Thanks to the Sussex County Library recently providing public access to local newspaper archives, I have been able to add two names to the total of known burials in the abandoned Meeker Cemetery, also known as the Christie School Burying Grounds, in Wantage NJ.
Previously known gravestones are:
Jeptha Meeker dis March 21st 1812 aged 45 years 27 days
Asa Meeker dis July 25th 1798 aged 3 months
MEMORY of ISAAC. DIXSON. WHO DIED March 25th 1814 AGE 25 YEARS
MEMORY of ThADEAS DIXON. WHO DIED MARCH 15TH 1814 AGE 52 YEARS 10 MONTHS AND 10 DAYS
Nathaniel Meeker, Died May 2, 1804, 63 Years of Age
Samuel(?) son of Michael + Chloe Curran died – Dec 27, 18??, age 23 yr, 3 m. 9 d.
In addition to these stones it is likely that Major Samuel Meeker and his wife Sarah were buried at the site. Other family burials are likely.
Now, from the Sussex County Library I’ve been able to find these two references.
First,
“The burial ground of the family seems to have been on what is now Samuel Christie’s farm, near the road leading from Unionville to Deckertown, which cemetery is now almost wholly abandoned. It undoubtedly was one of the first ones instituted in that vicinity. In it was found a field-stone, inscribed: “Phoebe Meeker, died 12th of November, 1789, in the 51st year of year age.” She we surmise to have been the wife of Nathaniel, because in his will in 1804, he mentions no widow surviving. His stone is also in that yard, “Nathaniel Meeker, deceased, May 2, 1804, in the 63rd year of his age.” Also that of his grandson, “Asa Meeker, died July 25th 1798, aged three months.’ There we believe were also laid to rest Major Meeker and his wife, Sarah. … Jeptha … was also buried in the Christie Cemetery, but his gravestone is gone.” – The Wantage Recorder, December 1, 1899
The Jeptha stone would have already been moved to the Christie farm where it was used as a walkway before being in the basement of the farmhouse for years.
Then, we have more evidence now to the fact that Samuel Meeker was buried at the site:
“Mr Editor, the late John Bonnell, father of Mrs. Jane Evans, now of Deckertown, who died February, 1869, aged about 90 yrs, told me in the year 1866, that he knew Major Meeker, and that his remains were buried in the old cemetery on the knoll of which you speak, and expressed indignation that the exact spot was forgotten, for the reason that the tomb always had remained unmarked. J.H.C.” – The Wantage Recorder, December 15, 1899
Then, a second name:
“In the Christie Yard: ‘Andrew R. Masters, son of William Masters, d. Oct. 25, 1827, aged 1 yr. 1 mo. 9 ds.’ We mention the foregoing because those yards are abandoned, and the preservation of the records may be inquired after some time.”
It is sad to read of a second infant buried there, along with Asa almost thirty years previous.
While the Meeker and Dixon families were connected through marriage, and the Curran family lived just down the road, the Masters family is new to my research. William Masters probably lived 1797-1883 and is the son of James Masters Jr (1761-1797).
Note: The Wantage Recorder May 6th, 1910 says “Michael and Chloe Dickson Curran were married in 1798.” Thus, the Curran and Dickson families may also be connected by marriage.
The two new burials now known expand the range of dates of the use of the cemetery. The previous stones ranged from 1798 to 1814. It is statistically surprising to find the two new stones expand the dates from 1789 to 1827. Knowing that the Presbyterian meetinghouse was built by 1780, the 1789 date makes sense. The 1827 date however is quite late, for the church was long gone or at least no longer used, and the cemetery land no longer controlled by the families who had met at the church for worship.
The next step on this project, if possible, is to get LIDAR for the area to prove the site and perhaps find additional stones.
Edit: The Wantage Recorder of May 6th, 1910 speaking of the Curran family says “Semi, the youngest son, died in 1843, and lies in the Christie cemetery.” This clarifies the name (Semi, rather than Samuel) and the date (1843) which were not well recorded or not legible by whoever previous noted them in the Minisink museum. This also pushed back the latest burial another 16 years all the way from 1827 to 1843.