, there are occasional additions to the family plots as well as other burials.

Elected to the governing board of the Roubaix Cemetery Association, which was organized in April 29, 1950, were: Esther E. Salmon, Mary Paananen, and John Hill. All board members were area residents. A fund had been started in May 1949 for a new fence. The board was chosen to supervise major improvements, cemetery maintenance, and the delegation of burial sites. In the ensuring years, board replacements have been: Ralph Rantapaa, Elma Quaschnick and Eva Haka. Currently, Mr. Rantapaa is the board president, Mrs. Quaschnick is the secretary, and Mrs. Haka is the present treasurer.

The dead who rest in this hallowed place -- who are they? They came from all walks of life and had various vocations to make their living. They were the parents who nurtured and, for some, buried their children. They are community leaders, the unsung heroes, those who served their country in all its conflicts, even a veteran of the Spanish American War. Then there are those who are buried there that are known only to God and to their loved ones they left behind, bone, but not forgotten.   ~~Information by Ruth Kotti.

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NOTE:  We've heard this cemetery referred to as the "Andersen Cemetery," so we were alert to any Andersen tombstones.  This plot for the family of  James C. and Petrine Andersen was particularly interesting.  It is shown in the photo above at right.  You can click on the image to see a larger version.  Note that their daughter Gladys Violet Anderson died in 1904, just a few weeks shy of her second birthday.  Her surname was engraved as ANDERSON, while markers for both her parents were engraved as ANDERSEN.  

                                                              

Davis cops history award

Tireless cemetery guru Vernon Davis of Beulah, Wyoming, a Lawrence County Historical Society member, has been duly recognized for his hard work in cemetery preservation and restoration.

First, Davis was one of several Black Hills region folks featured in stories published last summer by the Rapid City Journal and the Lawrence County Journal. Staff writer Tim Velder noted that Davis and others are working with youth organizations like 4-H and Boy Scouts in an effort to get their assistance in taking care of neglected cemeteries.

“All of our history is in those cemeteries,” Davis was quoted as saying. “All of those people are our history. If we’re not going to take care of the cemeteries, then we aren’t going to take care of anything else.” Read the entire “Cemeteries” story.

Davis, who is a lifetime member of the society, was also honored in late September at the West River History Conference in Rapid City for his work related to cemeteries. He was presented with 2009 Herbert W. Blakely Award.

In the photo above, society member Jeannine Guern of Deadwood helps Davis admire the award during the LCHS meeting October 18th in Lead.

Ft. Meade Tour

By Jim Weaver

Society members and guests gathered at Ft. Meade on Sunday, June 21, 2009, for lectures, a video presentation, a tour of its history museum, and a guided tour of the grounds of this historic military reservation.

Among the subjects covered were base layout and architecture; life as a Calvary post, CCC camp, and German POW camp; location of the Ute Indian camp, and the Historic Cemetery. The post currently serves as a Veterans Hospital and a National Guard training facility. Many of the residential buildings house personnel that are associated with these activities.

The Black Hills National Cemetery is currently raising and realigning the headstones in the Historic Cemetery. When the project is completed, the stones will stand tall and as straight as soldiers on the Fort’s drill field.