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Today we find the winged skull carvings on ancient gravestones to be rather severe, off-putting, and spooky. It lets us know that life is short and fleeting. And what remains will be the body in the ground. Similarly, some of the epitaphs engraved on these stones could be severe as well, providing messages that we’d rather not contemplate. Here are a few of these less than comforting epitaphs found in Old Parish Cemetery. In memory of Mr. JOEL EVERETT. who died October 9,

Henry Christian Geyer, stonecutter Henry Christian Geyer (c. 1727-1785) was quite a well-known stone cutter in and around Boston. James Blachowicz in his book From Slate to Marble: Gravestone Carving Traditions in Eastern Massachusetts, 1750-1850 recounts Geyer’s life and work. Born in Germany, Geyer arrived in Boston in the 1750s. He first advertised his Boston stonecutter shop in the Boston Post-Boy in March of 1759 and continued to advertise through 1770. Seen here, Bl

Lot 170 Oliver Blackman Everett (1791-1875) Oliver Blackman Everett was born on May 2, 1791, the son of William Everett Jr. (lot 166) and his wife, Sarah Blackman Everett (lot 167) and the brother of Betsey (lot 168) and Joel (lot 165). Oliver never married. It seems that Oliver Everett had a difficult life. In the 1850 Census, he was a laborer on the farm of Benjamin Davenport in Mendon, Massachusetts. By the 1865 Census, Oliver was a pauper. The 1870 Census records the th

Lot 141 Mary Withington Dean (1729-1803) Mary Withington was born in Dorchester in 1729, the daughter of William and Elizabeth Blake Withington. On January 26, 1747, Mary Withington married Benjamin Dean. Benjamin was born on July 17, 1717, the seventh child (of eight) and fourth son born to John Dean and Hannah Savil Dean. The marriage of Benjamin and Mary took place in Stoughton. Benjamin was a farmer. Benjamin and Mary had four children: Benjamin Jr., born in 1750; W

Lot 93 Leonard Fisher, Jr. (1822-1900) Leonard Fisher Jr. was born in 1822 in South Dedham. His parents were Leonard Fisher and Abigail Smtih Fisher. He lived in the family farm working farmlands bordered by Neponset, Pleasant, and Cross Streets. He did not marry. Upon his death, on March 30, 1900, the Norwood Advertiser and Review wrote of the loss of one more link to Norwood’s past. “Mr. Fisher lived his life at the old homestead on Neponset Street, where three gene

Highland Cemetery Lot 137 Emma W. Gay (1849-1892) In 1888, A Memorial Volume of the Record of Baptisms, Marriages, and Deaths transcribed from Church Records in the Town of Dedham from 1638-1845 was published. It was edited by Don Gleeson Hill, then President of the Dedham Historical Society and Dedham town clerk. Included in this publication was a compilation of epitaphs before 1845 found on graves in the “South Parish Cemetery.” It was noted that these epitaphs were “copi

Lot 27 Daniel Burnham Farrington (1814-1898) Elizabeth (Farrington) Farrington (1816-1907) Daniel Burnham Farrington was born in 1814, the son of David Farrington and his wife, Ruth Gould Farrington of Dedham. On September 17, 1848, Daniel Farrington married Tirzah Maria Beckwith who was born on January 22, 1819. She was the daughter of Martin and Terzah Beckwith of South Hadley, Massachusetts. Tirzah Beckwith Farrington died on September 13, 1858 due to inflammatio

In the 1700s, naming children after family members (grandparents, parents) was the dominant tradition, but, by the early 1800s naming children after powerful figures, heroes, or even local leaders became more commonplace. In Old Parish Cemetery, there are three who were named for very famous figures: Benjamin Franklin, William Henry Harrison, and Isaac Newton. Lot 115 Benjamin Franklin Fairbanks (1806-1874) Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was an American polymath: a writer, sc

Oliver Ellis (1745-1821) Mary Colburn Ellis (1754-1826) Hannah Ellis Rhoads (1784-1854) Oliver Ellis Jr. (1787-1823) Oliver Ellis was born on May 10, 1745. He was the son of Aaron Ellis and Zipporah Lewis Ellis. He was a Corporal in Capt. David Fairbanks’s militia company which marched on the alarm of April 19, 1775. On December 16, 1779, Oliver Ellis married Mary Colburn. Her parents were Samuel Colburn and Mercy Dean Colburn. Oliver and Mary ran a farm and raised four chi

Lot 13 Sarah A. Godfrey Webster (1801-1889) Sarah A. Godfrey was born on February 20, 1801 in Nova Scotia, Canada. She was the daughter of Elisha and Elizabeth Godfrey. In June of 1821, Sarah Godfrey married Daniel Webster who was also born in Nova Scotia. The couple had eleven children: Elisha, Edwin, Daniel, Mary, Matthew, John, Lawson, Godfrey, Mary Elizabeth, Henry and Clara, all born in Canada. Typical ship list of passengers Halifax to Boston. At some point, Sarah

Lot 111 Old Parish Cemetery Lot 393 Highland Cemetgery Edwin W. Page (1860-1877) Addie W. Page (1862-1862) Herbert W. Page (1865-1865) Samuel Newell Page was born on January 26, 1828 in Maine. On November 29, 1855, he married Emily B. Fairbanks of Dedham. Emily was the daughter of James M. Fairbanks and Roxanna Gay Fairbanks (lot 118). Samuel and Emily Page had four children, three of whom died young. Edwin W. Page was born on October 25, 1860. He died on June 30, 187

Peter Wagner (c. 1823-1862) Lot 185 Johauss Hurst (1838-1862) Lot 184 Arthur Lowell (1870-1880) Lot 116 Frank Brooks (1885-1888) Lot 69/Highland 36 Curtis Talbot (1798-1884) Lot 105 In the eighteenth century, the nicknamed given to South Dedham was “Tiot.” Throughout the town’s

Ezra Morse (1718-1755) This Ezra Morse was born on March 26, in 1717 or 1718, depending on the record, in Dedham. He was the son of Ezra Morse (1694-1789) and his wife Anna White. He was the grandson of Ezra Morse (1671-1760), the mill owner and Deacon. On July 3, 1740, Ezra Morse married Bethiah Lewis also of Dedham. She was the daughter of William Lewis and Bethiah Colburn Lewis. Ezra and Bethiah had five children: Ezra, Bethiah, Oliver, Sarah, and Priscilla. Ezra M

Thomas Child Rhoads (1818-1888) Harriet Annabelle Thompson Rhoads (1823-1867) Olive Hannah Henry Rhoads (1833-1892) Betsy Child Rhoads (1782-1866) Albert Lewis Rhoads (1860-1940) Angelina Dobson Rhoads (1868-1949) Thomas C. Rhoads1818-1888 Thomas Child Rhoads was born on June 6, 1818. He was the son of Aaron Rhoads and Betsy Child Rhoads, of Roxbury. On April 25, 1841, Thomas Rhoads married Harriet A. Thompson, known as Hazel, who was born on June 3, 1823 in Maine. Thomas

Lucy Ann Fairbanks (1831-1897) Lucy Ann Fairbanks was born in 1831. She was the daughter of James M. Fairbanks and Roxanna Gay Fairbanks. Fairbanks was a farmer who built a farmhouse in the late 1840s on land that had been deeded to him by his grandfather, Benjamin Fairbanks, of Dedham. His farm and home were located along today’s Prospect Street. Fairbanks Home on Prospect as it appeared in late 19th century. Fairbanks Home as it appeared in 2023. A childhood illness

Lot 227 John Bullard (1690-1745) John Bullard was born on August 27, 1690. He was the son of Samuel Bullard (1659-1747) and Hannah Thorp Bullard (1665-1711). On May 29, 1718, John Bullard married Rebeckah White in Boston. Rebeckah was the daughter of Henry White and Mary Weeks White of Dorchester. She was born in Dorchester on December 10, 1696. John and Rebeckah Bullard had eight children: John (lot 224), Josiah, Hannah (who married Nathaniel Sumner and was interred i

Dr. John Kingsbury Briggs (1794-1843) Plot 124 (crypt 3 off Washington St.) The youngest of twelve children born to Ephraim and Rebecca (Waterman) Briggs, John Kingsbury Briggs was born on December 9, 1794 in Halifax (Plymouth County), Massachusetts. He studied medicine under the direction of Dr. Arad Thompson of Middleborough and Dr. William Ingalls of Boston. He received his MD at Brown University in 1820. He married Hannah Chickering (the daughter of Rev. Jabez Chick

On April 22, 1833, Dedham selectmen established South Dedham’s first fire company. Their announcement read: “By virtue of the statute of 1785, 1805, and 1827 – We, the Subscribers have nominated and appointed and do hereby nominate and appoint, the following persons to be Engine-men – Joseph Day, Newell Bullen, John Dean 4th, Robert H. Baker, Horace Aldrich, William Phelan, Lewis Ellis, Curtis G. Morse, James M. Lincoln, Loman Morse, Ebenezer Dean Jr., John E. Hartshorn, Mo

Olive R. Fairbanks (1819-1900) Olive Ruggles Fairbanks was born on August 20, 1819. She was the daughter of Samuel Fairbanks of Newton, Massachusetts and Mrs. Hannah Everett Jackson. It was her mother’s second marriage. For many years after the death of her parents Olive, who never married, lived with relatives or friends. Her life was perhaps indicative of the circumstances of single women without an education or trade in the nineteenth century. In the 1870 census, Olive

Often overlooked in the history books, the role of “father” has always been of vital importance to men. Among the gravestones in Old Parish Cemetery are a few which call specific attention to this familial role. Charles A. Bishop (1859-1929) Lot 13 Charles Adrian Bishop was born on March 16, 1859. He was the only child of Charles Nelson Bishop and Clarinda Webster Bishop who were married in Nova Scotia in 1858. In 1885, in Norwood, Charles married Julia El