{"id":108677,"date":"2021-01-03T12:32:00","date_gmt":"2021-01-03T18:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/?p=108677"},"modified":"2021-01-02T17:34:52","modified_gmt":"2021-01-02T23:34:52","slug":"christmas-at-benson-cemetery-by-gaetano-catelli","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/christmas-at-benson-cemetery-by-gaetano-catelli\/","title":{"rendered":"“Christmas at Benson Cemetery” by Gaetano Catelli"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Not long ago, Louis Bourgeois<\/strong> came upon an apparently abandoned cemetery while hunting in Yalobusha County<\/strong> on some land under control of the Army Corps of Engineers<\/strong>. On the 2nd day of Christmas<\/strong>, after Louis and I shot some rounds from two 20-gauge shotguns and a 12-gauge, we went to the cemetery to take pictures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The surname on most of the tombstones was either Wright <\/strong>or Benson<\/strong>. The earliest birthdate is July 4, 1797 (William Hardy Benson<\/strong>). The latest death date is 1955 (Ollie Patton Benson<\/strong>), widow of George Goodwin Benson<\/strong> (died 1949).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later research has revealed that, unsurprisingly, the plot’s name is Benson Cemetery<\/a><\/strong>. Given the appearance of the tombstone of Ollie and George, it seems the cemetery couldn’t have been completely abandoned since 1955. I think it’s certain that the current tombstone of Cora Wright Frost<\/strong> has not been sitting there exposed to the elements since the spring of 1905.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given how small was the European-descended population of Mississippi <\/strong>in 1797 (especially away from the River or the Coast), I guessed that Hardy Benson was born in the Carolinas<\/strong>. It turns out that Hardy was indeed originally from Greenville, South Carolina<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further research indicates that Benjamin Benson<\/strong> (1752-1833) (father of William Hardy Benson) was a brother of Henry W Benson<\/strong> (1755-1828). https:\/\/ancestors.familysearch.org\/en\/L2M9-MVR\/henry-w-benson-1755-1828<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Henry was a wagonmaster in the Revolutionary War<\/strong>. http:\/\/genealogytrails.com\/miss\/revwarsoldiers.html<\/a> (nb: No other source supports the claim that there are gravestones in Benson Cemetery for Pharaoh or Charles)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To assist people who have slave ancestry there, Yalobusha County has a web page that lists the names of slaveholders with farms of 600 acres or more. “H. Benson” (presumably Hardy) is listed as owning 62 slaves. https:\/\/sites.rootsweb.com\/~ajac\/msyalobusha.htm<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n