Out on the Field

     This week, the weather was finally cooperative and I was able to record a few cemeteries. As I previously mentioned, I had been eager to get out and experience this aspect of the recording process, and it most certainly was quite an interesting experience.

     On Tuesday, my crew and I headed out to Oaklawn Memorial Gardens, a Caucasian cemetery in Titusville. 

Looking toward the east.

When we arrived, we were shocked at the sheer size of the place. The website findagrave.com states that it has 3,844 graves! I was pretty disappointed because the cemetery is a little too large to be included in my project, but I was happy to record it nonetheless. In order to complete the Historical Cemetery Form, we had to do some searching. First, we had to locate the oldest grave, and then find any significant markers and threats. We split up and began our hunt. The oldest burial ended up being from 1889. It is the grave of Adger McCrory, one of two original owners of the land. In regards to threats, we didn't find much more than some weathered headstones, a handful of broken headstones and a couple of sinking graves. Overall, the threats were pretty minor. As for distinctive markers, we came across a large statue of a golfer and a beautiful Woodmen of the World marker, among a few other unique ones. 

Golfer marker.

Woodmen of the World headstone.

     Another interesting fact about this cemetery is that there are a couple of significant people buried here. Paula C. White, Faith Hill’s mother, is buried here, as are some members of the Parrish family. The Parish family has a rich history in North Brevard and in the local citrus industry, and they continue to thrive in the area. In fact, the current mayor of Cocoa is Henry Parrish III. Overall, this cemetery was very beautiful and very well maintained.

     After we left Oaklawn, we drove just down the street to its African American counterpart, Davis Memorial Cemetery. Unfortunately, it was tucked behind some overgrown vegetation and completely inaccessible.

     On Saturday, I decided to venture out early in the morning and try to record some cemeteries before the afternoon showers appeared. My first stop was the Malabar Cemetery in Palm Bay. After conducting some extensive research last week, I found that Malabar Road has two cemeteries right across the railroad tracks from one another: one Caucasian and one African American. Sadly, I could not find either. The Caucasian cemetery was inaccessible. There were a couple of “No Trespassing” signs and a row of concrete poles blocking the path. Looking down toward where the cemetery is supposed to be, all I could see were tons of trees and shrubs. The path to the Malabar African American cemetery was a little better, as I was able to get my car in there, but it too led to an abundance of overgrown vegetation. Unfortunately, I was previously unable to find any contact info for the owners of these cemeteries so I am unsure if I will be able to include them in my project, or even record them at all. Although I wish this wasn't the case, Davis Memorial Cemetery and the two Malabar cemeteries are examples of what can happen to historic cemeteries if they are abandoned; they fall through the cracks and disappear.

     I then ventured on to my next stop:  J.S. Stone Memorial Cemetery in Melbourne. This cemetery is home to the graves of the area’s first African American pioneers and founders; many of them former slaves or descendants of slaves, who settled here after the Civil War. I was absolutely heartbroken to see the condition of this site. Many graves were unmarked and damaged. The grass was overgrown and there were weeds almost as tall as I am. Various graves were sinking and others were completely engulfed in overgrown vegetation. There was trash everywhere. Countless chunks of different headstones, curbing and concrete pieces were strewn about, all mixed together. Most grave articles were toppled over and broken and most of the vaults on the site, even one from as recent as 2002, were damaged. 

Unmarked vaults missing their plaques.

One of the many damaged vaults.

Graves that are tilted, cracked and sinking.

Tons of debris and trash covering graves (yes, there are graves under there!)

Weathered vaults covered with overgrown vegetation.

Scattered pieces of rubble and trash. The rubble seems to be composed
of chunks of concrete headstones, curbing and flower pots.

Scattered broken headstones. The one on the bottom
seems to have been incorrectly "repaired" in the past,
as evidenced by the clumping around the cracks.

Broken headstones propped up against a tree.

It truly seems as though this cemetery has been abandoned but surprisingly, it does indeed have an owner. I’m hoping to meet with her sometime next week to discuss the cemetery’s history in detail, as well as the maintenance issues and threats affecting the site.

     My final stop was the Melbourne Cemetery, also known as Melbourne’s Oak Grove Cemetery.
  

View of the main entrance.

View looking north.

This is a Caucasian cemetery and it is beautifully maintained. The first White settler of Melbourne, Thomas Mason, is buried here, as is the founder of Melbourne, Cornthwaite John Hector. U.S. Congressman Charles Brand, and Major League Baseball player Andrew Seminick are also buried here. I found very few threats in this cemetery, the most significant being weathering among the older headstones, and only a couple of sunken or damaged headstones.

     So now I that I have filled out Historical Cemetery Forms for these three cemeteries, I can add the details to the reports I have already begun for each one. All that is left is to add some maps of the property to it and voila! I can then submit these cemeteries to the Florida Master Site File for recording and hopefully help preserve these historically significant sites. 

Until next week,

Lareyne