Monday, December 8, 2008

Two Tombstones of Note: Left, Charlotte Staunton Hyde - Right, Cyrus H. Wheelock





Charlotte was our Pioneer of the Month for October. She was an early school teacher and also the wife of Orson Hyde.
She had a very liberal education. She inspired many of her students to go on to become school teachers themselves. Her only pay was vegetables, fruit and heating supplies given to her by the parents of her students. She was also a seamstress. It was also said that she smoked a pipe. Brigham Young granted she and Orson Hyde an honorable separation.
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Cyrus was our Pioneer of the Month for August. He was a courageous, honorable pioneer, who took
a personal interest in everyone he knew, and was always there to help anyway he could. He is best known for smuggling a gun into Joseph Smith the day of Joseph and Hyrum's martyrdom. He also took back a letter to Emma that same day. He wrote the LDS hymn: "Ye Elders of Israel".---

Both markers are located on the south side of the middle road of the older part of the cemetery. Charlotte's about one third of the way traveling east toward the middle lane. Cyrus' is located just two or three rows east of the middle lane.


We owe much to these early pioneers of Mt. Pleasant. Most of the earliest pioneers are buried in this area of the cemetery. It is fun just to wander up that middle lane and view their markers and their epitaphs.

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