The
Pictures
Search the Vaiden CemeterySearch the Vaiden Community Cemetery
Vaiden Monument InscriptionsIn the Arms of GodThe Vaiden Cemetery is one of the oldest in A marble monument marks the place where Dr.
Cowles Mead Vaiden, and his wife, Elizabeth Herring Vaiden are buried. This
marble stone, approximately 20 feet high, has an angel on top with the right
hand raised and a finger pointing heavenward. The square area below is
adorned with symbols; justice scales, a honey comb, an hour glass, and
others. Dr. Vaiden was a man of integrity and many talents; a doctor, a
farmer, a philanthropist, and a statesman. A grave of
historic significance is that of John Cain, a Revolutionary War Drummer
Boy. He was born Nearby is
another military grave. The marker bears the following inscription:
"Lucas C.S.A. Alabama 1862." This is the grave of an ill
confederate soldier whom Mrs. Mary Pleasants nursed in her home and after his
death, had him buried in In the southwest section of the cemetery is a
plot with a stone bearing the inscription, "32 Soldiers Known Only To
God." These soldiers died in skirmish fighting between On one side of
the cemetery's Confederate Memorial,
is the inscription: "Dedicated to the Memory of the Confederate
Soldiers, Known and Unknown, Who Gave Their Lives During the War for Southern
Independence 1861-1865 and are Buried in this Cemetery." Before the turn
of the century, Joseph Vaiden Herring cared for the graves in this plot and
many other graves in the cemetery, and through his interest, the Vaiden
Chapter of the U.D.C. was organized. On memorial Day, the children would
gather at the Courthouse, have a ceremony, and march to the cemetery to place
flags and flowers on these 32 graves marked by a single brick. Through the
efforts of Mrs. Mable Wilson Bruce and the cooperation and support of
interested citizens, the present marker was erected which bears the following
inscription: A grave marker
that causes many to stop and contemplate, bears this inscription: "My
Husband, Sacred to the Memory of Joseph H. Harrell. Died March 31, 1859, age
27 yrs. 2 mo. and 29 days." All that is known about this man is that he
is listed as a pharmacist among the early settlers of Shongalo. He died well
over a century ago and his grave is in a lot surrounded by an iron fence. It
is not known why his wife is not buried here but the beautiful marble
monument that marks his grave is a visible expression of her deep sorrow. It
is a carved lady, in a sitting position, bowed in grief. Local people refer
to this grave as the one with "the Weeping Lady." For a closer look at the
Weeping Lady, Click Here. A smaller
section of the cemetery, referred to as the Cain-McClurg section, joins the
Shongalo section. In the early
1900s, the Industrial Order of the Odd Fellows donated a plot, approximately
one acre, adjoining this section. Many descendants of the older
Shongalo-Vaiden families are buried in this section. Some family plots
contain the graves of four generations. When the next
cemetery expansion became necessary, the latest addition, known as the
Wright-Fullilove section was added. In 1974, the A look at a
century-old grave and then at a more recent one brings the feeling expressed
by William Cullen Bryant: "All that breathe will share thy
destiny." Ground
Photos
Photo 1
Photo 2
Photo 3
Photo 4
Percy W. Kaigler Grave -- Died October 20, 1909Cecil Kaigler and His Mother at
the Kaigler Grave
Grave of Dr. C.E. Wright -- 1933Dr. Vaiden's grave in the In 1880, Dr. Vaiden's funeral was interrupted by a messenger shouting
"horse thief." Several men left the
service to catch the culprit. When apprehended, tha man pled starvation, and
was not convicted. The $10,000 marble statue for Dr. Vaiden's grave was lost
at sea off the east coast when the ship bringing it from Fallen
Angel -- December 21, 1990
Before the StormPhoto 1 -- Photo 2 -- Photo 3 -- Photo 4Vaiden Monument – 1999Aerial
Photos
Photo 1
Photo 2
Photo 3
Photo 4
Photo 5
Photo 6
Photo 7
Photo 8
Photo 9
Photo 10
Photo 11
Photo 12
Photo 13
Photo 14Old Marker Photos # 1 -- Old Marker Photos # 2 -- Old Marker Photos # 3Confederate SectionPage II
Back
Home Again . . .Page I
Site Design and
Compilation Copyright © by Ron Collins. 2002. |