This Article was published in the Martinez News-Gazette on 5/17/2017The Potter’s Field Restoration Project was in full swing last Saturday during the annual Alhambra Cemetery’s Spring Cleanup. Thanks to our hard working volunteers, much was accomplished. Beyond the usual clearing of debris, we leveled Nikolaos Glaros’s base in preparation for his headstone installation and cleaned Chinese-American Funerary Burner brick. Martinez’s own Sean Dexter, renowned archaeologist and anthropologist from Country Condor Consulting, Inc., brought a screen for sifting soil. He checked for any artifacts or pieces of bone that could affect our work. To date nothing of note has been found. Christian Rousset, a retired CA builder, stonemason, cutter and sculptor, oversaw the work on the burner with Sean, which we wrote about in our last column. After apprenticing under a master artisan most of his youth, he spent the majority of his twenty’s traveling Europe restoring castles. Once we have finished cleaning its bricks, he will be overseeing rebuilding the burner. In future columns, we will be reporting our discoveries regarding its historic past and other findings. Amy Currie and Dawn Curren lent a hand in removing old mortar from the brick burner. Dawn, Chris, and we helped note and measure the burner before work began. Kathleen Koehlmoos and Mary Lou Johnson cleared fallen branches, debris, and some weeds from last winter. Both projects require a lot more work. Two articles ago we wrote about Nikolaos Glaros. Raymond Wallace took care of fixing his base by clearing it of weeds and debris before securing and leveling it. He also was able to level the headstone of another resident, Aaron Rice whom you will be reading about in future columns. Judie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. For more info, please visit our website MartinezCemetery.org. Do you have a Potter’s Field story to tell? We welcome any pictures or information regarding the Alhambra Pioneer Cemetery or its Potter’s Field. Please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069.
This Article was published in the Martinez News-Gazette on 5/03/2017The Potter’s Field Restoration Project began five years ago, when we were approached to rebuild the Chinese Funerary Burner located in Potter’s Field. To learn more regarding its history and use we started by researching Chinese immigration to California, their customs and rituals. We discovered that the ancient ritual of “tomb-sweeping” and the Alhambra Cemetery Cleanup days have much in common. Chinese immigration to California began in 1815 with the first large wave occurring in 1852. According to Wikipedia, “By 1848, there were 325 Chinese Americans. There were 323 more immigrants in 1849, 450 in 1850 and 20,000 in 1852 (2,000 in 1 day). By 1852, there were 25,000; over 300,000 by 1880: a tenth of the Californian population.” We met with Sonia Ng and Roland Hui, renowned local Chinese-American historians specializing in Chinese-American cemeteries, customs and structures. Sonia mentioned there was a sizable Chinese community by the turn of the Century due to finding several Chinese businesses in an international Chinese business directory dated 1913. However, during the gold rush boats and ferries were the major transportation from SF to Sacramento with Martinez as a strategic stopping point, thereby potentially sparking a much earlier Chinese community. Regarding the burner itself we found the website “Chinese Funerary Burners: A Census” compiled by Terry Abraham from the University of Idaho. He states, “The most common singular feature of overseas Chinese cemeteries and of the Chinese section of host community cemeteries is the "burner" (sometimes erroneously called "oven"). These brick or masonry structures, often over seven feet tall (approx. 2.1 m), serve as a safe place for the ritualized burning of spiritual tributes. These paper and cardboard facsimiles of money, clothing, possessions, and houses, for example, are to serve the deceased in the afterlife. Burning these simulacra passes them to the spirit realm …” Further research into the burner’s uses led us to the “Qingming Festival” held over the course of three days beginning on the 15th day from the Spring Equinox, which usually falls on either April 4th or 5th. The origins of the Qingming (“pure bright”) Festival incorporates the happiness of renewal (spring) and the sadness of remorse. Spring is a time when nature decides to wake up and take action. Trees and plants burst fragrant, pastel blossoms and young green leaves emerge on branches. It is a time to stop “hibernating” from the cold, dormant winter, and do some “spring cleaning” while getting out and enjoying the sunshine. It is an important holiday also called Tomb-Sweeping or Ancestors Day as it is a time to remember their ancestors by taking care of their graves. It’s said that the Qingming Festival was started 2,500 years ago as commemoration of a loyal defender, Jie Zitui, who sacrificed a portion of his own body to save his lord, Duke Wen in exile. When Duke Wen regained his rightful position, he wanted to reward Jie Zitui for his loyalty. However being a humble man, he hid with his mother in a mountain to avoid recognition. Duke Wen ordered the mountain to be set on fire to draw him out; instead he murdered both Jie Zitui and his mother. Filled with remorse, Duke Wen ordered a new festival with no fire for three days. This began the Hanshi (Cold Food) Festival, where only cold food could be served. On the next Hanshi Festival, Duke Wen went to honor Jie Zitui at his tomb. He found a burnt willow tree bursting with growth and immediately ordered that the day after become known as Qingming. Today the Qingming Festival is a combined celebration of both holidays with many outdoor activities that represent remembrance and rebirth. Much like the Alhambra Cemetery Cleanups, the descendants conducted “tomb-sweeping” by clearing debris around the gravesite, removing weeds and dusting the headstones. They also prayed before their ancestor while offering tea, wine, chopsticks, joss paper, and favorite cold foods for them to enjoy in the afterlife. In the Buddhist tradition, willow branches are placed near the grave or altar to protect their ancestors from evil spirits. As mentioned before, the funerary burner was used to burn imitation mortal items made of paper. Sonia told us that during the 1800s, Chinese immigrants wanted to be buried in their ancestral homeland where they were born. Their dead were buried in the US, for seven to ten years to decompose the body, and then the bones exhumed, ceremonially cleaned, placed inside an iron box, shipped back to China and reburied in their village. A Taoist priest giving prayers to the earth deity on behalf of the decease’s family began this ritual. In most US Chinese cemeteries, an altar took the place of a temple and was used for the offerings of fruit, wine, flowers and incense by the family or clan. Once again, the burner was used during the exhumation ritual. Sonia stated that the altar held the most reverence in relation to its location. It would have included clan information engraved on a memorial wall or large headstone erected to all those left behind. Unfortunately, there is no trace of the Alhambra Cemetery’s altar and no pictorial evidence of the original burner at this time. Which leaves us with some important questions to ask: What did the burner look like? Could there be remnants of an older structure underneath its foundation? Are there remnants of the altar yet to be discovered? As we make progress, we will submit articles on its restoration. For more information on this story, please visit our website martinezcemetery.org. If you would like to participate in a little “tomb-sweeping”, the next Alhambra Cemetery Cleanup is Saturday, May 13th from 10 am – 2 pm. Wear comfortable clothing and bring a pair of gloves. Feel free to bring a camp chair if you have one. Lunch provided by E. Clampus Vitus, with morning refreshments provided by the Potter’s Field Restoration Project. If you have any information or pictures regarding the burner and altar, please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069.
Judie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. For more info, please visit our website MartinezCemetery.org. Do you have a Potter’s Field story to tell? We welcome any pictures or information regarding the Alhambra Pioneer Cemetery or its Potter’s Field. Please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069. This Article was published in the Martinez News-Gazette on 4/19/2017The first discovery of the Potter’s Field Restoration Project was that of a headstone adjacent to its base face down in the dirt at the bottom of the hill. It had braved the elements, decades of water runoff and moisture abuse. A thick rusty nail stood in place of an object that once graced the top along with a large surface fissure distorting its Ancient Greek inscription – “Nikolaos Glaros of Ikaria Ascended 21 July 1915 Year 21”. Nikolaos was our first genealogical subject. The City of Martinez decedent lists and multiple genealogy websites yielded nothing, until we found the California Death Index 1907-1939 stating, “Nikolaos was 21, buried in Contra Costa County, and died July 21, 1915.” We contacted Dorothy Glaros, the president of the local chapter of the Pan-Icarian Brotherhood of America, which aids immigrants and their descendants from the tiny isle of Ikaria, Greece. Dorothy stated that Glaros is a common surname for residents of Ikaria. Michele Jacopetti found information under the name “N.G.” The Twenty-Fourth Biennial Report of the State Board of Health of California (Fiscal Years 1914-1916), on pg. 68 states “Case N.G., Moraga, California, age 21, track laborer on railroad,” (a migratory physically demanding job inspecting, repairing and maintaining tracks.) “slept on Moraga railway station platform the night of July 9, 1915. He developed symptoms of illness on July 13th. On examination a bubo was found on his right femoral region. …The patient had all of the signs and symptoms of the bubonic form of plaque. He died the eighth day of illness…” The Appendix to the Journals of the Senate and Assembly states “One of these cases occurred during July, 1915, in the Moraga Valley, Contra Costa County, death resulting. The diagnosis was confirmed by animal inoculations. This particular case may have contracted his infection from rats or fleas, as the patient gave the history of having slept on some straw near the railroad station near Moraga where rat evidence was found. As the case occurred in the rural districts, most probably the infection was acquired by ground squirrels.” The late assistant surgeon, J. R. Hurley, U.S.P.H.S. writes in the July 1915 Monthly Bulletin of the California State Board of Health that “The last human case in Contra Costa County occurred in July of this year. This case was seen by the writer.” He continues, “…By consulting a map from the Central Counties of California… whereon by spots of red designate the ranches that have been infected… Contra Costa is nearly all red, especially in the Western part, in the neighborhood of Port Costa.” He concludes with, “…Here come vessels from all over the world: sailing ships, “tramps”, and large steam freighters to load grain for European ports. Considerable grain is scattered along the railroad tracks and freight sheds in the neighborhood, offering sustenance for both the ground squirrels and the rats that infest the wharfs. …plague-infected rats that wandered ashore from deep sea freighters at Port Costa, and the infected fleas from these animals, transferred the disease to our local ground squirrels in this locality…” Nikolaos's death triggers the conduction of an extended campaign against the plague in Contra Costa by the State and County Boards of Health, United States Public Health Service and the California State Hygienic Laboratory. Texas Medicine (among many other US medical research reports, bulletins and records) recorded their findings. Numerous newspapers throughout the US, reported his death. Why so much attention? He was the last case of Bubonic Plague to be reported since October of 1913 in Walnut Creek. Attempting to find more information on Nikolaos we researched Greek immigration history through Charles Maskos book, “Greek Americans: Struggles and Success” and Bethany E. Pierce’s article “Greek Immigrants” from immigrationtounitedstates.org. Charles Maskos writes, “…once the first group of Greek immigrants settled in America, they would write home to their families and have a younger brother come over to America to work.” Bethany E. Pierce mentions, “Icarian immigrants expected to work and return to their homeland after earning capital and dowries for their families.” However, Maskos and Pierce both mention that most Greek immigrants were recruited by unscrupulous labor agents who promised passage money and a job, if they came to America. However, too often the jobs did not exist. Maskos mentions in his book that the crossing from Greece to Ellis Island, NY, would have been nearly unbearable and take anywhere from three weeks to several months in very tight quarters at the bottom of a ship (often they were not enumerated by US immigration officials). Upon arrival, they would head by train to their destination, either to their relatives or to the job location given by the labor agent. With the lack of records regarding Nikolaos, we suspect this is most likely how and why he arrives in the US.
On that warm July night, as he slept on a bed of straw looking up at the stars, it probably reminded him of home. Nikolaos died on July 21, 1915, in the Martinez County Hospital. To learn more about Nicholas, please visit our website martinezcemetery.org/nikolaos-glaros. Special thanks to Dorothy Glaros and the Pan-Icarian Brotherhood of America for restoration of Nikolaos’s headstone for its reinstallation later this month. The next Cemetery Cleanup Day is Saturday May 13th from 10 am – 2 pm. Wear comfortable clothing and bring a pair of gloves. Lunch provided by E Clampus Vitus, with morning refreshments provided by the Potter’s Field Restoration Project for its volunteers. Judie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. For more info, please visit our website MartinezCemetery.org. Do you have a Potter’s Field story to tell? We welcome any pictures or information regarding the Alhambra Pioneer Cemetery or its Potter’s Field. Please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069. This Article was published in the Martinez News-Gazette on 4/05/2017One of the most glorious and gratifying experiences we’ve had was to reunite August Mueller with his direct descendants after we, a gravestone expert, and a city employee noticed his broken headstone, face down, during a walk-through near the section of Potter’s Field. Utilizing the information from his headstone inscription and genealogical websites, we located his Great-grandson John Bauer and his Great-granddaughters: Kristin Hawley, Kathleen Bauer, Mary Corsetti and her husband Donald, who had been looking for August’s final resting place for over 20 years. Special thanks to all of them for sharing and letting us use the numerous newspaper articles, pictures, and documents they had for us to tell his following story… Ferdinand August Mueller was born on January 28, 1846, in Elbing, Prussia (now known as Elblag, Warminsko-Mazurskie, Poland) to Jacob and Paulina Goeppinger Mueller. August’s father died when he was 16, which eventually leads him to migrate to the U.S. After arriving in the United States in 1867 at the age of 19, he joins the army as a private for Company K, 12th U.S. Infantry during the reconstruction period after the American Civil War. August Mueller stood at 5 feet 5 inches tall, fair complexion, blue eyes and brown hair. In Lieutenant Charles W. Abbot Jr.'s book, The Twelfth Regiment of Infantry, Lt. Abbot Jr. states "Company K left Washington and proceeded west to post in Camp Gaston, CA, ... an isolated post almost near an Indian agency, which involved more or less work inspecting supplies, etc." At Camp Gaston, August earns promotion to Corporal on June 1, 1869 then Sergeant on December 1, 1869. He was honorably discharged on June 29, 1870. Shortly thereafter, August becomes a U.S. Citizen. His citizenship papers read, “In the County Court of Humboldt County, State of California, on September 14, 1870, … August Mueller be, and is hereby admitted and declared to be a Citizen of the United States of America.” On September 17, 1870, August signs his first California Voter’s Registration card in Humboldt County, CA. On November 18, 1873, he signs his second voter’s registration listing him as 28 years old and a civilian merchant. To better get acquainted with August, we turn to excerpts from two newspaper articles. The first article finds August in Livermore, CA where he meets his future wife, Katherine “Kate/Kittie” Sangmaster from one of Livermore’s founding families. They were married on November 6, 1877, with the wedding and reception being a “roaring” success. The Livermore Herald reads, “At 1:30 p.m. the bride, groom, and ... spacious dining rooms were thrown open to the public... which lasted nearly to 4 o’clock ... at 10:30, night became at once hideous. About 50 citizens had assembled outside, each armed with an oil can, and other hideous instruments, making an unearthly noise, after which Mr. M. opened his doors and invited them all inside, to partake of excellent refreshments... appropriate songs were sung... and congratulations were continued until about 1am.” The second article written by August himself was published in the Echo Livermore newspaper on November 1883. “His first appearance into Livermore Valley was about 12 years ago. He was not two weeks in town before he made himself conspicuous in organizing a Fire Department. Then he helped to start the Twilight Club, then the Laurel Wreath Social Club, Livermore Brass Band, Turn Verein, Jolly Bachelors, etc. Now when any of Gus’s friends approached him and ridiculed him about interesting himself in such concerns – because you know Gus could not dance, was not even a conversationalist or an entertainer; he did not have musical voice enough to holler fish up a dark alley – Gus would say, ‘My dear friend, I intend to stay here. I intend to grow up with this town, and all these things help to assist the prosperity of this place; all these things advance the social inclinations in this valley.’ Well Gus’s creations ran a little while and then died. Gus started a hotel, all for the benefit of the public generally, ran it about two years and then busted. Gus left and we thought we had seen the last of the Public Benefactor. We were left alone three, four, five years but these kind of characters hang on to their hobby with the tenacity worthy of an English bull dog. Gus was here last week and wants us to harvest our alkali and utilize it! Laugh, readers, laugh; because this idea is as preposterous as Brother Barlett’s idea was in turning the whole of Livermore Valley into one great vineyard....” According to the Martinez County Hospital records August was admitted on March 22, 1908 for heart problems (stroke). The June 6, 1908 Martinez News Gazette reads, “August Mueller, who died in the County Hospital on May 31 was buried at 1:30 pm yesterday under the direction of undertaker H. J. Curry. Deceased had reached the age of 62 years, 4 months and 2 days. He was a native of Germany and leaves a widow, Kate Mueller, who resides in Richmond. Interment was in Alhambra Cemetery.” His headstone is currently undergoing restoration and will be reinstalled later this month. Again special thanks to August’s family for all of their help. To learn more about August, please visit our website martinezcemetery.org/august-mueller.
If you have any information, records or stories of those buried in the Alhambra Cemetery that can help us with our research, please drop us a line at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069. The next official Cemetery Cleanup Day is Saturday May 13th from 10 am – 2 pm. Wear comfortable clothing and bring a pair of gloves. Lunch provided by E Clampus Vitus, with morning refreshments provided by the Potter’s Field Restoration Project for its volunteers. Judie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. For more info, please visit our website MartinezCemetery.org. Do you have a Potter’s Field story to tell? We welcome any pictures or information regarding the Alhambra Pioneer Cemetery or its Potter’s Field. Please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069. This Column Article Premiered in the Martinez News-Gazette on 3/29/2017 Updated 1/17/2020Twice a year the City of Martinez holds an Alhambra Cemetery Cleanup Day where volunteers can de-weed the grounds while E. Clampus Vitus fixes headstones and provides lunch. Let’s face it, pulling weeds for four hours with the reward of lunch does not sound very enticing, but to a history buff, the Cemetery is a rewarding outdoor museum providing a voice to the residents and their stories. It was at the last clean up, when an E. Clampus Vitus volunteer noticed a piece of cement grave border sticking out from the hillside. He decided to investigate and after removing 6-8 inches of silt and dirt, (with the help of others) revealed the complete border, a blue marble headstone with inserts for two flowerpots, and the inscription, Ralph Vester Walker 1923 – 1945. Like the excitement of finding a long lost friend, questions arose regarding Ralph’s final location and story. Was he a potter due to potentially being within Potter’s Field, (the quality of his headstone however contradicts this idea)? Is he related to Capt. Walker buried elsewhere in the cemetery? Additionally there are four main questions to answer when doing this type of research. 1) What information can you gleam from their grave marker\headstone? 2) Are there any living descendants? 3) Are they looking for the person? 4) What else can you discover about their life from various official records such as Census, Military, Birth\Death\Marriage Certificates, etc..? We started our research by consulting the City of Martinez Alhambra Cemetery Decedent List and found, Walker, Ralph Vester, next to Co. (Potter’s Field), Plot could be blk 442, DOD 7/29/1945, Age 22, Place of birth Texas. Next by utilizing all of the above info with several genealogy websites (that contain copies of the records we mentioned above, photographs, family contacts, and more) we discovered that he is not related to Captain Walker at all, but the eighth of twelve siblings born to Bune Vester Walker and Cordelia Roxie Shumate, on December 12, 1923 in Red River Co., Texas. We also located and made contact with Jamie Lynn Barr & Casey Schauer Atterbury his Great Grand-nieces. They were very grateful to the Martinez Historical Society (MHS) and their Martinez Cemetery Committee for locating him as they had been looking for his gravesite and info to add to their respective ancestral trees.
According to emails from Jamie and Casey and the records they provided us, Ralph was quiet and very sweet. He lost his father at the age of 8 due to spleen cancer in 1930 at the start of the Great Depression. After his father’s death, his mother and 10 siblings moved into his older brother’s home in Scurry, Texas. At the age of 15 he had completed a seventh-grade education while working as a farm hand. In 1940 he, his mother and younger siblings moved to the agriculturally rich and wine producing area of Mesilla, NM. Shortly thereafter in 1942 they moved to Richmond, CA along with his older brothers Luther and Robert. Through his military records, Luther found work at the infamous Kaiser Shipyards in Richmond, and though we yet to have proof, perhaps Ralph did, too. UPDATE: At the time of this article’s writing, Jamie and Casey relayed that family members’ recall Ralph died from a motorcycle accident in Richmond, CA on July 29, 1945. He was 22 years old, separated from his wife Euvelta, and was the custodian of their daughter Dorothy. The family recollection continues that shortly after his death, Euvelta disappeared with Dorothy, taking her away from Ralph’s family. On August 28, 2017, we were able to confirm the family information with an informational copy of Ralph's Certificate of Death. On January 14, 2020, we found an article on his death through Newspapers.com. The article, with a disturbing photo of Ralph's motorcycle and body, was published in the Oakland Tribune on July 30, 1945. Ralph Vester Walker was killed when his motorcycle collided with a car driven by 24 year old Duane H. Horner, son of the Richmond Police Judge, Claire Horner, on 13th Street and Esmund Avenue in Richmond. Horner was booked on a technical charge of manslaughter, and then was released on his own recognizance. The time of death was 12:14am. Ralph died of a fractured skull and gross bodily injuries. A funeral was held at Wilson & Kratzer in Richmond. Ralph was buried in the Alhambra Cemetery on August 3, 1945. At the time of his death, Ralph was a discharged U.S. Merchant Marine seaman and had been working recently in the Richmond Kaiser Shipyard. He was separated from Euvelta, who was now living in Hatch, New Mexico with their 3 year old daughter, Dorothy. To see what happens next and the expanded story of Ralph Vester Walker, please visit our website martinezcemetery.org. The next official Cemetery Cleanup Day is Saturday May 13th from 10 am – 2 pm. Wear comfortable clothing and bring a pair of gloves. Lunch provided by E Clampus Vitus, with Morning refreshments provided by the Potter’s Field Restoration Project for its volunteers. Judie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. For more info, please visit our website MartinezCemetery.org. Do you have a Potter’s Field story to tell? We welcome any pictures or information regarding the Alhambra Pioneer Cemetery or its Potter’s Field. Please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069. Besides our cemetery cleanups, we are engaged in ongoing research to uncover the genealogy of the residents of Potter's Field. By using the partial list of names from County records, information from the few existing headstones, vital records, past newspapers and more we are discovering the lost history of Martinez and California's origins. To that end we have found family and friends of some of the deceased in Potter's Field. We met and took pictures of them on Saturday with their ancestor's head stone. They were all thrilled to finally be reunited with those they had lost but not forgotten. The Glaros surname comes exclusively from the isle of Icaria, Greece. Dorothy is the President of the local chapter of the Pan Icarian Brotherhood, an association dedicated to all descendants of the former residents of Icaria living in the United States. She was very excited to finally meet Nicholas Glaros. The quest to find August Mueller's grave took over twenty years by his family. It culminated yesterday finally with the reunion of his great grand children and himself. While examining his headstone we noticed that there was a piece missing. Joseph remembered a missing piece stored by Nick's headstone and went to retrieve it. Miracles of miracles, it was a match! Alexandria Brown wrote her master thesis on slavery in California and more specifically in the Napa Valley. She will be publishing a book in 2020 on the subject. Included in her research is the story of Aaron Rice and his family. She had no idea that Aaron was buried in Martinez, let alone residing in Potter's Field. Her information has been invaluable in completing Aaron's Biography.
Judie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. For more info, please visit our website MartinezCemetery.org. Do you have a Potter’s Field story to tell? We welcome any pictures or information regarding the Alhambra Pioneer Cemetery or its Potter’s Field. Please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069. Good Afternoon Everyone,
I hope all of you are enjoying the Labor Day Weekend. I wanted to give you a project update. Judie and I are currently adding to our website information derived from the experts walk-throughs and genealogy research. The amount of information just continues to mount to the point of almost being overwhelming (however we are not complaining, its a good problem to have). Besides the new information, we are finding and making contact with more descendants of the residents of Potter's Field. Judie and I feel this is the most important portion of our project because it makes it personal. They are no longer names on a headstone, or on a list but are now instead full fledged human beings that lived and survived during a very difficult period of American History. It is a rush to help someone who has been looking for information on or attempting to find their long lost relative and be able to complete the loop for them. As you continue to enjoy this marvelous weekend, remember the residents of Potter's Field as they were the original laborers of California. Nick worked for the Railroad, August the Post Office and a veteran, George on a ship, Louis a musician and laborer, Kichi and Aaron on farms, and according to the list of Potter's Field decedents provided by the City of Martinez the vast majority were also laborers. Then of course there is the Chinese-American Community who were also 99% laborers. So some time this weekend raise a glass to them in remembrance, Cheers, Joseph Palmer Potter's Field Restoration Project Coordinator (925) 316-6069 MartinezCemetery@gmail.com MartinezCemetery.org Judie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. For more info, please visit our website MartinezCemetery.org. Do you have a Potter’s Field story to tell? We welcome any pictures or information regarding the Alhambra Pioneer Cemetery or its Potter’s Field. Please email us at martinezcemetery@gmail.com or call us at (925) 316-6069. Just a reminder that we will out at the Cemetery this Saturday from 10 am - 2 pm.
Free snacks and liquid refreshments will be offered to all that participate. Thanks in advance to all of you who have already said they are coming and to the rest of you who are interested in coming, we look forward to seeing you. Cheers, Joseph Palmer Potter's Field Restoration Project Coordinator MartinezCemetery.org martinezcemetery@gmail.com 925 316-6069 Potter's Field - Alhambra Cemetery We will be holding Potter's Field Clean Up days the Second Saturday of every month until November. We need help pulling weeds, removing fallen branches, picking up debris, excavating and cleaning bricks, and straightening stones. Free refreshments and water provided. For more info:
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AuthorsJudie & Joseph Palmer are two of the founding members of the Martinez Cemetery Preservation Alliance (MCPA) and the Potter’s Field Project. Both have a passion for discovery, history, genealogy, anthropology and archaeology. Archives
October 2021
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