Thursday, 3 February, 1803, this day Josiah Percival was Drowned.
What Benjamin's diary doesn't say was that he fell through while cutting ice on Hog Pond, which was on their property on Cape Cod. Josiah was also Benjamin's son.
The diary entry was subsequently followed by this one:
Monday, 7 February 1803, this day Josiah was buried he was 13 years old the 8th day of last October.
His tombstone inscription reads:
"In memory of Josiah, son of Mr. Benjamin and Mrs. Lydia Percival, he died Feb. 3rd 1803 in his 14 year."
He was buried in Tobey cemetery, which is located on land owned by Hewlett-Packard, or was when we visited the cemetery in 1998. The picture is a reconstruction of his headstone. Vandals visited the cemetery and knocked every stone down.
Hi, Anne. I'm related to the Percivals and visited the cemetery in 2022 on my way to Provincetown. My photo of Josiah's grave looks the same as yours, plus Benjamin's had a fresh flag with a medallion noting he was a Revolutionary War patriot. Someone's doing a great job maintaining the place. I'd love to know who's doing it so I can thank them.
ReplyDeleteJeffBrooke@gmail.com