History, upcoming cemetery tour, museum and Me!

The Historic Eaton Cemetery is one of my favorite haunts in October...yes it might be for the ghosts of old Eaton....but I think it is for the serenity and the history that lays all around you as you wander around.

This Saturday the 18th I will be doing something I haven't done in a while...a guided cemetery tour.  At 1 PM weather permitting (rain date the following Saturday) will will walk you around and tell you the stories of our Hamlet's former citizens.  The stories are too numerous to tell of course...but on sale will be a book I put together on the cemetery and its many occupants.  I includes the famous lady cooks and their recipes, obits for a number of them, and yes the stories of others.

There will be cider and cookies and of course our museum will be open so you can tour afterward.  The tour will start at 1 PM in the cemetery located on Landon Road just off Rt. 26 in Eaton and it is to benefit the Eaton Village Cemetery Society...so we are asking for a free will donation for my services...

I thought I would include just one of the many stories here...one that I love on a little known person...rather than one of our famous ones...the Rev. Smitzer..

The Reverend John Smitzer who was a minister at the Eaton Congregational Church was also immortalized by Melville Landon “Eli Perkins”  in his books.  One goes as follows:

Elder Smitzer and his special prayers!

Elder Smitzer was famous for making special prayers. In these prayers he used to tell the Lord everything. In fact he used to tell the Lord so much that he would have no space left for asking for the blessing. The elder would go on for an hour informing the Lord about everything in Log City, and in Asia, Africa and Oceiana. Once I took down the Elder’s prayer in shorthand, and it ran thus:

“O Lord, thou knowest everything. Thou knowest our uprisings and or downsittings. Thou knowest thy servants’ inner most hearts. Thou knowest, O Lord, what thy servant’s children are doing. Thou knowest the wickedness of thy servant’s nephew, Francis Smitzer,-how he came home last night in a beastly state of intoxication, whistling, O Lord, that wicked popular air (whistling):

“Sho’fly, don’t bother me!”

“Thou recognized the tune, O Lord!”

* Reverend Wilson and Reverend Smitzer and Francis are buried in the Historic Eaton Cemetery, as well as Melville Landon, of course.

So come out and visit...donate to you local Cemetery & Museum and enjoy History!