Southern Graves

I have posted more than 30 photos from Irwinville Cemetery to my Picasa web albums. This is a small town cemetery located in Irwin County, Georgia. Irwinville Cemetery Surnames include Bishop, Clements, Holden, Underwood, Vinson, Walker, and Watson. Photos may be viewed individually or as a slideshow. Some personal commentary is included, and the ability for you to add comments is enabled.

In the world of genealogy, a primary source is one recorded at or very soon after an event by someone with intimate knowledge of the event. Even though you might think the death date on a tombstone would be a primary source, this is not always the case. An obvious example of the contrary would be an ancestor who died in 1796 has a shiny new granite grave marker -- definitely added many, many years after the death and likely not by someone with intimate knowledge of the death. I came across a curious case of weird dates on a tombstone while visiting the Irwinville Cemetery in Irwin County, Georgia. The stone in question is here: Uriah Holden (1838-1920) & wife Elizabeth (1852-1935). Photo © 2010 S. Lincecum. Focusing on the side for Uriah Holden, the tombstone looks like a "period piece" and figures to be trustworthy. Only after I got home and started poking around to find a bit more about Uriah did I find some inconsistencies. In the 1910 Cassville, Bartow,...

At Irwinville Cemetery in Irwin County, Georgia - Elizabeth & Her Daughters Elizabeth & All 5 Children Three BISHOP daughters, Annie Rena, Jesse Elizabeth, and Mamie, all died 14 February 1897. Sister Maggie Lee died little more than a month later. Brother Benney and mother Elizabeth both died in the year 1899, about three months apart. While mother Elizabeth and son Benney likely both died as a result of complications from his birth, the four sisters might have died from an accident or illness. I've been searching through newspapers to try and find a story about this family tragedy, but have come up empty thus far. Does anyone know what happened to the Bishop children?

Abraham P. Clements David Clements was a member of another pioneer family of Irwin County, Georgia. He was a son of Abraham P. and Nancy Branch Clements. David was born in January 1845 and married Susan Whiddon 5 November 1865. They had ten children, nine surviving to adulthood. A fact about the David Clements family I found interesting is this: out of the nine children surviving to adulthood, five of them did NOT get married. And four of those five were women. I must admit, when I was photographing the tombstones for members of this family in Irwinville Cemetery, I assumed many of the stones were for married women. Only after consulting census records did I realize the truth. This information was validated further by an entry in the History of Irwin County (page 517) by J. B. Clements: DAVID CLEMENTS FAMILY David Clements married Susan Whiddon. Children: A. E. Clements, who did not marry; W. A. Clements, who married Sara Smith; J[ames] P. Clements, who married Mary V....

" MORTUARY Mrs. Una Clements, Sycamore Sycamore, Ga., August 24 -- (Special) -- Mrs. Una Clements, one of south Georgia's pioneers, died at her home in Irwinville Sunday at 2 o'clock, and was buried in Ashburn Wednesday at 3 o'clock. Mrs. Clements was a Whiddon before her marriage, which is one of the oldest families in south Georgia. Hers was a long life of usefulness, she being nearly 90 years of age at the time of her death." ( Atlanta Constitution , Georgia, 25 August 1917 via Ancestry.com ) Una was the daughter of Lott Whiddon, one of the first settlers of Irwin County, Georgia. She married R. W. Clements 19 December 1865. R. W. Clements (died 1898) and his wife Una were both laid to rest in Irwinville Cemetery at Irwinville, Irwin County, Georgia. Photo © 2010 S. Lincecum.

As a reminder, the most popular posts over the life of this blog (according to Blogger stats) are in the right sidebar. Here are the most popular posts over the last 30 days: - Undertakers, Coffins, & Furniture - Southern Cross of Honor - Love, Life, and Truth - In Case You Missed It -- September 2010 - A Story Evolves from Clues Found in an Obituary - A Gaggle of Geese Flyby (Almost Wordless Wednesday) - Louisa's Blossom (Wordless Wednesday) - White Oak Flats Cemetery; Gatlinburg, Tennessee - Though at Thy Parting We are Sad... (Today's Epitaph) - The Yarbrough Men - George C. Elder, Policeman (Tombstone Tuesday) - Tombstone Tuesday: Dates Unknown - James Gates: Citizen, Husband, Father & Master Thank-you for following Southern Graves !

R. W. Clements Born Sept 25, 1835 Died Mar 1, 1898 What to us is life without thee, Darkness and despair alone. When with sighs we seek to find thee, This tomb proclaims thou art gone. Irwinville Cemetery Irwin County, Georgia Photo © 2010 S. Lincecum