mtaggartBurton W. Cook feels like an old friend to me. Thanks to his appearance in a wide variety of records, I have learned so much about him over the years about he and his wife Mary Ganus and their life together. So I was excited to visit his grave during my visit to Georgia in October.
Although Find-A-Grave has pictures of his headstone, seeing it in person was a completely different experience. Burton and Mary (Ganus) Cook lived just a short distance out of Carrollton and he was buried at the Church of Carrollton Cemetery. There I felt a reverence as I envisioned his family gathered there to mourn his passing.
At the time of his death, his oldest son, Isaiah, and his oldest daughter, Elizabeth (Cook) Adams were living in Alabama. His daughter Mollie McKissack had remarried following the death of her first husband and she and husband James L. McKissack lived twenty miles away in Franklin, Heard Co., Georgia. Burton’s namesake, Burton Calloway Cook was living in Carrollton at the time.
According to the newspaper, seventy-year-old Burton suffered a “stroke of paralysis” on Friday the 26th of January 1894 and died the following Tuesday. (1.)
Were his children notified and were they able to visit him before he passed away? Were they there as a support to their mother the day that Burton was buried?
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| Burton Cook’s headstone Church at Carrollton Cemetery, Carroll County, Georgia |
Burton married Mary Ganus, my third great aunt on 7 April 1850 in Dekalb County, Georgia. Mary was the oldest child of James Ganus and Elizabeth McCluskey. There is no record of Mary’s burial, but at The Church at Carrollton Cemetery, there is an empty space right next to Burton’s and I wondered if possibly she was there in an unmarked grave?
Grady Cook, grandson of Burton and Mary (Ganus) Cook
Church at Carrollton Cemetery, Carroll County, Georgia
Near Burton’s grave is their grandson’s headstone, Grady Cook, son of Burton C. and Emma (Muse) Cook.
I’ve researched and written about Burton quite a bit over the years and those posts can be found on this blog. Documents helped me to know that Burton lived a full life and his obituary helped fill in the gaps, indicating that he had been a good man and was loved by the community. The following obituary appeared in the newspaper:
IN MEMORY OF BURTON W. COOK
After many years of research, the icing on the cake was visiting Burton’s final resting place.
Are you a descendant of Burton W. Cook? I would love to hear from you. If you would like to know more about my research on Burton or have information to share with me, please contact me at shelltag1 at gmail.com.
1. Carroll Free Press, Feb 2, 1894, page 3, Accessed on Galileo West Georgia Newspapers, 9 August 2018.
2. Carroll Free Press, Feb 9, 1894, page 3, accessed on Galileo West Georgia Newspapers on 9 August 2018
It's surprising the effect a tombstone can have. My mother lost her mother, Grace, when she was only 7,she always spoke of her mother with love and recalled how her father remarried and relegated her to her grandmother. I finally visited Grace's grave a few years ago and as soon as I saw it, burst into tears recalling all the pain that streamed from that event. I never thought I would be that moved.
Nope, not a relative. I’m always surprised and saddened to discover a tribute or tombstone for only half of a couple. I always wonder what happened that one person was slighted.
Well darn Wendy–I would love to claim you! I wonder too. One thing I consider is the cost of it and perhaps by the time the second person died, there just wasn't the money to take care of the headstone. I'm not sure, but it's sure a frustration
What a touching experience Ellie. It's just so interesting how visiting a piece of stone with someone's name on it stirs the emotions we have for those dear to us, but I think you hit the nail on the head. That visit brings us as close to them physically as we can possibly get and stirs up memories of their life. Thanks for sharing.