Tombstone Tuesday ~ William Wilson, buried 1773 in Derry, New Hampshire

This tombstone was photographed at the Forest Hill Cemetery in Derry, New Hampshire. At the time of burial, 1773, this was the town of Londonderry.

HERE LYES THE BODY OF

MR. WILLIAM WILSON  HE

DIED JULY 30 1773 IN THE

22d  YEAR OF HIS AGE.

This little tombstone is a great example of the early Scots Irish carving often seen in this cemetery in Derry, and in some of the early cemeteries in Londonderry, New Hampshire.  The simple symbols at the top and sides of the tombstone are very typical.   I've seen celtic knots, geometric shapes, and here is the heart and coffin.   Does anyone know the symbolism of the upside-down heart?   Is this gravestone attributable to stone carver John Wight? 

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Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Tombstone Tuesday ~ William Wilson, buried 1773 in Derry, New Hampshire", Nutfield Genealogy, posted August 30, 2016,  (http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2016/08/tombstone-tuesday-william-wilson-buried.html: accessed [access date]).

Tombstone Tuesday ~ Isobel Gregg, Windham, New Hampshire, 1764

This tombstone was photographed at the Cemetery on the Plain, Windham, New Hampshire

HERE LYES THE BODY

OF MRS. ISOBEL GREGG

WIFE TO MR JOHN GREGG

SHE DIED AGUST 9TH 1764

AGED 31 YEARS

Isabel Hemphill was born about 1733 and died on 9 August 1764 in Windham, New Hampshire.  She was the wife of John Gregg.  He was born about 1725 in Watertown, Massachusetts, the son of Captain David Gregg and Mary Nevins.  He drowned in Portsmouth, New Hampshire in 1754, when she was only 21 years old!  I don't have a marriage date for Isobel and John Gregg, but she must have been almost newlywed when she became a widow. 

This stone appears to be in the style of John Wight, the Scots Irish grave stone carver, who decorated his works with geometric patterns and symbols like coffins, shovels, and skulls. You can read a PDF file about this mysterious stone carver at this link:  http://hne-rs.s3.amazonaws.com/filestore/1/2/8/4/2_42c271659b5633b/12842_baa039815612028.pdf

For more information on the Gregg family, please see The History of the Town of Windham, New Hampshire by Leonard A. Morrrison, 1883

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The URL for this post is

http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/12/tombstone-tuesday-isobel-gregg-windham.html 

Copyright (c) 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Tombstone Tuesday ~ William Davidson, 1767, Windham, New Hampshire

This gravestone was photographed at the Cemetery on the Plain, Windham, New Hampshire

HERE LYES THE BODy

OF WILLIAM SON

TO MR JOHN AND MRS

SARAH DAVIDSON HE

DIED MAY 31 1767 AGED

5 YEARS

This very small gravestone (about one foot tall)  is in the primitive, geometric style often seen in early gravestones in the Nutfield, New Hampshire area.  I've seen them in Londonderry, Derry and Chester.  I don't know if this stone can be attributed to the Scots Irish gravestone carver John Wight (1702 - 1775).  The geometric figures and the mistakes are typical of his style. Some of his carvings even look like Celtic knots, typical of his homeland in Northern Ireland.

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The URL for this post is
http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/10/tombstone-tuesday-william-davidson-1767.html

Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo