The Stars of The Night

Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul

As we walked down the cracked and uneven sidewalks, my heart couldn't help but to race as we approached our first graveyard. Formally known as the Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul, it became the resting place for many of my candids, or as I would like to say, "the stars of the night." My palms were sweating as I struggled to aim my camera in the dark while hoping the flash would get me the image I needed.

I was quite scared I would wake the dead while I stumbled and tripped trying not to step on top of their graves. Like most of you reading this, I wouldn't consider my ideal Monday as spending the night in a graveyard. Although it was cold and my leg had begun to hurt, I had come to realize there was a true beauty to a graveyard at night. Whether it was me feeling like an edgy kid or the fact that I could be sent to the abyss of hell for stepping on someones grave, I felt right at home.
There was something special about being close with people who have lived a life and ended with a fate that would be similar to my own.

Headstone searching

Pictured to the above left I have an image of the church that hosted our first graveyard trip. As my classmates and I tried to find headstones that matched what we were looking for, I couldn't help but notice the immaculate designs on some of them.

Many of the headstones had interesting phrases, such as "Erected by, His sacred, and  consort." While most of the gravestones generally tell you who the person is without those words, most of them that we saw seemed to have these on every single one. I had come to the realization that not only were the graveyards religious, but their inhabitants were as well.

DIE IN SOCKET 

While taking some images I decided to look up the people hidden beneath. A part of me wondered who they were and what mark they made on the world. The first person I searched was a woman by the name of Patricia Joan Romanosky (her headstone is the die in socket on the left). She was born September 11, 1930 (virgo queen) and departed this earth March 26, 2008.  Ms. Romanosky not only attended the last all girl class of Memminger High School, but she also was a nurse at hospitals around the area for 42 years and a member of the Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul.

Govt. ISSUE GENERAL TYPE 

The next person I happened to look up was a man by the name of Carl H Wohlfeil (on the right with the Govt. issue general type). He was born January 13, 1914 and relinquished life October 24, 1992. I would like to consider Mr. Wohlfeil to be very brave because not only was he a Lt. Colonel in the U.S. Army, but he fought in WWII, Korea,Vietnam, and received a silver star for his service.

PEDESTAL TOMB-VAULTED ROOF

The tombstone listed on the left is a pedestal tomb-vaulted roof. As for the information on those buried beneath, I could not find out too much. Their birthdays aren't listed and there isn't any information online. I do believe the wife died first and the husbands name was added after he passed away soon after. Edward Weyman Bounetheau lived from (1781-1862) and his wife Martha Glen lived from (1777-1849).

PEDESTAL TOMBURN

As for the pedestal tomburn listed to the bottom right, it belongs to a man by the name of John Hyrne Tucker. Mr. Tucker was born July 19th, 1778,  and died June 6, 1859. He was considered a venerable man by many, but to others he was known as master. When conducting my research to find out more about Mr. Tucker, I found out that he was a slaveowner and owned many plantations. 

Bedstead

The following tombstone belonged to a man by the name Thomas Wigfall Simons. He wasn't married, but he had three siblings and was the son of J Hume Simons and Eliza Wigfall Simons.

Headstones

To the right are regular headstones of a husband and wife. The left headstone is Lynwood Cresse Magee who lived from (1921-2003) and was a Reverend. On the right is his wife Marie Cannon Magee who lived from (1923-2009). They reportedly have one son who is still alive.

Plaque Marker

To the left is a plaque marker for the graves of William "Percy" Guerard and his wife Sue L Guerard.  Sue lived from (February 4, 1836 - August 3, 1910) while Percy lived from (December 14, 1832- August 3 1910).

lawn type marker 

Residing underneath this headstone is John William Allan Jr. 

Obelisk

He lived from December 19, 1943- April 13, 2018. As of right now, he is the most recent death I have seen in this graveyard.

To the right is an obelisk. It doesn't have anyones names listed on it, but engraved in stone are the words, " My second morn shall dawn brighter than the first."

ST. PATRICK CATHOLIC CHURCH

Our last church of the night was St. Patrick's Catholic Church. When we first walked to the church, it had an eerie feeling that all of my classmates felt. For instance, there were not many street lights on the path that led to the church, and I almost broke my ankle because of how dark it was. I noticed that most of the headstones here were more artistic and it seemed as though whoever designed them really took their time. I not only appreciated how welcoming the church felt, but how historical it seemed with its designs as well. 

Ledger 

The picture listed to the left is located in St. Patricks graveyard. Those resting beneath are named Andrew Talvande (Andre') and Ann Marsan Talvande. When looking up information about the Talvandes, I found that they ran an elite girls school Downtown Charleston and were from Santo Domingo, Domincan Republic .

Some sources say they are refugees from Haiti during the Haitian revolution. I consider this an interesting find because Ann Talvande ran the school with her aunt, Rose Talvande. They taught lessons in French, dance, music, and rhetoric. Mrs. Talvande was married to Andrew Talvande and continued running the school until her death.  

Andrew Talvande (1787-1834) Ann Marsan Talvande (1807- 1850)

 After conducting this research, I must say that I not only learned a lot about history, but a little bit about black history in itself as well. Many of my "stars of the night" were very important people, not only were they loved ones many of them had made their mark on history. I hope you learned something today, not only from the words I have wrote for you, but from the people residing six feet under. Well it seems like it's time to close the gate on this chapter, so until next time Tanderanians, stay safe out there and happy Black History month.