Document G.50 · cemetery guide pamphlet · transcription: partial
"Stories of Some Interesting People Buried in the Churchyard", compiled by George L. Fricke, The Presbyterian Church, Basking Ridge, New Jersey (pamphlet, 8 pages, undated)
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- The Presbyterian Church, Basking Ridge, New Jersey
- collection
- Pamphlet "Stories of Some Interesting People Buried in the Churchyard", compiled by Church Historian George L. Fricke
What is transcribed: The Daniel Cooper section (pamphlet pages 4-5) transcribed in full. The other sections are summarized only, as [desc]; the pamphlet is undated and the PDF does not show a publication date.
People named
| As written | Role | Identified as | What this document says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Cooper, Esq. | deceased | Daniel Cooper Sr 1695–1795 | death: 2 May 1795 burial: Presbyterian Church churchyard, Basking Ridge, Somerset County, New Jersey |
| Grace | spouse | Grace (Runyon) Cooper 1707–1755 | |
| Barbara Margaret Trimmer | spouse | Barbara Margaretta ?–1789 candidate |
Transcription and notes
Cover: "Stories of Some Interesting People Buried in the Churchyard / Compiled by Church Historian, George L. Fricke / The Presbyterian Church / Basking Ridge, NJ"
DANIEL COOPER - Grave Number 251 (pamphlet pages 4-5):
Daniel is famous for living 100 years and 2 days and outliving 6 wives! His story is one of true love. When he was a young man, he fell in love with a young lady named Barbara Margaret Trimmer. They decided to elope but her father caught them as they attempted to leave town and threatened to shoot Daniel if he caught him near his daughter again. Barbara married another gentleman and Daniel married Grace who bore him 10 children and is buried next to Daniel in our churchyard. After Grace died, Daniel checked to see if Barbara might be available, but she was still married. This occurred after each of the next three wives died. After the fourth wife died, when Daniel checked, lo and behold, Barbara's husband had passed away. Apparently, Barbara had never stopped loving Daniel and so they married. She was 77 years old. Alas, she also died as did his next wife before Daniel entered the church triumphant. Here is his epitaph:
In memory of Daniel Cooper, Esq. who died May 2nd 1795 aged 100 years & 2 days. Our age to seventy years is set How short the time, how frail the state And if to eighty we arrive We'd rather sigh and grown and live.
The other sections [desc]:
| Name | Grave | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| John McCollum | 2 | b. 1658, d. 1760 aged 103; an elder when John Ayers deeded the land in 1733 |
| Samuel Brown | 85 | d. 1763; the first member to leave the church a bequest (200 pounds); his widow Mary (Whitaker), later Widow White, kept the tavern where General Lee was captured in December 1776 |
| Henry Southard | 351 | b. Hempstead NY 7 Oct 1747; NJ legislature and U.S. Representative; sons Samuel Lewis Southard (1787-1842) and Isaac Southard (1783-1850) |
| Caesar Hand | 308 | 1825-1883; "Faithful and beloved" |
| Joel and Ruth Dayton | 625 and 624 | "the parents of William Lewis Dayton, (1807-1864)", U.S. Senator, Minister to France, 1856 vice-presidential nominee |
| The Drummond Family | 563 | five children of James and Margaret Drummond who died under two, 1841-1850 |
| Mary Lewis Kinnan | 528 | b. Basking Ridge 1763; captive of the Shawnee three years after a 1791 attack; lived to 85 |
| Jonathan and Warren Dunham | 401 | Civil War brothers, d. 1863 |