My South Carolina Find-a-Grave Quest

I went to South Carolina to visit my Mom in December. I decided to search for cemeteries before my trip and plan out a day or two of graveyard hopping. I was fortunate enough to find several photo requests on findagrave.com near my Mother's house. 

The winter weather was good to me and produced a light snow, which made for beautiful photos.

I found the majority of the tombstones on my list, with  the bulk of them located at New Prospect Baptist Church Cemetery outside of Chesnee, SC. It was a cold day and my feet started to freeze as I stomped through the leftover snowy ice.  

You are probably asking yourself why do I go out into the cemeteries and take pictures of complete strangers resting places? There are several reasons I do it. One, because I actually enjoy exploring the cemeteries and reading the dates and names and learning about the poeple of our past-pure and simple, it's history! Plus, it gives me a chance to practice my photography skills. However, most importantly, I am helping others that are working on their ancestry records that might otherwise never be able to visit these cemeteries due to distance.

Finally, it gives me a chance to exercise, and have some time to myself to think and be alone. 

With that being said, let's take a look at the photos from the cemeteries I visited in South Carolina.

 

Feedback from people 

RE: John A Foster

You have given me a very special Christmas "present". This will be a valuable addition to my research. I have only been at this since about August - so I have a lot to learn and a tremendous amount of info to hunt for!!!

Could you let me know what other Foster's you upload so I can add them to my ever growing stacks and stacks of paper!!!

Thanks again!!!! Happy Holidays!!!!! :)

Moses Pacolt Foster, Jones Foster, and Capt William H Foster
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Again thanks for braving the cold weather around this busy holiday season. This is a wonderful "present".

John A Foster
Thank you so much for the photo. From the picture not only did you brave cold, wintery weather but you also did it during the busy holiday season. Again Thank You!! Happy Holidays!!

Alverson Baptist Cemetery
Melissa, thank you so much for getting the picture of Nodine tombstones. The snow looks so pretty. You are quite an adventurer. I enjoyed looking at your website, also.

Evelyn in Oklahoma

Searching for Long Lost Relatives: Old Bethel Cemetery

10/31/09

On my way to Louisville, KY, I decided to stop in Central City, Kentucky. My father grew up there as well as many generations before him. I interigated my aunt to try and find out where our family members were buried and wound up visiting four cemeteries in two days. The fourth cemetery was a total bonus! I will explain that at the end of this post.

First, I visited Old Bethel Baptist Church Cemetery out on 181. The location has a quite a history. The Church was established in the early 1800s and was rebuilt several times. It burned down in 1960 and was never rebuilt. However, the cemetery was not abondoned and is still used today.

Unfortunately, I did not find any relatives at Old Bethel. I did find something else though- a new appreciation for cemeteries! Old Bethel Cemetery was established in 1811. I can only imagine what it must have been like back then. Of course, there were only a few tombstones, an old wooden framed church, and country people traveling from miles away to gather for a Sunday service.

Fall is in full bloom in Central City and the brown and red leaves crackled under my feet as I strolled through the historic cemetery. Many of the older tombstones were so weathered with the names and dates wiped away for eternity.

At the top of the hill stood a flagpole flapping in the wind on a cool October Saturday afternoon. It was breathtaking!

The strangest thing that I noticed about the nearly century old stones was that some had seashells embedded in the casket covers. If anyone knows the reason of the shell placement, please leave a comment or email me directly. I would really like to know the meaning behind it.

(This photo is actually of the snake, but it is also the best shot I got of the seashells.)