HUNT FAMILY CEMETERY, Pickens County, SC
a.k.a. Hunt's Memorial Baptist Church

Version: 3.0   Effective: 20-Sep-2006   Text File: P259.TXT   Image Folder: P259


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CEMETERY LOCATION:
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GPS = Latitude N x Longitude W 


CEMETERY HISTORY:
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The Hunt Brother's Tombstone

What really happened to Thomas and James Hunt?  Why does Thomas' tombstone have 
a hand pointing up while James' marker has a hand draped in chains.  These 
interesting grave markers are in the Hunt family plot in the churchyard at 
Hunt's Memorial Baptist Church.  The cemetery was there long before the church 
was built.

Thomas Hunt died first on September 11, 1884 at the age of twenty-eight.  His 
brother James, died six weeks later on October 28, 1884 at the age of twenty-
six.

They were sons of Esley and Mattie Hunt.  According to local stories, Esley was 
a confederate veteran.

Local legends abound concerning the deaths of these two brothers.  Perhaps the 
most popular legend concerns their childhood.  One was a good child, always 
considerate and caring.  The other was a horrible child who was always in 
trouble.  The bad child was very jealous of his brother, and one day killed him.  
Everyone was devastated, and they chose to Mark his tombstone with a finger 
pointing upward.

When it was determined that the favored son had been killed by his terrible 
brother, they had him hung.  The only people who attended the hanging were a 
minister and an undertaker.  On his tombstone, they put a finger pointing down 
with a chain around it.

This oral tradition does not correspond to the newspaper accounts containing 
their obituaries.

		From the Pickens Sentinel on September 18, 1884:
		"Thomas Hunt, aged about 28 years, died of typhoid
		fever at his mother's residence, on the Saluda side
		of this county, on the 11th instant, after a brief
		illness.  Mr. Hunt was in the vigor of a young man-
		hood and was large and muscular.  Apparently no man
		had a greater chance for a long life than he. . .His
		remains were interred in the family burying ground,
		near the homestead."

		From the Greenville Enterprise and Mountaineer, 
		November 5, 1884:  "James Hunt, aged 26 years, died
		of typhoid fever at his residence on the Saluda side
		of this county on the 28th instant.  Only a few weeks
            ago it was our sad duty to announce the death of Thomas,
            an older brother.  The deceased leaves a widow and two 
            children to whom we extend our sympathy."

Many questions continue to exist concerning the tombstones.  If indeed they died 
with the stated disease, why would these tombs be so marked?  Who erected them?

Information for this article came from local legends and from an article in the 
Greenville News written by Dot Robertson (Dot Jackson) and is used with special 
permission.  Article written by Amber Parnell, Jennifer Phillips, LaTasha Owens 
and Dale Stancil.

By: Dacusville Community History Project, Dacusville Middle School, date unknown


TOMBSTONE TRANSCRIPTION NOTES:
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a. = age at death
b. = date-of-birth
d. = date-of-death
h. = husband
m. = married
p. = parents
w. = wife