Lancaster Wiseley - Coffman cemetery.

I know where John Wiseley is buried. I don't know where John Wiseley is buried. WHAT???  Actually both statements are true.  Let me explain.



But first some background to help you know what we are discussing in this weeks blog. In the "Lancaster line" one of the earliest ancestor we have documentation on is John Wiseley. He arrived in Lancaster, OH around 1800 with others who had traveled from near Lancaster, PA. As we have mentioned before he had five children, William, Edward, James, George and Ann. Edward married Leah and had about 15 kids. ("About 15" because after 12 you lose count!)

Joseph was one of Leah's brothers
Don't read too much into the word Consort.
They were married!

Leah Wiseley

    The headstone above is in Coffman cemetery.
John Wiseley (also buried in Coffman) was the father of  Edward Wiseley. Edward married Leah Tomlinson, brother to the Joseph shown above.  Speaking of Leah I found her stone in the back of Coffman cemetery near Carroll, Ohio. Carroll is a small town about 6 or 7 miles northwest of Lancaster, Ohio.  Leah's headstone looks like it may be in the original burial spot. That is not the case with most of the stones in this cemetery. At one time they had been in a couple of piles, neatly stacked in one place. I have no idea why, other than they may have fallen over and the care takers just gathered them. Your guess is as good as mine.

 I think it was Sharon Wiseley from Oregon that convinced the caretakers to unpile and replace the stones. When I visited this cemetery the first time in about 2003 the headstones that had been stacked were arranged in a couple of rows. They were standing up but obviously not in their original place.
     Notice the odd dating on Leah's stone. No birth date is given. Many headstones from this time period do not give the date of birth. 
     The Julian calender (named for Julius Caesar) had been in place since 54 BC. It was 11 minutes off from the solar year or 3 days off every 400 years. In 1582 Pope Gregory XIII ordered the Julian Calendar be replaced with the Gregorian calendar. It was 10 days off the solar year and affected when Easter was celebrated.
     Protestant countries were less than enthusiastic to adopt the Pope's new Catholic calendar. It took England 170 years to get on board. England did not switch until Wednesday, September 2, 1752. By that time there was a difference of 11 days on the calendar between London and Paris. On Wednesday night all England (and the colonies) went to bed on Wednesday September 2, and woke the next morning on Thursday September 14!
     So anyone born before September 1752 and dated after then would have a birth date that was 11 days off, unless they had used the old system which would not have matched the dates under the new calendar. It was just too confusing so for about the next hundred years tombstones stated when a person died and then gave you years, months and days they had lived, instead of the confusion of birth dates. (Confused?  So were they!) 

 OK Back to Coffman Cemetery. The picture to the left shows one of several Coffman headstones. This cemetery was not like the ones today where people are buried next to total strangers. All the people of the same generation knew one another and most of these were friends and many were related by marriage. Unfortunately many of the stones are too far gone to read what information they contain. But we can still learn from the style and shape of the stones. Look at the one below for example. See the fine detail that is still visible. This is William Wiseley's headstone.  Edward's brother.

Deteriorating Headstone of William Wiseley

Probably Edward's stone. 
Note the similar style.

If you look closely you will see this was the daughter of Edward and Leah.  "Daut. of E. & L,"  Note the spelling of Wisely here. Go back to Leah's headstone and see that Edward Wiseley is spelled differently.  If you recall in another blog I showed Leah had her name spelled three different ways on documents. Look at the date on this headstone and tell me when she was born. I can't figure it out in my head either.    

This stone has very little that can be read. But it still contains some clues. Look at some of the previous known heastones and you will see this is the same pattern and style of marker. Also look in the background. The house is almost the same in both pictures where it shows. That indicates these stones were in the same area. You can just make out Wiseley, but the first name is gone.  Perhaps this is the John that came here from Pennsylvania?  Or George or James.  When I research them I may find they were buried somewhere else, in which case that would make this most likely John's headstone, and one of the earliest I have found.

My wife with her hand on Leah's stone.
The brown headstones to her left are other Wiseley markers.
They seem to be in their original places.

Taken from the road at the front of Coffman cemetery
Note the row of stones that have just been stood up.
My wife is in the background near Leah's stone.

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Looking East across the pleasant valley
Carroll, OH is in the distance.

If you are in the Ohio area and related to the Lancaster Wiseley's you should take the few minutes to drive to this lovely, if somewhat neglected cemetary. 

DIRECTIONS: Take 33 out of Columbus to Carroll, OH, a few miles north of Lancaster. Turn west onto Winchester road. In about 1/2 mile look for Kaufman Rd on the left. In about 1/2 mile you will T with Brandt Rd. Turn right (up the hill) and drive to Hope Drive. Or if you have a GPS set it for 3944 Hope Dr NW, Carroll, OH 43112

Intersection of Hope and Brandt rd.

Looking east. You can just see Carroll.

I have several more photos of headstones from this cemetery. If anyone is interested please contact me and i will Email them to you. Or if any picture here is of interest i will be glad to share them with you. 
    It was sad to see so many stones of young children here. Life was difficult for these people. But the Scotch-Irish were strong people with pioneering hearts. The values they brought to this country are slowly disappearing. Please take time to read about the Scotch-Irish on line or get a book from your library. Your children need to know their ancestors were hard working, freedom loving, independant and self reliant people. 
      Now with no further comment I leave you with some more photos of Coffman.  Check back next week for my next blog. Your feedback is greatly appreciated.  Email me at davidwiseley@gmail.com

Childs marker??  Is this a Wiseley?
No other names starting with W in this cemetery??

Sleep my babies - take your rest.