Category Archives: Gravecast Recaps

Post Grave Hunt excursion reports.

Graveside Recap For May 26th 2010

26 Wednesday May 2010

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Due to the recent passing of my stepfather. I didn’t get a chance to post the events of May 16th when I trekked downtown to Elmwood. I also went there on the 23rd, and again today. So this will be three “Graveside Recaps” crammed into one. I have a lot of things to discuss about those hunts.  So please bear with me.

Final resting place of Frederick Williams in Sec: O, Lot: 80 of Elmwood Cemetery

Starting with May 16th. Recently to spice things up a bit I’ve devoted some time during the recent treks at Elmwood to find the gravesites of African-American notables. I kicked off the day with finding the grave site of Fred Hart Williams who’s remains are located in Sec: O Lot: 80. Fred was a patron of the arts, as well as a writer, historian, and civil servant. His large family came to Detroit around 1849 via the Underground Railroad.

Strolling along the tranquil hills,  and colorful trees, in Sec: 4 Lot: 64 I came across the final resting place of Dr. William Thomas Love. His claim to Detroit notoriety has to do with the fact that he was the first African-American appointed Wayne County Medical Examiner.

Closing out the day on May 16th another final resting place I found in Sec: I Lot: 13 was of Hervey Parke. His claim to fame involves being the co-founder of Parke-Davis & Company which at the time of its founding was the premier pharmaceutical company.

All in all due to the day being cut short after finding out my stepfather Joe passed away I found six gravesites within a two-hour time frame.

Continuing on to May 23rd.  To kick-off the days trek I found the grave site of Kermit G. Bailer. Located in Sec: 5, Lot: 103 his claim to  notoriety involved being a Tuskegee Airman during WWII, along with being an Attorney for the Ford Motor Company, and the NAACP, he was also the head of the Detroit Law Department. Another thing worth mentioning is that he was appointed as head of the Civil Rights Commission by President Kennedy.

Strolling along  in Sec: J, Lot: 17 I came across the grave site of Alexander Lewis.  He was an insurance executive, and grain merchant by trade. He also served as Mayor of Detroit (1876-77).

Lewis family monument in Sec: J, Lot: 17 of Elmwood cemetery

Douglas Houghton's final resting place in Elmwood Sec: L, Lot: 5

Closing out my trek on May 23rd I found resting calmly in Sec: L, Lot: 5, the final resting place of Dr. Douglas Houghton. His claim to fame involves being the first state geologist,  as well as an experienced explorer, physician, and Mayor of Detroit in 1842. He lost his life in the wilderness of northern Michigan drowning at Eagle Harbor after a canoe he was in with four others capsized during a storm. Houghton Lake, County, Township, and City in Michigan are named after him.

Patrick Colbert's final resting place in Sec: N, Lot: 144 of Mt. Elliott

Bringing you up to speed. Today I went to Elmwood & Mt. Elliott which are located not even a mile from one another.  At Mt. Elliott cemetery I found the final resting place of Patrick Colbert who is buried in Sec: N, Lot: 144,  Patrick served as a Coxswain aboard the Union ship USS Commodore Hull, he received the Congressional Medal of Honor for heroism during the Civil War battle for Plymouth, North Carolina on October 31st 1864. After being wounded painfully and the man beside him killed, he remained at his post, braving enemy fire, as if he were merely at target practice.

Graveside Recap for May 7th 2010

07 Friday May 2010

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Yesterday, the weather was beautiful, not too humid, light breeze, somewhat cloudy, it was perfect. The previous day, I decided that I’d go downtown to one of my favorite cemeteries the following day which was yesterday. So without further adieu here is the recap from yesterdays grave hunting trip to Historic Elmwood Cemetery.

As per the routine when I get to the various cemeteries around town. I stopped near the front of the cemetery. After I passed through the gate, to look through the  literature I have so I can then plan out the days events. I had a general idea on who I planned to track down. Yesterday’s goals for the most part were to track down African-American notables who had to do with the cities shaping.

James Robinson Gravesite in Elmwood Sec: F, Lot: 59

One African-American personage I found was James Robinson who was born in 1753 and died in 1868 he’s buried in Sec: F, Lot: 59. He lived to be 115 years old and is the oldest burial in the cemetery. The thing I found fascinating about James Robinson was that not only was he born a Maryland slave but he fought for the Americans in the American Revolution and in the War of 1812. Due to the esteemed devotion he had to his country, and the American cause, during the War. This led General Lafayette of the Americans to award Pvt. Robinson the Gold Medal of Valor. I was very impressed to read this due to the interest I have in studying The American Revolution, Pvt. Robinson is one of my personal favorite finds.

Moving along another interesting gravesite I found was of Charles Brady King. Born in 1868 and died in 1957 he’s in Sec: P, Lot: 128. The interesting thing about Charles Brady King is that he was the first person in

Gravesite of Charles Brady King Sec: P, Lot: 128

Detroit to build the horseless carriage. The only bad thing about this was that he never capitalized on his “invention”. So he could be considered the first person to invent the automobile.

As the day was coming to a close and I was starting to get wore out from being in the cemetery four hours. Another gravesite I found was of

Gravesite of William Wreford Sec: 1, Lot: 4

William Wreford. It’s unknown to me when he was born and died he’s in Sec: 1, Lot: 4. The interesting thing about Mr. Wreford is that he rented his house and barn on Bagley Ave, to Henry Ford for a meager sixteen dollars a month. Ford built his first automobile there in 1896.

All and all I had a terrific day at Elmwood. I found a total of about fifteen gravesites. I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day.

Graveside Recap for May 5th 2010

05 Wednesday May 2010

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Yesterday a cigar buddy of mine met up with me when I cruised on over to Woodmere cemetery.  Since he lives on that side of town I figured he might be interested in joining me for yesterday’s hunt.

Woodmere cemetery located at 9400 West Fort Street, in Detroit is a stones throw away from I-75. Its one of the older non-denominational cemeteries in the city. There are many notables buried there who had to do with Detroit history one way or another.

The total count of grave sites I found or re-found in some cases were seven. One gravesite I enjoyed photographing for the first time was David Buick. He was the guy who founded Buick Motorcar Company. He’s buried in the Allendale section, lot 631. I also found the gravesite of Henry Leland. He was the founder of both Cadillac, and Lincoln automobile companies.

Moving along as the day was passing by and the clouds moving in. Ron and I

Gravesite of Eddie Slovik in Woodmere cemetery

found the grave site of Eddie Slovik he was the only person who was executed for desertion during WWII. The poor guy was only 25 years old. He’s buried next to his loving wife in the Ferndale section, lot 22.

Gravesite of Daniel Scotten in Woodmere

One of the gravesites I found before Ron showed up was the gravesite of Daniel Scotten who was laid to rest  in the North Lake section of the cemetery. He was involved in the tobacco business back when Detroit was a major hub for the tobacco industry in the late 1800s. All in all it was a successful day. I’m looking forward to Ron joining me again as I track down the grave sites of Detroit’s notables from the past.

Todays Graveside Recap

30 Tuesday Mar 2010

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After getting some research done in preparation for the third week in June that I’ll be in Chicago. I decided since it was such a beautiful day today with the temperature in the mid 50s.  That I’d trek over to Detroit Memorial Park East. Located on 13 mile road a few blocks east of Ryan Rd. This African-American burial ground has many notable personages interred there from the Motown era.

When I arrived at Detroit Memorial Park. I pulled out the cemetery map which I previously listed the notables I planned on looking for. Much like the situation I had last week at White Chapel in Troy. The graves laid out in a circle formation. One thing I did notice which was of great help for me. Was that the older concrete and newer stainless steel number markers were easily viewable in the ground.

Starting the tour across from the office in the Garden of Love section Grave: 2399 I proceeded to look for the grave site of Philippe Wynne who was one of the members of the Motown group The Spinners. He also played with George Clinton’s Parliament Funkadelic around 1979.  Throughout his career he had multiple hits as both a solo artist and with the groups he played with. Unfortunately I discovered that his grave site was unmarked.

After attempting to find the Wynne grave site and realizing it was unmarked I headed a few steps away to Section: 2 Grave: 15 26 where I found the grave site of inventor Elijah McCoy. He invented a drip cup for oil bearings to be used on locomotives. He had 57 patents to his name related to inventions he created and improvements to inventions others made. Dieing in 1929 from complications related to senile dementia caused by hypertension he lived out his years at the infamous Eloise Infirmary.

Cruising along over to Section: 17 Grave: 2856 I stumbled upon the grave site of William “Little Willie” John. He was an R&B artist who sang with Count Bassie at the age of 14. In 1955 he had his first hit single “All Around The World” which was a top 10 hit on the R&B charts reaching #5. In 1963 Little Willie was dropped from his record company due to his bouts with alcoholism.

In 1966 he was tried and convicted of manslaughter and sent to Washington State Penitentiary for fatally stabbing a patron at a nightclub he was performing at. While in prison its rumored that he was strangled to death. It was also rumored that he had a heart attack. The heart attack is stated on his death certificate.

Next on the list in Section: 37 Lot: 2074 I visited the grave site of Blues musician Robert Warren. During his time he was one of Detroit’s top Bluesmen. Recording his first album in 1949 followed by the hit single “I Got Lucky” in 1950. Backed by Sonny Boy Williamson he recorded “Sanafee” and “Chuc-a-Luck”

Heading towards the front of the cemetery. Located in Section: 36 Grave: 539 we visited the grave of Darrell Eubanks (Banks) Born in Ohio, Darrell learned to sing in gospel churches before choosing a full time career in music. Signing with Solid Hit Bound Records he released his first hit single “Open The Door To Your Heart” in 1966. Written by Dennis Elbert but was credited to Banks as writer. A legal battle ensued with the case being settled out of court and Elberts winning the suit. In 1970 Darrell was murdered by a Detroit cop after the cop intervened in an argument Darrell was having with his girlfriend.

Closing out the day we visited Terome “T-Bone” Hannon who is located in Section: 40 Grave: 1813. T-Bone as Terome was known as was a music producer and noted bass guitarist. He toured with the musical groups SheDaisy, Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, DC Talk, Shane Minor, and Shania Twain. At the time of his death he was touring with the female musical talent Jewel.

Yesterdays Graveside Recap

25 Thursday Mar 2010

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Yesterday was the first day in 2010 that I got out to the cemeteries to do some grave hunting. The weather was in the mid 50s,  it was sunny, and no clouds seen for miles on end.

The first goal for yesterday was to cruise over to Detroit Memorial Park East on 13 Mile Road about two blocks east of Ryan Rd. I didn’t do any hunting there being that I planned on going to White Chapel later in the day. What I did do at Detroit Memorial Park was to get the locations of six African-American notables which primarily consisted of R&B singers/musicians from the Motown era, and an inventor.

One thing I’d like to mention about Detroit Memorial Park East was that I really enjoyed my visit to the office. I had a very enjoyable experience dealing with the office staff. This one woman (I never got her name) was a delight to deal with as  she was very friendly, and a joy to talk with.

She seemed interested in what I was researching. Being that a lot of the names I was inquiring about to get plot locations. Were fairly well-known. So I briefly talk about that it was a pass time of mine to track down the grave sites of notables because it has to do with history.  So I’ll be going back later this week or next week to do some hunting.

Next on yesterdays docket was to trek over to White Chapel cemetery on Long Lake Rd/18 Mile Rd.  The graves I found in the cemetery were spread out in a circular formation through the cemetery. So I was able to find one after the other bada bing bada boom.

The first grave I found. Located in Sec: G-2 Lot/grave: 4775 was John DeLorean. He was the creator of the DeLoren DMC-12 automobile. This vehicle made famous for being the vehicle used in the “Back To The Future” film series starring Michael J. Fox.

After getting some video footage and taking some photos which included several artistic shots of the DeLorean marker. I cruised over to The Garden of Prayer area of the cemetery. Located in Sec: C Grave: 275  are the cremains of Mauri Rose. He was a three-time winner of the Indianapolis 500 in 1941, 1947, & 1948.

Heading back towards the cemetery entrance. In Sec: B lot/grave: 1207 Space: 2 several yards from the WWI Polar bear monument I found Brace Beemer. Brace was the third radio actor to portray The Lone Ranger character on “The Long Ranger” radio show.

Closing out the day in Sec: E Lot/grave: 607  I found the grave site of local radio personality Joseph Priestly “J.P.” McCarthy. Winner of many awards, and named radio personality of the year over four times, not to mention one of the most recognizable voices on the radio in the Great Lakes died tragically from a rare blood disease.