Existing comment:
The Little Pigeon Cemetery:
The Little Pigeon Cemetery is the final resting place for many of the settlement's earliest residents.
The cemetery was marked off in 1825, shortly after the church was established. It contains the first families of the Little Pigeon Creek Settlement and their descendants. Many graves remain unmarked.
Abraham Lincoln served as the church sexton. The sexton's duties included taking care of the church property, ringing the bell for services and digging graves.
Abraham Lincoln was extremely fond of his older sister, who had cared for him after their mother died.
"(Abraham) was out in our little smoke house at our house doing a little carpenter work when Aaron, Sarah's husband, came running up from his house a quarter of a mile away said that Sarah had just died. We went out and told Abe. I never will forget that scene. He sat down in the door of the smoke house and buried his face in his hands. The tears slowly trickled from between his bony fingers and his gaunt frame shook with sobs. We turned away." -- Account of Sarah Lincoln's death
Sarah Lincoln Grigsby 1802-1828: Among the older graves is the grave of Sarah Lincoln Grigsby, Abraham's sister. Sarah was married in 1826. She died during childbirth 18 months later. She was buried with her child in her arms. Her husband, Aaron, remarried in 1830, but died the following year. He is buried next to Sarah.
Sarah's grave was marked with a slab of sandstone bearing her initials. It was replaced in 1916 with the current headstone.
Those buried here worked, laughed and loved. Their passing brought sorrow to many. Please respect those who lie here and their descendants. |