Boneyard Stories
So I did the cemetery walk yesterday and it was a good time. They had a much larger turnout than they expected—nearly 50 people by my count. I still managed to be one of the five youngest people there, which is just par for the course with this kind of thing.
Anyhoo, did a lot of walking, heard some stories, and took some pictures. Totally worth it. They're planning another one for next spring, so I will put out the word then.
Found a few new stones to investigate.
Because of the dates and the bridal portrait.
Again, because of the dates.
Two eerie things.
1) Kept running across stones of people killed in the Eastland Disaster. I'd be walking along, see another stone with Eastland in the middle of some Czech phrases, and think, "Wow. You were on the boat, too?" Happened several times.
2) You may recall last spring, when I stumbled on a family story/potential old scandal. The Frank XYZ in that story is supposed to buried at Bohemian National. No, I didn't find him (not yet). But I had a moment of realization. During a discussion about the cemetery's elaborate front gate, they mentioned that one side of it had been waiting rooms, where people could wait for a streetcar to take them home. Assuming Frank is there, and assuming my family took part in the burial, they may well have waited in the same room where I signed up for the mailing list and got my little "Hello my name is..." tag.
It was also a good thing to hear about. I've finally decided to do the Nanowrimo thing after all, and I'm using Frank's story as the basis for my book. Technically, the novel is supposed to be fiction. However, since everything we know is contained in two documents (death certificate and news story), making stuff up has proved fairly easy so far. In the interests of research, I did snap a photo of the waiting room, just in case I need it.
