Colchester Cemeteries Quest - Exploring History, Part 1

There are six public cemeteries managed by our community. Because the town is spread out and borders a large bay, I knew this quest would help me get out of a cycling rut by offering alternative routes. I also enjoy history, so as a side quest, I hoped to learn something about Colchester's history - it was chartered in 1763, one of the oldest in Vermont, and named after Colchester, England.

At the Malletts Bay Cemetery, the Coates, Prim and Mills headstones caught my eye. All are names I'm familiar with.

Isaac and Lydia Coates came from England in 1833, gradually making their way to Colchester. They farmed and fished, later residing on an island that came to be named the present-day "Coates Island." Several family members still reside on the island today. There have been several acres of wooded plot left undeveloped that I have always wondered about. If I understand both references correctly, it's been left empty in honor of Isaac and Lydia's son William, nicknamed "Gompy". 

"A 20-acre site across from Rozzi’s and still owned by the Coates family is kept open in memory of their Gompy who once had his garden there."

As for the Prim headstones, I only found that Chester's ancestry is from Canada - not surprising for many Vermonters.  A nearby road is named Prim Road.

We parked our bikes next to a gargantuan tree!

On the same day, we visited the Munson Cemetery, a corner lot adjacent to the Munson Farm and former mill. This one is notable because volunteers recently cleaned the headstones. It is the town's first and oldest cemetery, and 6 generations of Munsons are buried there, the longest family history in Colchester! It is also the only public cemetery with plenty of burial plots left, thanks to a recent land donation that doubled the available space.

Blakely is a prominent road name. Unfortunately, I couldn't find out any more information on Ithamer or Cornelia Blakely.

Other interesting facts: James Johnson has a wooden marker (upper right in photo); "In Memory of Tirzah" stone states she's a "consort" - make of that what you will! - while Chauncy Wheeler was previously married to a "Tirzy". Their stones are next to each other, but there the similarity ends. Cloud Monte's plot - the only one in the cemetery - is marked with a Revolutionary War Veteran symbol.

More to come...