Placing Memorial at Pauper Cemetery

CARROLL COUNTY FARM CEMETERY
                                         1870 —
Beyond the mournful numbers, lie no more grief or fear.
No sad or sweet thoughts linger, for those who slumber here.  ~ Mj Pettengill

My name is Mj Pettengill. I'm an author and historian. I reside on a farm in the woods of the pristine White Mountains of New Hampshire.

I spent several years researching the nineteenth century "Carroll County Farm" in Ossipee, New Hampshire. I was inspired about a decade ago by my discovery of a Pauper Cemetery in Ossipee,  which consists of 298 numbered gravestones. This research ended up being my culminating study at Vermont College and a successful historical novel.

At first I was told that the records of those buried at the Pauper Cemetery burned in a fire.  After months of painstaking research, I discovered the names of 268 individuals buried at the site. The burials began in 1870 and although rare, the cemetery is still used today, and those buried there remain anonymous.

The fruits of this passion and research resulted in the penning of a historical novel, “Etched in Granite.” Originally, my book was going to be non-fiction. However, to reach a broader audience, I decided to craft a cultural narrative — historical fiction. My novel was released in July, 2015 and has been doing quite well.
    
From the very beginning of this unexpected, rich journey, and in answering the call from beyond the anonymous graves, I planned to have a memorial placed at the site to honor their lives and reclaim their souls.

The funds that I am raising is to be used for the cost of the memorial itself. The retreiving of the granite and placement will be a labor of honor and love.

In the fall, I attended a meeting with the County Commissioners and discussed this plan. They have given their support and approval. I have permission from the County Farm Superintendent to use a piece of granite from the original foundation of the “County Poor Farm” for this important memorial. We agreed that I will give him notice at the time that we begin the actual, physical part of the plan. At that time, it will be retrieved, a bronze plaque affixed to it, and then it is possible that it will be transported to the cemetery by horse and wagon. We will make it a public event. One of the commissioners made this suggestion, and I believe that he has the horse and wagon himself.
    
Since the publishing of “Etched in Granite,” it has been rewarding to me, that genealogists and those seeking previously missing links in their ancestry, have been able to locate lost relatives. There is a list of the anonymously buried paupers at the end of the book.
    
For more information about the memorial, paupers, the county farm, and “Etched in Granite,” please check my website: www.mjpettengill.com  and my Facebook  page. You can follow me on twitter. 
    
It is my intention to have the memorial in place during the summer months of 2016.

Thank you for your interest and support, and for being part of honoring those who were forgotten and swept into anonymity  because they were poor, elderly, orphaned, disabled, and the downtroddened ones from our secret, somber past.