A Grave Situation a.k.a. Pioneering Spirit(s) Traditional Cache

This cache has been archived.

vege: Time to retire this one.

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Hidden : 2/3/2006
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:


This cache is located just outside the marked boundaries of the Pioneer Cemetery, in French Village.

The information below is excerpted from the Pioneer Cemetery Heritage Society Site. (visit link)

"During the 1780's a number of "Foreign Protestant" families began leaving Lunenburg to seek their fortunes elsewhere. Governor John Parr encouraged many settlers to come to St. Margaret's Bay. People took up land first on the Eastern side of the Bay and a few years later some moved to the North and Western Shores. They worked hard to establish homesteads, in total wilderness, where natives still camped along the shores. It is said they rowed and/or sailed to Halifax, Lunenburg, and Chester to acquire supplies, be married and baptize their children. The burial of their dead was another matter. In the beginning, family members would be buried on the homestead. Being religious people, this did not seem fitting."

"In 1794, a group of settlers got together and purchased an acre of land from one of their number, James Boutilier (to establish the Pioneer Cemetery)."

"This cemetery was nondenominational and the first cemetery in St. Margaret's Bay. Even settlers that had not purchased shares in the land were buried here... Elderly locals state that the Pioneer Cemetery was filled to capacity and people were even buried outside the original boundaries... A one acre property can and contain 400 plots, so it is conceivable there were that many interments here."

The oldest headstones mark the resting places of Peter, James, and Joseph Dauphinee, respectively aged 16, 22, and 25, who all died within 10 days in January 1828, presumably of a then-incurable illness - a testament to these extremely difficult times.

Unfortunately, the cemetery fell into disrepair and remained in that state until 2002, when a group of concerned locals and far-flung ancestors joined together to create a society to research the "residents" of the burial grounds, and begin restoration of the site. Some progress has been made, but as you will see, it is still very much an ongoing process.

Nonetheless, I found the cemetery, on a hill overlooking the water, to be a very peaceful spot. A trail runs through the middle of the graveyard, and I urge cachers to follow the trail through the property before heading toward the cache, to avoid disrupting the gravesites, or the work being done.

Please exercise caution with pets and young children as there is some very old barbed wire - the remains of a fence - near the cache location.

Happy trails to all!

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Va n taneyrq, cnegyl onexyrff gerr, nobhg 6 srrg va gur nve. Na rnfl ernpu.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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