Tombstones
When a group from Westerville came to Waverly last June to do some work at the Outreach Council, Director Judy Dixon thought it would be a fine idea to cover up an old unused doorway with the new vinyl siding. The work was completed quickly, but the old stone doorstep was left in place. Outside work the Outreach Council is done by volunteer Bill Brammer, and when he saw that the door was covered over, he thought keeping the location mowed and neat would be easier if the old step were removed. Mrs. Dixon agreed and gave Bill permission to do so.
When Bill turned the stone over, he was a little surprised to see that the piece of stone was actually a grave monument. Because it had laid upside down on another stone for so many years, the writing on the monument was still quite readable. Brammer, who is a member of the Pike Heritage Museum Board, though it might be a good idea to move the stone into the museum for protection and safekeeping. Dixon agreed thinking it was a great idea.
When Jeannine Burkitt visited the museum shortly after Christmas, she noticed the stone and became very interested in finding out more about its history. With help from her husband she set about researching local records and trying to piece together why a monument would end up away from its original spot. The monument had a one time marked the grave of two little sisters, Alice and Mary Tomlinson. The stone indicated that the ten and six-year-old girls had died just a few days apart in July of 1853. Their parents were even listed on the monument as James and E. R. Tomlinson.
After many hours of researching, Jeannine was able to put together the following information. James Tomlinson was a Waverly resident who had married his sweetheart, Elizabeth Green of Seal Township. James was an outstanding young man known for his honesty and kindness. He had become a partner with James Emmitt in the operation of a general merchandise store. He even served briefly as Waverly's postmaster according to Emmitt's written account. In 1846, Tomlinson became ill and died rather suddenly. He left a pregnant widow, a daughter Mary E. and a son John. Alice A. was born soon after her father's death. James and his wife had also taken in three of Elizabeth's siblings (Samuel C., Rebecca and Joseph J.) since her parents had died.
A cholera epidemic hit Waverly during 1852 and 1853, and killed approximately half of the growing town's residents. Since the sisters both died during July of 1853, it could be assumed that the two little girls died of cholera, but their brother, John, survived. He would have been about the age of eight at the time. He grew to be a successful young man entering the banking business in Chillicothe. He married Alice W. Rowe and was the father of three sons who grew up in Chillicothe.
The Waverly News Watchman - June 2005
Copyright © 2006
Pike Co. Genealogy Society a Chapter of O.G.S.
P. O. Box 224, Waverly, Ohio 45690