S.J.'s past at peace in Lockeford
Harmony Grove Cemetery holds pioneers of area
By Neil Gonzales
Record Staff Writer
Published Saturday, March 6, 2004
LOCKEFORD
-- Few outsiders may discover the 150-year-old,
well-maintained Harmony Grove Cemetery unless they
happen to make an accidental turn off the main roads.
The
cemetery, along with the historic, red-brick Harmony
Grove Church, is tucked away in a corner of San Joaquin
County on Locke Road, a short, tangential cut between
Highways 12 and 88.
The
cemetery's inconspicuousness belies its rich history,
which goes far beyond this small, rural, pioneer part of
the Valley.
Besides its
historical treasures, the cemetery evokes a tranquil,
nostalgic beauty with its upright stone monuments under
oak and Italian cypress trees.
"I like it,
personally, because ... it has the feel of the area of
what it was originally," cemetery association board
director Gary Gordon said.
Having the
old church there -- deemed a state point of historic
interest -- just lends to that whole feeling, he added.
It draws
residents and others besides those who come to visit
their buried loved ones.
"Each day,
a number of people come by to look (at the cemetery) or
stop by at the church," Gordon said.
Gordon said
he sees construction workers and tree-trimming crews
take their lunch breaks in the area, while others sit
next to cemetery plots and read books.
Visitors
who look closely at the tombstones will notice many
names are the same as those of the roads in and around
Lockeford, including Locke, Tretheway, Brandt, Linn and
Hammond.
"It's
basically the cemetery for Lockeford and the cemetery
that holds the pioneers," Gordon said.
The
cemetery, one of the first in the county, was founded in
1859 with the church.
They were
part of a settlement called Staples Ferry, which also
had a post office, schoolhouse and major thoroughfare --
known today as Tretheway Road -- that took travelers
between Sacramento and San Jose.
Even before
the cemetery and church, the grounds had religious
roots.
"During the
Gold Rush days, groups would have religious gatherings
here," said Peggy Engh, a local historian who is also on
the cemetery board. "There would be up to 500 people.
"Preachers
would come, and people would sit under the trees on
wooden planks to listen."
The first
person to be buried in the cemetery was Annie L. Ennis,
in February 1860. She was the 1-year-old daughter of
William P. Ennis, who served on the San Joaquin County
Board of Supervisors in the late 1800s.
Among the
cemetery's most-notable residents is Laura DeForce
Gordon (1838-1907).
Gordon, no
relation to the cemetery director, was a pioneering
suffragist who became the first woman in California to
own and edit a daily newspaper, the Stockton Leader, in
the 1870s.
She and
Clara Shortridge Foltz were the first women to practice
law in the state, around 1880.
The
cemetery is also home to the grave of George Harris
(1871-1934), the developer of a gasoline-powered
harvester that has dominated the agriculture industry.
About 150
war veterans are buried in the cemetery. One soldier,
Charles H. Dial, fought in the Mexican-American War. He
became constable of Elliott township and ran the
Lockeford Hotel.
The
cemetery also has 24 Civil War veterans, including two
Confederate soldiers.
It's
uncommon to have Southern soldiers buried outside the
South, Engh said, "so it was exciting to find the
Confederate vets."
The 7-acre
cemetery has 3,500 graves and still takes burials.
In the late
1940s, the cemetery fell into disrepair, with no
caretaker available. But in the 1950s, descendents of
those buried in the cemetery took it upon themselves to
look after the place.
That effort
evolved into the formation of the nonprofit,
all-volunteer cemetery association in 1966.
In recent
years, the group has put in an automatic gate to deter
potential vandals and installed signs and walkway
paving.
"We do the
volunteer work to honor our relatives buried there,"
Engh said. "To me, the cemetery represents our area of
Lockeford -- its past, present and future."
* To reach
reporter Neil Gonzales, phone (209) 367-7428 or
e-mail
ngonzale@recordnet.com |
