We often give our selves credit and say how we would have lived in the past. As a person of faith, I have asked my self where would I have been on Good Friday. Would I have been at the cross or with the crowd. Point is we do not know how we would behave living in a different time. This post is not to bring out the emotional side but to share a story that if not told will be lost.
I found the name Betty Martin while reading the Moravian Records. She was older as Alexander Martin was as well. Danbury is about 30 miles from Salem. In 1806 it would have been possibly a two day journey. Betty was sick with dropsy which is an old term for heart disease. Salem was the place with the doctor and she was given medical care Betty was in the minsters home during her time of illness. The Moravian records mention the minister's wife helping with the care of Betty. Betty would die of her illness in June of 1806. She is buried in the strangers section. Stranger was the word for people that were not Moravian. Many of African heritage are buried here and now have a head stone with the word, Beloved.
Others who died at Salem were also buried here including the three soldiers. These do not have a marker. Betty is #114 and perhaps I have found the place that her body rest. ** Notice the sunbeam shining down on Beloved this is the 114th stone.
Before walking to this area, I found the minister's wife grave. Her name was Anna Dorothea Koenigsberg Reichel. She would follow Betty in death by just two months.
Comments