Grave Stone Inscription - United Fire Sides of America

Recently, while reviewing some of the photos I took last May of grave stones of Killebrew family members buried in Coxburg Cemetery, I found this one. According to its inscription, R. S. Killebrew was born on June 23, 1846, and died on November 11, 1915. His grave is among a number of other graves of Killebrew family members who have been buried in the cemetery for more than a century.



In addition to the usual name and dates of birth and death, the top portion of Mr. Killebrew's grave stone also bears the words "United Fire Sides of America," along with an emblem that resembles a fireplace that contains burning logs.

During a quick search using Google, I found a reference to a Mississippi Supreme Court decision around the turn of the century that involved this entity. Full details of the case were not provided in this reference, but the attorney for the company had a Houston, Texas address.

Was "United Firesides of America" an insurance company, possibly one that provided burial coverage, or was it a dues-paying fraternal organization something similar to Woodmen of the World?

I still don't know, but maybe one of my readers will.

Wordless Wednesday - Mississippi Delta Cemetery

Cemetery at Anguilla, Mississippi in Sharkey County
Photo by Natalie Maynor

Tombstone Tuesday - Evelyn and Evander Grantham

The double grave stone pictured here marks the burial place of Evander Grantham and his wife, Evelyn, in Bluff Springs Cemetery in Carroll County, Mississippi. Evander was born in North Carolina in November 1846, one of ten sons of Thomas Grantham, a farmer, and his wife, Lydia Alice Woodberry. The family of Thomas and Lydia, born in North and South Carolina, respectively, also included two daughters, as well as Elizabeth Grantham, Evander's North Carolina-born grandmother. Although Elizabeth Grantham is buried in Bluff Springs Cemetery, Thomas and Lydia Grantham are buried in Old Plank Cemetery near Vaiden, Mississippi.

Photograph by Sally Bennett