Join us for a tour through the ghostly portrait gallery of New St. Marcus Cemetery. This is a multi-stage letterbox cache. The upper coordinates are the first portrait.
Adding photo-ceramic memorial portraits to gravestones gained popularity in the late 1800s and early 1900s. There are over 500 gravestone portraits in New St. Marcus, many of which have withstood the elements for 100 years or more. If they could speak, they would tell the stories of heroic soldiers, lost loves, and those tragically taken from the world far too soon.
To find the final cache, you must go to each waypoint, find the portraits pictured below, and then answer a question about each location. The waypoints can be visited in any order.
This is an active cemetery; please be respectful and avoid disturbing a gravesite service or family members visiting their loved ones. Cemetery hours are sunrise to sunset.
PORTRAIT #1 (N 38° 33.748 W 90° 18.031)
Look closely and you will see that the portrait chosen for this gravestone is a photo of the deceased in his casket. Post-mortem photography was a normal part of American and European culture in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Sometimes no other photograph existed except for this final one.
If the deceased’s first name starts with E, then A = 7.
If the deceased’s first name starts with O, then A = 9.
If the deceased’s first name starts with T, then A = 6.
PORTRAIT #2 (N 38° 33.805 W 90° 17.830)
This little one’s gravestone has the word “Herzi” carved onto it. Of German origin, Herzi means "piece of my heart,” and is normally used by a mother referring to her child. When you find this small white gravestone, you will see that the carving resembles a sleeping child wearing a bonnet similar to the one in the portrait.
If the child’s last name begins with H, then B = 0.
If the child’s last name begins with J, then B = 6.
If the child’s last name begins with S, then B = 3.
PORTRAIT #3 (N 38° 33.910 W 90° 17.940)
From the Nov. 30, 1929, St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
St. Louisan Dies at Litchfield, Ill., After Crossing Crash.
Henry J. Kahle of 4400 South Main street died at St. Francis Hospital, Litchfield, Ill., yesterday afternoon, an hour after a truck he was driving was struck by a Big Four freight train at a crossing east of Litchfield, on Highway No. 16. The truck was carried several hundred feet.
Kahle, a driver for the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Co., was returning to St. Louis from Decatur, Ill. He was about 35 years old.
If Henry’s widow’s name was Catherine, then C = 0.
If Henry’s widow’s name was Florence, then C = 5.
If Henry’s widow’s name was Margaret, then C = 9.
PORTRAIT #4 (N 38° 33.860 W 90° 18.170)
Born in Greece, this man taught English and Communications Skills for more than 20 years in Missouri. Upon retirement, he continued to express his love of language by writing poetry, one of which is included on his modern photo-ceramic portrait.
If this poet was born in April, then D = 17.
If this poet was born in July, then D = 18.
If this poet was born in November, then D = 19.
PORTRAIT #5 (N 38° 33.923 W 90° 18.169)
The loss of a pet can be as tragic as the loss of a human family member. Here you will find many beloved animals, peacefully resting in an area set aside just for them.
If this dog’s name begins with M, then E = 0.
If this dog’s name begins with R, then E = 8.
If this dog’s name begins with S, then E = 3.
To locate the final cache, substitute the values for A, B, C, D and E into this coordinate:
N 38° 33.ABC, W 90° 18.DE
We hope you enjoyed our tour of New St. Marcus Cemetery. Please use stealth when entering the area of the final.
This is a letterbox hybrid cache, with a self-inking stamp inside. Please do not remove. No ink pad is available.
Tombstone tourist: an individual who has a passion for and enjoyment of cemeteries, epitaphs, cemetery photography, funerary art, and history.