Local History

[cornerofmadness]

I had planned to go to the cemetery walk for the first time ever in Gallipolis. I had done this once before in Logan OH years ago (like 17) and I enjoyed it. What they do is have reenactors at the gravesite giving out local history of the people buried there. It was a cool idea but I've never could go to the this newish one in Gallipolis (because I've had conflicts the last few years).

I also needed to go to Point Pleasant because the cryptid anthology I'm going to be in wanted promo photos and I thought my god I need to take mine with Mothman!

But I woke up too early so I was reading a book I got at the loveland frogman fest 2 years ago, the haunted cemeteries of Ohio (which I did use to go to Ironton to do some investigations) but somehow didn't read Jackson and Wellston...only to find out there were accusations of witchcraft in both towns. Well now I know I'll have to go to the historical society....

I hit Point Pleasant only to find it overrun. Wow. I don't normally go on a weekend. I knew they were doing a lot of paranormal tourism. It's literally saving the town but wow, even off the festival days there was a LINE to get your pic so I go into Grinders for coffee and writing and waiting it out. Not my favorite local coffee house, best you can say is an attempt was made.

I meet TH at the cemetery. It feels hotter than it is (I would have sworn it was 90 but it was only 80) the heat made me ill by the end (I was there 2 hours) and the stress drove my sugar to nearly 400. Fun times but it was really neat. I do love history and there was a lot of history I had NO idea about.

This was held at Pine Street historical cemetery in Gallipolis (which has a small confederate soldier burial because as I learned last year there was a Civil War Hospital in town). It's a small cemetery a couple acres, nice and flat. My friend L was one of the reenactors. Her person was Mrs. Curry who lost her 12 y.o. son and husband to the John Porter a plague ship in the 1870s from New Orleans. It left port in LA bringing with it mosquitos filled with flavivirus which causes Yellow Fever. Other ports wouldn't let them dock (Cincinnati noped straight out) but the ship broke down near Gallipolis (in the Ohio River) and townspeople basically looted it for blankets etc. And....nearly 70 people died of Yellow Fever.

Along with back of the cemetery they had a bunch of hand made tombstones to do more local history but from Mound Cemetery (which is further downtown, more the main cemetery BUT is up and down huge hills and is too big to walk easily) so they brought their stories to this cemetery. There was an entertainer who worked with the Ziegfeld Follies. There was Alber Ankeny Stewart a banker who ended up the 5th richest dude in OH who had a mansion in gallipolis, NYC and the French Rivera. He was big into circuses and tried to help bring a Bulga whale to Cincinnati It didn't go well And he ended up going on a little ocean voyage on the unsinkable Titantic It also didn't go well.

I should have taken a picture of the book about Franny Angel because the title I thought it was brought up nothing. Franny (like many other erased women) joined the Union army, undiscovered until she got shot in the leg (and nearly lost it, don't worry childbirth killed her later on) When they discovered her sex at the Civil War hospital, one nurse had an idea, take some pictures in your uniform and sell them to make money. It worked but it also was used to keep her from reenlisting.

I didn't realize Mayme and Jeannette Emerson were buried there, they were the African American sister podiatrists I put in my speech. The reenactor knew them when she was a kid (they died in 57 and 61 respectively) and she was telling me about how she couldn't get her hair done (they also had a beauty salon) by them because they only took care of white women in the day. (she like other African women had to go at night because the white women didn't want to share their space. Jesus) They recreated the sisters' sign limp in leap out (clever) and they advertised country wide and had people from all over, sort of like the Dr. Pimple Popper of their day.

Shockingly they were buried in the White cemetery (maybe because it was mid century, maybe because they were wealthy and important) and not in the Colored Pine Street cemetery across the street. I meandered over there and learned some more history, most notably Lloyd Gee, son of John Gee of the John Gee church, now the Black history center and former stop on the Underground Railroad. Lloyd died on the river trying to save lives in the course of his duties as a riverboat captain. I asked if he was included in the River Museum in Point Pleasant. They didn't know. I will go looking next time and if he's not, maybe these two local history centers need to talk.

So in spite of the heat making me sick, I had an enjoyable time.

and I'm feeling lazy this Science Saturday so here's a bunch from one place

James Webb Space Telescope reveals thick cosmic dust of Sagittarius B2, the most enormous star-forming cloud in the Milky Way — Space photo of the week

Scientists find best evidence yet that icy moon Enceladus is habitable

Chimps eat fruit full of alcohol, but no, they don't get drunk

Comments

[spikedluv]

I'm glad you had such a good time!

[dr_zook]

Good to hear you had a good time despite the heat and sugar!

Thanks for keeping me up to date with the telescope pictures. :3

[suzume]

Interesting stuff from your visit to the cemeteries. Some info I'd definitely never heard before.

Ooh, I loved all of your links!

[cornerofmadness]

Me either. Over on LJ a friend was telling me about one of her relatives much like Franny Angel only in the revolutionary war (and is famous in MA)

thanks

[cornerofmadness]

thanks and you're welcome. Love my space posts.

[cornerofmadness]

thanks

[suzume]

Wow! Well, there's another story!

[cornerofmadness]

absolutely