The Old Charlestonian: Susan Dunlap Adger

For my final project in my FYE we had to research an old Charlestonian that was memorialized in the churchyard of the church we researched for our last group project.

The charlestonian I chose was Susan Dunlap Adger. according to Find a Grave, she was born on December 25, 1808 and died on March 8, 1884. She is the daughter of James and Sarah Adger. She had three sisters and four brothers. She was the second born child in the family. According to SNAC, the Adger family was very wealthy. Susan's father, James was a merchant. 


The grandchild of Susan wrote about her stating,"My grandmother was Susan Dunlap Adger Smythe Bennett of Charleston, South Carolina. her husband was John Bennett of Chillicothe, Ohio, who moved south for his health, and having married a Charleston girl he made Charleston his home. He was a writer. In fact, he was inducted into the South Carolina Academy of Authors on March 20th.
                                                               

Her husband, John was pretty successful. According to Legendary Locals of Charleston,  he came to Charleston having already published a book in 1897. He successfully wrote a children's book called Master Skylark. Because of growing up in Ohio, he was obsessed with the African American culture, Gullah. He collected these stories for 40 years and published them all together in a book in 1946.

It crosses my mind how they made this relationship work with the huge age difference, but I guess back then it didn't matter. i couldn't fins a lot of information about Susan, but i found as much as I could. She is buried in Second Presbyterian Church in Charleston, SC.

Are You In The Mood For John Mood?

For my FYE, we had to research John Mood and his silversmithing business.

John Mood was born on January 11, 1792 and died on March 1, 1864. According to American Silversmiths He was married to Catherine McFarlane, and they got married on May 23, 1815 in Charleston, SC. He is most known for being a popular silversmith and jeweler in Charleston, SC.

According to Find a Grave, Mood was Born in Charleston, where he spent all his life except eight years of active and Labor in connection with the South Carolina Conference. Later in life, he joined the Methodist church in boyhood and was the first in the City of Charleston to establish a Sabbath school for African Americans.

He has one brother, Peter (1796-1879). According to The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts, they were the sons of Charleston silversmith Peter Mood Sr. (1766-1821). The Moods came from a long line of German silversmiths, including the brothers’ grandfather John Peter Muth, who settled in Philadelphia in 1750 and died during the Revolutionary War. Their father moved to Charleston area around 1785 and 
began working as a silversmith. When John came of age and joined his father’s shop in 1814, the name of the firm changed to Mood & Son.

Pictured are some of the silver that he made. I am not sure, but almost certain that the writing on the object is his signature stamp. 

A signature stamp is when Silversmiths such as the Moods put signature stamps on their creations. That's how you can tell who made them.

Also according to Find a Grave, John is buried in the Bethel Untied Methodist Church Cemetery. Since I am from the Charleston area, it would be easy to go see the burial but unfortunately I can't leave the house so this is a picture our professor showed us.

My Ancestor Kid Nichols

For my FYE we had to research one of our ancestors. I did some digging and found Kid Nichols my great great grandfather. Since he was a professional baseball player, it was difficult to find information regarding his home life, but he was very successful on the field. 

My great great grandfather, Charles Augustus "Kid" Nichols was born on September 14, 1869 in Madison, Wisconsin.  

His father, my great great great grandfather, was a butcher. Around 1881, Charles and most of his siblings moved with their parents to Kansas City, Missouri. There he played baseball and became known around the town for his talents.

"June 14, 1887 was the date of his first pro game. Nichols ended up as the winning pitcher in a 7-6 outcome at Lincoln, Nebraska.  It has been widely reported that Charles Nichols received the nickname “Kid” upon joining the club, when the older players either mistook him for a batboy or at least thought he looked more like one than he did a professional player.  His weight at the time was estimated to be no more than 135 pounds". 

He was known around the nation, Baseball Hall says, "Nichols was an immediate success, and after being signed by Boston in 1890 he won 20 or more games every year for his first 10 seasons, relying almost completely on his fastball throughout his career".

He found the most success in 1898 when he posted a 31-12 record. He completed 40 of his 42 starts and had five shutouts, walking only 85 batters in 388 innings. He posted a 2.13 ERA, the second-best of his career. He completed a total of 532 games out of the 562 he started during his time in baseball. He threw more than 300 innings in every season but three, and pitched more than 400 five times.

When he decided to stop playing baseball, he remained a part of the sport, managing both the Oshkosh Indians of the Wisconsin-Illinois League in 1908 and the Bonham Sliders of the Texas-Oklahoma League in 1914.

It's so interesting to know about my past relatives and how things that interested them interests my family too. My dad (Kid's great grandson) has played baseball his whole life. In 1994-1998 he played for the Philadelphia Phillies. My uncle (my dad's brother) also played professional baseball. My brothers have also been playing their whole life. 

I guess baseball just runs in the family.

Mystery of Elizabeth Jackson

If you have ever been in Cougar Mall, you may have noticed the headstone in front of the Robert Scott Small building. 

Have you ever wondered why Elizabeth Jackson's headstone is there? Is there a specific reason? I did. 

I first noticed the headstone on my orientation for the College of Charleston. I walk past it almost everyday and always wonder why that headstone was there. 

Tonight in my FYE, we were assigned to see if we can figure out why her headstone is memorialized there.

The epitaph reads, "Near this spot is buried Elizabeth Jackson, Mother of President Andrew Jackson. She gave her life cheerfully for the independence of her country. On an unrecorded date of November 1781. And to her son Andy this advice: 'Andy never tell a lie. Nor take what is not your own. Nor sue for slander. Settle those cases yourself."

Her epitaph seems very directed to her son, Andy. 

In the late 1700's Elizabeth came to Charleston to help her nephews and other soldiers who were ill from Cholera. 

In 1781, she herself got the disease and took her own life in November of 1781. 

According my professor, Patrick Harwood , Ted Stern heard about her being buried in Charleston and asked that it be brought to campus. 

My professor also noted that the janitor of the school during the civil war, John Cahill, is credited with saving the college of possibly ransacking by the yankees. 

When everyone else evacuated, Cahill stayed here and appealed to the commander in chief for protection and it was granted to him. 

According to my professor, the Elizabeth Jackson headstone is the first monument that was donated by members of the United States military stationed at Fort Moultrie on Sullivan's Island.

10 Symbols Found

For my FYE, I visited Bethel United Methodist Church to find 10 symbols. 

The first symbol I found was a set of flowers with a drape over it. Flowers conveyed secret codes in Victorian times. Each plant or flower represents something of the deceased. Drapery seen on headstones and urns signifies death and mourning. It can represent separation as the Temple in Jerusalem had a curtain separating the sacred area. Rosa Mary is buried here. She was the beloved wife of C.H. Muckenfuss. She was born on October 9, 1835 and died on November 2, 1881.

The second symbol I found was a flower with leaves around it. Fern leaves on headstones – In Victorian symbology represented solitude due to them living in the middle of forests. Here lies Olin B Davis. He was born on October 30, 1841 and died on December 9, 1866. 

The third symbol I found was a wreath with a dove above it. The wreath indicates memory and victory over death. The Dove has several meanings. Flying down represents the Holy Spirit. Flying up represents the Soul’s journey to Heaven. In profile or with an olive branch represents peace. Here lies Anna, the beloved wife of Rev. A.M. Chrietzberg. She lived from 1821-1872.

The fourth symbol I found was a cross inside of a crown. The Crown on a headstone represents the Crown of Life. The Cross represents christian faith, but different crosses can also have different meanings. See Graveyard Crosses. Here lies Priscilla Sarah Eason. She is mother of: Sarah Ann, William, Mary Ann "Annie", Margaret Shepherd, Robert Henry Jr., John Russell "Russell", Louis Phillip, Edward Augustus "Eddy", Robert Henry III, James.

The next symbol I found was a dove with flowers. Dove has several meanings. Flying down represents the Holy Spirit. Flying up represents the Soul’s journey to Heaven. In profile or with an olive branch represents peace. here lies Elizabeth M Aincer. Born on October 14 1807 and died on October 6 1872.

The sixth symbol I found was a dead set of flowers. A break in the stem emphasizes the death. Here lies Lizzie. Daughter of R.D. and J.J. Moore. Died on March 10, 1671. She aged 6 months and 14 days.

 The next symbol is an angel crying while carrying a wreath. An Angel weeping signifies grief over an untimely death. Here lies Elizabeth M, consort of Rev. George W. Moore. Her epitaph says she sweetly fell asleep with Jesus on October 26, 1861. She aged 65 years. It also states that she was affectionate, kind, and indulgent.

The eight symbol I found is a crown with the cross standing directly up straight inside of the crown. A crown on a headstone can represent triumph or victory over death, but in order to decipher the true meaning, you need to look at the other symbols shown on the headstone. Here lies Charles H Muckenfuss. He was born on October 25, 1835 and dies on June 3, 1914.

The next symbol I found was a cross inside of a circle. The graveyard cross symbol is of course representative of the crucifixion, but within that there are sometimes numerical symbolism in their construction. Here lies Francis W Capers. She lived from August 8, 1819 to January 12, 1892.

The last symbol I found is a dead rose. The Rose can mean many things dependent on its color, so on headstones it may mean beauty, purity, young love or death in youth. Roses and lilies intertwined represent the frailty of mortality. Here lies William Capers. Son of B.S.D. and I.M. Muckenfuss. He was born on September 15, 1813 and died on July 28, 1862. His epitaph says he was a CO.A. of Washington Light Infantry.

My 5 Favorite Churches in Charleston, SC

Today, we went around Downtown Charleston and visited 10 churches. All of the churches we visited were very beautiful, but I would have to say that my favorites were Second Presbyterian Church, St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, First Scots Presbyterian Church, Circular Congregational Church, and St. Phillips Episcopal Church. The churches below are listed least favorite to most favorite by personal prefernce.


5. St. Phillips Episcopal Church
This church is located at 142 Church Street. It was founded in 1681 and is the oldest European American religious congregation in South Carolina. The first St. Philip's Church was a wooden building which was built between 1680 and 1681 that was originally on the corner of Broad Street and Meeting Street. 

Unfortunately, it was damaged during a hurricane in 1710 and a new St. Phillip's Church was built a few blocks away on Church Street. After being delayed it was finished in 1723, but again, it burned to the ground in 1835. Work on the present church was begun that same year and completed the next. The steeple was added between 1848 and 1850.

Although this church was damaged and rebuilt recently, I truly think it has one of the most beautiful sites of the churches in Charleston. 

4. Circular Congregational Church
This church is located at 150 Meeting Street. One really intresting fact about this church is that it was founded in 1681 and hold the city's oldest graveyard dating back to 1695. This church was also the first meeting house in Charleston which gave Meeting Street (where the church is located) it's name. The circular hall was built in 1804, but burned in 1861. Bricks from the "Old Circular" were used in building the present sanctuary which was completed in 1892.

Another interesting fact about this church is that they don't believe in making decisions based off of one  priest themselves, but as a congressional whole. They meet and discuss their beliefs but decide as one how to respond to certain situations.

One thing that is also very intresting to me is the way the church was built and the structure of it. As you can see in the picture, it has a unique structure. The church also has a very large church yard, which is understandable since it is the oldest dating churchyard in Charleston.

3. First Scots Presbyterian Church

This church is located at 53 Meeting Street. This church is the fifth oldest congregation in Charleston. It was founded in 1731 when 12 Scottish families left the Independent Meeting House, which is now known as the Circular Congregational Church, to worship themselves according to the Church of Scotland. The current church was built in 1814. 


One thing that stood out to me was the beautiful fence in front of the church and the lights shining on it as pictured. Another thing that is very aesthetically pleasing to me is there are also palm trees surfaced around the church which adds a more Charleston look to the church.



2. Second Presbyterian Church

This church is located at 342 Meeting Street. In 1731, many families left the White Meeting House to create the first Presbyterian Church that strictly followed the Church of Scotland. When this church started growing and gaining more members, a second church was built in 1809. They believe the Holy Scriptures to be the voices of many who have come before us, inspired by God to pass along their poems, stories, accounts, and letters of response and relationship with each other and the living God. 

This was one of my favorites not only because of the structure in the way it was built but also because it had more deceased from this century rather than earlier on. One thing that intrigued me was how there was large columns in front of the church with a more square top, which is unusual in churches. It is also located in the back of a park, with the churchyard wrapping around the sides of the church. It is currently under construction so we couldn't go inside, but even with that going on it still looks beautiful from the outside.

1. St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church
This church is located on 89 Hassle Street and was founded in 1789. One interesting thing about this church is that it is the mother church of Catholicism for the Carolinas and Georgia. The structure of this church is also very intriguing to me, it is off of King Street, so it is in a very popular area in Downtown Charleston, but also you can tell that there is a lot of history associated with this church and it's graveyard. 
















As you notice from the pictures, the graveyard wraps around the church in the back. It has a very pretty walkway with stones. The setup of this churchyard is very aesthetically pleasing to me.

One thing that also caught my attention was this statue to the right. It is sitting on a pedestal on the left side of the churchyard. I'm sure it has significant meaning to the church, and it gave me a sense of comfort when walking through the churchyard.