Rushton Family Cemetery

                                           

Never did I think I would see my great-great-grandparents' graves as they are buried on their own land, and I did not even know where that was along Pugwash Road in Roslin, Nova Scotia. But the Cumberland County Genealogy Society knew there was a Baptist cemetery believed to have 3 or 6 Rushtons in it with 1 stone still standing.

Rushton Family Cemetery

The standing stone is for Grannie Phoebe's sister, Aunt Marthy. Their mother, Hannah Susan West Rushton, died in 1918 and her obituary said she was interred in her family cemetery. So surely, besides Great-Great-Granny Susan and Great-Aunt Marthy, the rest of their family is there too. There would be Susan's husband Thomas R. Rushton (died at age 91 in 1901), and their 4-year-old son Aaron (died of a fever in 1870) and baby Christena/Cristyann (died about 18 months old in 1875). I cannot find a grave for their son Isaac, who lived a long life as a bachelor, or Susan's brother Aaron who did the same. Maybe they are there too.

No one knew where the graveyard was, but there are GPS coordinates and a description, under the big pine by the creek. So we followed Rt. 321 to the coordinates, which of course are in the middle of the woods. But lo and behold, there was a driveway! 2 miles down a holey dirt driveway, we came to a house and rang the doorbell.

A very excited dog and her human answered. I said, "Our Grannie Phoebe grew up on this land."

He said, "You must want to see the cemetery then."

Eureka!

He found it while wandering his land with his kids and dog. Such a nice man! If we came back, he volunteered to do some trimming so the grass would not be waist high. We bought boots and high socks and got completely covered and sprayed with only our hands and faces showing, and the mosquitoes found those!

This morning he and the dog led us on a twisty turny trail by the creek to a tall black spruce.

we start outon our way

I think it is not so badcutting                                                                                                                                           branches on the way

it starts getting bushier  

now I see what he means

tall grass laying over

in the thick of it

Aunt Marthy's stone has been bulldozed over

top of stone -

 "Martha dau"

ghter 

of 

Thomas

 & Susan

 Rushton

 born May

 8 1871

died Feb

19 1890

bottom of stone

And there we said hello to Aunt Marthy and our Nana's Granny.

the black spruce that marks the spot

any graveyard stones bulldozed into oblivion

the graveyard

we start back along the creek

creek with wide meadow marsh behind it

getting out is not any better

still in the woods

pretty thick

almost out

and we are out without getting any ticks!

our guide dog Roz after romping thru the mud, marsh, meadow, woods...