Poems Cut in Stone Link Life to Life

by Jeffrey Bingham Mead
Greenwich Time, Greenwich, Connecticut
May 20, 1987

Carved forever on the gravestones of our Greenwich forebears by mostly unknown stonecutters are a large collection of epitaph poems.

Though not all gravemarkers have one, those that do are works of poetic energy that vary from dark and sometimes sinister warnings to expression of sentimental release from the adversities of life in those early days.

An epitaph is a brief inscription on the tombstone commemorating the deceased individual in such a way as to convey a theme or sense of emotion relating to the inevitability of death.

For those interested in examining the religious outlook of our hard-working, agrarian of ancestors, the epitaph poems provide a valuable window to the past, and should be always read keeping in mind the stark conditions under which these people lived. 

Our Puritan ancestors were very preoccupied with death, ever present in the days when rampant disease, poor sanitation, lack of food preservation, and even young women dying in childbirth were much more common. Their sentiments and reactions to these and other conditions are expressed forever on the epitaph gravestones.

At the Union Cemetery of the Second Congregational Church we find carved on red sandstone the grave of Edward, son of Frederick Stevenson of "West Chester" who died on September 15, 1795 at the young age of 20 years:

Beneath the stone in solemn silence 

The remains of him who all goodness pocess 

Dismissed from this his tenament of clay 

With God he lives in one eternal day 

Death's unrelenting hand cut short this time 

Yet willingly he did his soul resign 

In life beloved in death bemoan'd tho' blest 

Peace to thy gentle shade & endless rest.

Famous for its ingenious twist of words and the harshness of its warning, the following epitaph, found on a number of tombstones around town, is said to have been found on gravestones as early as 400 years ago in England. This version is inscribed on the sandstone grave marker of Sarah Gardner, who is buried at the Strickland Road graveyard in the Cos Cob Historic District:

Behold and think as you pass by 

As you are now so once was I 

As I am now so you must be 

Prepare for death and follow me.

At the oldest graveyard in Greenwich, the Tomac Cemetery in Old Greenwich, one can find the graves of many early settlers of the town. 

Among them is the stone commemorating the memory of Deacon Samuel Peck, who died on January 29, 1793 at the age of 72 years and 9 months. Of additional significance to this stone is the fact that it is one of only two black slate grave markers in the entire town, belonging to Gershom Lockwood, the oldest stone in Greenwich, now kept at the Bush-Holley House headquarters of the Greenwich Historical Society. Deacon Peck's stone reads as follows:

"He was a faithful man and feared God above many."

All men must come to the cold tomb 

Only the actions of the just 

Smell sweet and blossom in the dust 

Such actions friend were thine.

At the Davis Cemetery one finds the marker of John Ryker, who died on February 3, 1802. The epitaph, apparently written by his widowed wife, conveys a deep sense of loss and foreboding loneliness:

In this lone grave so deep and cold.

Doth my husband's form infold 

His spirit far away has flown 

And I am left on earth alone.

A number of epitaphs imply that the person being memorialized has succeeded in achieving a reward for service and example to those left behind. The view that is expressed in those instances are that dependence on God and the teachings of the Christian religion is all-important and that both family and friends shall be united in the afterlife. Death is here a release to the everlasting fulfillment of paradise.

At the Knapp Cemetery on Round Hill Road is the gravesite of Charity Mead, wife of Joshua Knapp. She died on November 16, 1842 at the age of 85 years. She is memorialized by an eight-line prose description and followed by a quatrain:

"By her integrity, disinterested benevolence, faith and charity, she beautifully exemplified the Christian religion. The death came very suddenly, she was entirely resigned. Her mind clear and serene, filled with the presence of God, she anticipated meeting in Heaven many of her departed friends to enjoy with them forever the presence of God."

Devoid of envy, selfishness and guile 

Resting on Christ with every calm delight 

Tho' death's dark vale she pass'd without a fear 

And faith & hope exchanged for blissful sight.

On the stone of Marilda Timpany, at the Timpany Cemetery on Bible Street in Cos cob, is found another epitaph indicative of the release from the sufferings of life to a bright and beautiful paradise beyond. She died on February 23, 1840, at the age of 23 years:

Rest in peace thy trials ended 

Hark from yon celestrial sphere 

Burst the full angelic chorus 

Sister spirit, welcome here.

It is sad to say that many epitaphs are badly worn away by the elements air pollution and acid rain, as well as the blight of vandals who deface our heritage. The epitaph poems and prose bear the emotional sensitivities of those from earlier ages and are indicative of the quest for immortality and the desire to preserve forever that strong legacy. The epitaphs, but no longer a tradition on grave markers, are unique reminders of the lives of our settlers in the early years of Greenwich.

Jeffrey Bingham Mead, who lives in Greenwich, is a direct descendent of one of the founding families of the town. He is a freelance writer and a member of the Greenwich Historical Society.