Graveyard Poetry

ECHOES OF MORTALITY
Graveyard poetry often employs vivid imagery and symbolism, using the physical elements of graveyards—tombstones, epitaphs, and overgrown vegetation—to evoke a sense of desolation and introspection. The genre also served as a critique of societal norms, questioning the materialism and superficiality of the living world. Through meditative and often haunting verse, 19th-century poets sought to provide solace and provoke thought, encouraging a deeper understanding of human existence and the mysteries of the afterlife.

“Insatiate Archer, would not one suffice? Thy shaft flew twice & hence my peace was slain. Snached in their dawn, how swift our blessings fly, Here the hope of doling Parents lie. But cease to weep, lock up your mournful pain. Behold, your darlings are bright seraphs here. See how they beckon from your distant sphere, Here fix your hopes, they are your treasure here.”
from "The Complaint: or, Night Thoughts on Life, Death, and Immortality" by Edward Young

~ gravestones of Walter James Nelson Douglass [1809-1811] and William Jackson Douglass [1814-1821]

"Love would not keep her here.” from "Not To Keep" by Robert Frost ~ gravestone of Carrie Burnett Carbine [1868-1868]

“Early, bright, transient, chaste as morning dew, She sparkled, was exhat’d, and went to heaven.”
from "Night Thoughts" by Edward Young
~ gravestone of Gena Evans Mauldin [1850-1873]

“As one candle lights another so nobleness enkindleth nobleness.” from “Yussouf” by James Russell Lowell

~ gravestone of Emily Reid Hill [1820-1899]

Ode to the Taylor Family

Mrs. Laura Tallulah Harris Taylor [1829-1912] appears to have been well educated and an admirer of the prominent poets of the 19th century - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Respected for their lyrical and sentimental poetry, they shared a mutual respect and admiration for each other's work, which led to a personal acquaintance and correspondence. Both poets explored themes of nature, love, and loss, and their works were immensely popular during their lifetimes. Additionally, they both contributed significantly to the literary traditions of their respective countries—Longfellow in America and Tennyson in England. Mrs. Taylor used their words to mark the graves of her most beloved husband as well as three of their children.

“Let no one fondly dream again, That Hope with all her shadowy train, Will not decay. Fleeting as were the dreams of old, Remembered like a tale that's told.” from “Coplas De Manrique" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

~ gravestone of Robert Galphin Taylor, Sr. [1829-1857]

“Oh, not in anger, not in wrath, The reaper came that day. ‘Twas an Angel visited the earth, And bore the bud away.” from "The Reaper and the Flowers" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
~ gravestone of Delony Bolling Taylor [1852-1853]

“Thou wert so like a form of light, That Heaven benignly called thee hence. E’re yet the world could breathe one blight, O’er thy sweet innocence.” from "The Two Voices" by Alfred Lord Tennyson
~ gravestone of Robert James Taylor [1853-1855]

“The soft breath of summer just passed o’er her brow as the gentle dew kisses the flowers, When she faded away like a beautiful dream, To the land of Elysian bowers.” from "Ida" a poem by Truesdell
~ gravestone of Mary Hunt Taylor [1857-1857]