Tavera Cemetery
AKA Dosch Cemetery
Richwood Township, Richland County, Wisconsin
USA
Correction made: July 14, 2012
Tales The Tombstones Tell - Republican Observer - December 11, 1958
Tavera Cemetery
The township of Richwood contains more cemeteries
than any other in Richland county and the Tavera cemetery is one of
these. Years ago it had another name, the Dosch cemetery. It is located
but a short distance from the once thriving village of Tavera.
It is a nicely kept burying ground, not large, but
it contains a number of the early settlers of the area. Among the names
upon the markers are Persinger, Collins, Gobin, Wallace, Pettygrove
Pippin, Benson, Galaway, Wiley, Steiner.
There are many other stones standing on the hillside
slope in the shade of some tall pine trees; among them are those who
bear these names, Moran, Orrick, Fish, Daughenbaugh, Zimpel, Fosnow,
Hanson, Dosch, Brown, Dunston, Cooper, Kast, Lankford and Millison.
Near the west fence is buried James McCartney and
his wife Mary. He was born in 1855 and died in 1939. Mary died March
12, 1901, at the age of 79 years, 9 months and 23 days.
There is a large stone and several smaller ones for
the Turnmire family. One stone is for David Turnmire, who was born in
1846 and died in 1912; another for Polly his wife, also born in 1846,
and passed on in 1911. On the stone for her it says: "A tender mother
and a faithful friend."
There is a stone for Edw. Turnmire, and his wife.
There is a photograph of he and Mrs. Turnmire together with six of
their children. An angel carved out of granite stands here as part of
the large monument. On the headstones for two of their children, Stella
and Mrs. Florence Waller, there are also photographs, and one is upon
the headstone of Edward Turnmire.
John H. Tilley and his wife Abigail, are buried
here. He was born July 10, 1828, and she February 17, 1831. They both
died the same year, he on March 15, 1903, and she October 5th. Two
other stones are upon the lot, one, marked Gertie 1863-1952, and one
for Henry 1884-1916. Below these carvings is the word "Mizpah." We
wondered why it is upon the stone.
Milton Rosemayer, born in 1846 and passed on in
1930, was a member of Co. I, 11th Regt. When he enlisted, January 16,
1864, he gave his address as Highland. Martha, his wife, was born in
1826, and died in 1937.
On the stone for Jeannette, wife of James Lewis, who
died December 2, 1891, at the age of 54 is this verse:
At sunrise
pray now Lord
Thy day begins.
Receive my
thanks, grant strength,
Wash out my sins,
I drop anchor
in the silent sea
Through the
long watches
I am
safe with Thee.
The death of little Beulah Heigh, five year old
daughter of E. A. and Nora Heigh, was a sad blow to her parents. Beulah
died on January 3, 1900, and on her stone is a photo of her together
with this:
"Darling
Beulah, she has left us,
Left us, yes for evermore.
But we
hope to meet our loved
One on that bright and happy shore."
Hugh Harper, born in 1832, and died in 1900, has a
marker which also is for Eliza, his wife, who was born in 1837. The
date of her passing is not indicated. A stone for James W. Harper is
here together with two children, one aged three, and one five months.
James and Orson Comar found rest in the burying
ground. The stone bear the date of their birth and death. James was
born in 1823 and died in 1892; Orson's life was from 1855 to 1882.
J. A. Collins and his wife Elizabeth, are here. He
was born in 1836 and died in 1903, and she was born in 1844 and passed
on in 1901. Mr. Collins was a Civil War veteran, a member of Co. K, 6th
Wisconsin. When he went into service he gave his address as Clayton,
Crawford county. He was mustered out in 1865.
N. B. Winton and his wife Mary, are here in this
burying ground. Mr. Winton was born in 1818 and his wife in 1830. He
died in 1901 and she in 1902. He was born in Pennsylvania and came to
Wisconsin in 1847, and to the town of Richwood in 1856. He was married
in 1848 to Mary Otto and they became the parents of six children, one
of whom, Omer E., was at one time clerk of court for Richland county.
Another Civil War veteran is A. B. Faith, a member
of Co. H, 44th Infantry. Alexander B. Faith is how his name appears
upon the government records. He gave Muscoda as his residence when he
was mustered into service on Feb. 7, 1865. His soldier life was six
months as the war ended and he was mustered out August 28, 1865.
One of the early day folks was Charles Allison, who
was born in 1837 and died in 1893. William Boak, born in 1849, and his
wife Sarah, born in 1855, are buried side by side. John McDermott and
his wife were buried here. They lived on North Main street for many
years, and their home is now a part of the Jefferson street school
property. They were both born in 1865 and both passed on in 1955.
Early settlers buried here include Wm. Vance, born
in 1820, and died in 1900, and his wife Margaret, is also here. She
died in 1894 at the age of 69 years, 10 months and 28 days. Isam Vance
{should read Isam WALLACE not
Vance} is a real old timer, as when he died on January 9, 1876,
he was past 73
years of age. He lived in the days of George Washington. ** Note 2 **
Albert Brenaman, Civil War veteran, was a member of
Co. K, 3rd Infantry. He was born in 1847 and died in 1927. His wife
Rosanna, was born in 1847 and died in 1904. Mr. Breneman was a school
teacher for some years and always took an interest in educational
matters. He gave Clayton, his residence when he enlisted in 1864; his
muster out date being July 18, 1865.
The name of Thorp has long been identified with the
town of Richwood. L. M. Thorp, who is buried in the Tavera cemetery,
first came to the township in May, 1849, and entered 160 acres of land
in June, so he became one of the early settlers there. He came from
Indiana and in 1851 brought his wife and three children to make their
home in the wilderness. His only earthly possessions then was a team
and wagon and $100 in cash.
After he and his family were settled and some
provisions for the winter bought, he had but $5 remaining and nothing
coming in, so he taught school. He cleared his land and became a well
to do farmer. He planted many acres of hops and this crop promised big
returns but the bottom dropped out of the market, leaving Mr. Thorp
just about stranded. He started up the ladder again, so to speak, and
recovered from his financial difficulty. Mr. Thorp was a member of the
first Republican convention held in Richland county. He was elected as
sheriff of the county in 1856, and again in 1862. In 1878 he ran for
assemblyman on the Greenback ticket but was defeated. He was married in
1847 to Mary Jane Miller and they became the parents of eleven
children, one of whom, Octavia, married A. H. Floatin, a Richland
Center storekeeper, in whose store the big fire started which destroyed
the Krouskop store and opera hall back in 1883. Also quite prominent in
later day affairs was Julius son of L. M. Julius born in 1849 and died
in 1917. He was twice married, evidently to sisters, as the stone in
the cemetery reads: Sarah J. Buchanan, his wife, 1846-1898, and then
Mary Ann Buchanan, his wife, 1841-1922.
Many members of the Ellsworth family are here. They
were among the early, early settlers of Richland county and members of
the family still own the farm property near Tavera. Joseph S. Ellsworth
appears to be the oldest of the family buried here. He was born in 1808
in Vermont where he learned the trade of shoemaker. He moved to Ohio
and in 1852 came to Richland county, settling in the town of Buena
Vista, where he kept a small store at Independence, a small settlement
between Lone Rock and
Richland City. This small community never became a thriving
village but it had stores, a blacksmith shop, a mill, and several
houses. This was in the early 50s. The settlement was of short life and
today not a trace of it is to be found along the banks of the Wisconsin
river where it once stood. One building, a home, was moved to the
village of Gotham where it still stands along side of busy highway 14
where auto traffic is heavy. Mr. Ellsworth purchased a water power on
Knapps Creek and built the Ellsworth mills which operated for many
years. He was married twice, first to Didama Buxton, who died in Ohio,
leaving two children, Diana and Oliver. His second marriage was to Amy
Stockwell, and to this union three children were born, Thomas J., M. D.
and H. B. His wife, Amy, is buried on the lot. She was born in 1820 and
died in 1852; Diana, the daughter, born in 1830, and died in 1914, is
also there. Thomas J. was born in Ohio in 1842, coming with his parents
to Richland county. He remained until l859, when he went to Kansas
where he enlisted in the Home Guards and later in an Ohio cavalry
company. He became disabled and was discharged. He returned to Richland
county. Later he enlisted in Co. H, 44th Wisconsin. He suffered a
broken leg, spent some time in a hospital, and was discharged soon
after the surrender of Lee.
He returned to Richland county and started a tannery
in the town of Richwood. In 1875 he married Mrs. Ellen (Cosgrove)
Burns. He was a candidate on the Democratic and Greenback parties in
1880 for county clerk but was defeated by the Republican candidate. His
platform had a sound of modern days, for he favored free trade, free
schools, free religion, and free men with plenty of greenback legal
tender money.
M. D. Ellsworth, the third son, operated his
father's mills at Tavera for many years. These mills did general
sawing, planing, and matching, the principal products being materials
for wagons and other farm implements. The place was known back in the
early days as Ellsworth Mills, but later was changed to Tavera. M. D.
Ellsworth was born in Ohio in 1847, coming with his parents to
Wisconsin, helped on the farm and in 1876 took over the operation of
the mills. In 1875 he was married to Miss A. L. Hodgins, who was born
in 1848 and passed on in 1924. Stones on the same lot are for four of
their children, who died in infancy. The names, dates of birth and
death are upon the stones. Mabel, 1883-1885; Leonard, 1887-1887;
Frederick, 1876-1877; Joseph, 1875-1876. Also buried in this cemetery
are other members of the Ellsworth family. Joseph Ellsworth, born in
1884, and died in 1947, is here. He was postmaster and storekeeper at
Tavera for many years and later became a rural mail carrier out of Lone
Rock.
Wm. Orrick and his wife Lavina, are among those
buried here. William was 63 years of age when he died in 1883 and his
wife, who died in 1912, was past 88 years of age. They were the parents
of John Orrick of Richland Center, now deceased.
Two children of Mr. and Mrs. A. M. Stratton have a
monument. Mr. Stratton was a miller, employed at Bowen's Mill,
Sextonville, Excelsior and other points. The children were J. Allen,
who died in 1881 at the age of one month, and Guy L., who was six years
of age when he died in 1889. Mr. and Mrs. Stratton are evidently not
buried in this cemetery as no notation concerning them appears upon the
monument other than that they were the parents of the two children.
George A. Pippin and his wife Anna, found the end of
life's journey in the Tavera cemetery. He was born in 1861 and died in
1946, while she first saw the light of day in 1864 and passed down the
long road in 1905. They were the parents of Dr. B. I. Pippin, Richland
Center. Two infant children, Marvin and Beulah, are buried on this lot.
Marvin was born in 1904 and died in 1905. Beulah was born in 1890 and
died in 1891, so the headstones say.
S. F.
CORRECTIONS MADE ABOVE:
TAVERA CEMETERY December 11, 1958
Article
** Note 2 ** Isam Vance {should read Isam WALLACE not Vance}
is a real old timer, as when he died on January 9, 1876, he was past 73
years of age. He lived in the days of George Washington.
7/14/2012 Dthompson
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