Civil War veteran Francis Adams is buried next to his wife, who was the first pioneer to have a place at the American Legion Cemetery at Highway 17 and Sutton Road. Mr. Adams donated an acre of his homestead to provide a cemetery for the new town of Othello.
Honoring some of our earliest veterans
As usual, Bess Hampton Memorial Gardens was beautifully decorated with flags, wreaths and flowers Monday in observance of Memorial Day. Every year, there are comments about how nice the cemetery looks.
I wonder, however, how many people notice the little cemetery at the corner of Highway 17 and Sutton Road. It, too, has several flags on the graves to recognize veterans who are buried there and families do put flowers on some of the graves.
The American Legion Cemetery began in 1906 when Frances Adams died. It was winter and the weather was bad enough to prevent taking her to the cemetery in Cunningham, where many of the early pioneers were buried.
Her husband Francis Adams set aside an acre of land on the corner of their homestead and donated the plot to the town as the first cemetery. It was, for many years, known as the Adams Cemetery until the American Legion took over the care and maintenance of that small acre of land.
Today, the cemetery is overseen by a Adams County district board of elected officials.
At the end of the Civil War, many communities set aside a day to mark the end of the war or as a memorial to those who had died. On May 5, 1868, General John Logan, commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, a veteran’s organization, issued a proclamation that “Decoration Day” be observed nationwide. It was observed for the first time on May 30 of that year. The date was chosen because it wasn’t the anniversary of a battle and the tombs of fallen Union soldiers were decorated in remembrance.
Many of the state of the U.S. South refused to celebrate Decoration Day because of lingering hostility toward the Union Army and also because there were few Union veterans buried in the South.
The name “Memorial Day” was first used in 1882, but it didn’t become more common until after World War II. It was declared the official name by Federal law in 1967 and the following year, the U.S. Congress passed the Uniform Holidays bill, which moved three holidays from their traditional dates to a specified Monday in order to create three-day weekends. Among those holidays was Memorial Day and the changed moved it from the traditional May 30 to the last Monday in May. The law took effect at the federal level in 1971.
After some initial confusion and unwillingness to comply, all 50 states adopted the measure within a few years.
Francis Adams was a veteran of the Civil War, so it’s only fitting the American Legion Cemetery is included in the local observance of Memorial Day.
If you get the chance, take some time to stop by and walk among the headstones. You’re sure to find some names you recognize from the early history of Othello.
Grilled Cornish game hens
2 Cornish game hens (1 to 1-1/2 pounds each)
3 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoons black peppercorns, coarsely crushed
½ teaspoon salt
Split hens lengthwise. Rinse under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. Place hens in large plastic bag and set in large bowl. In small bowl, combine oil, lemon juice, peppercorns and salt. Pour marinade over hens in bag, close bag securely and refrigerate several hours or overnight, turning hens occasionally to coat with marinade.
Drain hens, reserving marinade. Place hens, skin side up, on grill, over and cook 45 minutes or until juices run clear. Baste with reserved marinade occasionally.
Makes 4 servings.
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