The Mysterious Grave of XYZ

 I found this grave while doing a google search and came upon this article titled: 11 Remarkable Graves with Incredible Back Stories. 

 This gravestone is located in the Fountain Hill Cemetery in Deep River, Connecticut. Nobody knows who exactly XYZ is/was but there is a story behind it. The story goes that a bank robber was shot and killed while trying to rob a bank in Deep River. Nobody knew him and he had no ID on him so the town buried him in a donated plot near the railroad tracks. I can imagine this was in or the start of the Fountain Hill Cemetery. After the man's burial, an anonymous letter requested that the grave be marked XYZ-- and so they did it.

The story continues with a woman who would visit the grave every year- she would come via train, wouldn't talk to anyone and would either leave a rose or a flower wreath. The lady would be known as the "Lady in Black" because she would always wear black while visiting the grave. 

So many questions pop into my head when thinking about this folktale. Who was the woman in black or did she even exist? Was she the man's wife or lover or sister or mother? Did she write the letter requesting the grave to be marked XYZ? Why did the letter request the letters XYZ? What did they represent? Was it an initials?

What do you think of this gravestone and the folklore behind it? Comment below.

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Copyright (c) 2024, Carrie Smith

The Gravestone of Billy the Kid

Henry McCarty A.K.A. "Billy the Kid"

born: 23 Nov 1859 in New York

died: 14 Jul 1881 in Fort Sumner, New Mexico, age 21

Buried: Old Fort Sumner Cemetery in Fort Sumner, New Mexico

Billy the Kid was a notorious gunfighter and cattle rustler who was hunted down by U.S. Marshalls because of his crimes. Although he claimed to have killed 21 men, it's estimated to be less than 10. 

In my family tree: 

Henry McCarty was the son of Patrick McCarty and Catherine Devine and is my 8th cousin, 2x removed through his step-father William Henry Harrison Antrim (1842-1922), who is my 7th cousin, 3x removed. 

Please comment and share this post via Twitter, Facebook, or any other social media site. If you have any questions or personal comments, please feel free to reach out via Carriesmith11411@yahoo.com.

Copyright (c) 2024, Carrie Smith

Genealogy Bucket-List Locations, Part 2

Any one person has the potential to have 2,048 11th Great-Grandparents. Who can actually say that they know where their 11th great-grandparents are buried? I can...and this location, is definitely on my list of places to see! 

Thomas Mildenhall (1630-1682) & Joane Strode (1634-1682) are my 11th Great-Grandparents. I don't know the circumstances of their death(s) but I do know that they died the same year in 1682. I also know that they are buried in the Holy Cross Churchyard in Ramsbury, England. 

Holy Cross Churchyard

The Holy Cross Churchyard is located in Ramsbury, Wiltshire, England. The coordinates are: 51.44250, -1.60722. 

According to Findagrave.com, there are 2,185 memorials, including one famous memorial of a Francis Burdett V (1770-1844). It's only 9% photographed with 51 open photo requests, makes me wonder if photography of any sort is allowed?

My ancestors are buried here--- someday I'll get to see what their gravestones look like.

Enjoy the photos that I found on Google.com