Oscar F. Hosea, Buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Lexington, MS

This Woodmen of the World monument marks the burial place of Oscar F. Hosea in Odd Fellows Cemetery in Lexington, Mississippi. Hosea, born on October 20, 1863, died on October 28, 1921.

Oscar F. Hosea was the son of Oscar Fitzallen Hosea, Sr. and Sarah Anne Farr.

In 1860, according to the U. S. Census recorded that same year, Oscar F. Hosea, Sr. and Sarah A. Hosea lived with their young family in Dark Corner, Beat 2, of Holmes County, Mississippi.

In 1870, the family lived in Lexington, where Oscar F. Hosea, Sr. worked as a carpenter.

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Wordless Wednesday - Grave Monument of William Oliphant McMorrough

Grave Monument of William Oliphant McMorrough

b. August 27, 1853, d. June 25, 1905

Buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Lexington (Holmes Co) MS

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Wordless Wednesday - Hooker Plot in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Lexington, Mississippi

Photo by Natalie Maynor

Odd Fellows Cemetery - The Lady in Red

Cruger, Mississippi, in Holmes County, Mississippi, is home to barely 400 residents. Located on the west side of U. S. Highway 49, the town is roughly 70 miles north of Jackson and about 175 miles south of Memphis, Tennessee. It lies within the confines of the large area of fertile agricultural lands known as the Mississippi Delta. Places nearby have unusual names, such as Alligator Bayou, Mosquito Lake, and Mossy Island. Located near Cruger is Egypt Plantation, an active farming area of almost 2,000 acres that sees it share of heavy equipment during farming season. But in the summer of 1969, a backhoe dug up more than Delta soil. It unearthed a coffin buried only a few feet deep that contained the body of a young woman who became known as "The Lady in Red."

Below is a partial account of the event as it appeared in Jackson's Clarion-Ledger on August 29, 1969:

"The method of preservation used for the Lady In Red was common prior to the Civil War, when custom-made caskets, shaped to the body, were ordered as one would order a dress. The glass that sealed the coffin was placed over the body, and alcohol was poured inside until it was level full, and then sealed with a cast iron tip. When the back hoe machine hit the coffin, alcohol spilled from the casket and spots of the liquid were seen on the folds of the woman's dress."

Aptly named for the red dress she allegedly was wearing, the young woman in the cast iron casket was said to be well-preserved. It is any one's guess how The Lady in Red came to be buried in the soils of Egypt Plantation, and there is no information to suggest a cemetery was located in the immediate area. One theory is the casket could have "dropped off" something that may have been carrying it to her final resting place.

Gravestone for The Lady in Red

Final Resting Place in Odd Fellows Cemetery

Lexington, Holmes County, Mississippi

(Photographed by Natalie Maynor)

The date of birth shown on the Lady in Red's grave stone is the result of expert analysis of her age. Since there is no way to determine her date of death, the date shown on the grave stone is the day her body was discovered on Egypt Plantation.

The Christmas Family of Holmes County, Mississippi

Entrance to Odd Fellows Cemetery
Located in Lexington, Mississippi

Pictured above is the double gravestone of Lucy and Henry Christmas. Lucy was born in Mississippi in 1843 and died in Holmes County, Mississippi in 1921. Her husband was born a year earlier, also in Mississippi, and he died in 1911. According to the U. S. Census of 1870, Henry, 28 years old at the time, and his older brother, Thomas, age 32, were the heads of households living next to each other in the Eulogy community of Holmes County, Mississippi. Henry's occupation was "physician," and Thomas was shown to be a "farmer."

Living down the road from the two Christmas families were Richard M. and Mary H. Garrard, my great-great-grandparents. Their daughter, Martha Elizabeth Garrard, who later became my great-grandmother, was 12 years old when the census was taken.

In 1870, Lucy and Henry were the parents of two young daughters, Mary, age 4, and Sarah P., age 6 months. According to the census record, both children were born in Mississippi. Living in the household with Lucy and Henry and their two children was Dixon Christmas, age 22, whose birthplace was also Mississippi. Possibly Dixon was the younger brother of Thomas and Henry.

Thomas and his wife, Fanny, age 31, were also born in Mississippi. According to the 1870 census, the couple had three children, Fanny, age 8, Thomas, age 5, and William, age 3. The birthplace for each of the children was shown as "Mississippi." The value of real estate owned by Thomas was shown as "25,000," and his personal property was valued at "2,000."

A total of 37 individuals whose surnames were "Christmas" were enumerated on the U. S. Census of 1870 taken in Mississippi. This figure included the 10 family members living in Holmes County.

Odd Fellows Cemetery - Holmes County, MS

The Odd Fellows Cemetery in Holmes County, seen here, is one of the oldest in this county where "the Hills meet the Delta." Most of us have seen cemeteries identified as "Odd Fellows" cemeteries, and many who saw the name or its abbreviation "I.O.O.F." may have wondered what it actually meant. The abbreviation stands for "International Order of Odd Fellows." The symbol or logo for this organization that was founded on the importance of living an ethical lifestyle, appears as three unbroken, chained links. These unbroken links symbolize the elements of membership in the organization, "Friendship, Love, and Truth." Membership in this worldwide organization is based in the U.S. and headed by the U.S.-based Sovereign Grandlodge.

The command given to members of this group, whose activities are centered around providing kindness and assistance to others, is to visit the sick, to relieve the distressed, to bury the dead, and to educate the orphan.

Odd Fellows cemeteries are the organization's charge to "bury the dead."

The Odd Fellows Cemetery in Holmes County is located in Lexington, the County Seat of Holmes County. Families represented in this large, old cemetery are the following:
Ables, Autry, Applebaum, Baker, Barbour, Beall, Christmas, Cooper, Cox, DeLoach, Doty, Durden, Farmer, Freeman, Frost, Fryer, Fuller, Gwin, Hammett, Harthcock, Herbert, Hooker, Kearn, Meade, Melton, Noel, Pahlen, Ray, Rosenthal, Sheehy, Shephard, Sontheimer, Stigler, Sutton, Taggart, Ussery, Walton, and Zimmerman.