
St.
Paul's has an extensive churchyard, considered one of
the most beautiful on the Eastern Shore. We welcome
visitors, and our Parish Secretary will help you locate
specific memorials, if you should desire to do so.
Old
St. Paul's churchyard covers some 19 acres overlooking
a millpond produced by the damming of Broad Noc Creek.
Michael Miller, whose grave lies near the door of the
Church, sold the Vestry the original tract of about 8
acres of land out of his "Arcadia" holding on
February 6, 1696 for 2,000 pounds of tobacco. Within a
year of the sale, Miller returned the purchase price to
the Parish. Another two acres were added through a purchase
from Charles Ringgold in 1707. The remainder of the property
has been acquired in more recent times, much of it from
the Remington Arms Company. The churchyard is one of St.
Paul's most attractive features. It is extensively planted
and harbors over 40 different species of tree. It also
contains both English Boxwoods (Buxus sempervirens) and
American Boxwoods (Buxus suffruticosa), considered among
the largest and finest in Kent County. The churchyard
was once dominated by a grove of spectacular White Oaks.
Unfortunately, all but one of these trees have succumbed
to time and storms. The remaining example -- a Swamp Chestnut
Oak (Quercus Michauxwii) -- was designated a Kent County
Bicentennial Tree in July, 1976, by the Maryland Bicentennial
Commission. This Maryland species champion stands near
the main entrance to the churchyard from the parking lot
and is 120 feet high, has a circumference of 23 feet 7
inches, a crown spread of over 90 feet, and is over 400
years old.
The
majority of the marked graves in the churchyard date from
the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, but there are
a satisfying number from earlier times. The oldest section
of the churchyard is the section around the church, itself,
and many of the oldest graves are located quite close
to the building. One of the more colorful is that of Daniel
Coley who died October 20, 1729. His headstone reads:
"Behold
and see where now I lye,
As you are now, so once was I;
As I am now, so must you be;
Therefore prepare to follow me."
Local
tradition asserts that the casualties from the battle
at nearby Caulk's Field during the War of 1812 were buried
at St. Paul's. Unhappily, an archaeological survey of
the grounds conducted by the University of Delaware's
Center for Archaeological Research in 1992 failed to turn
up any supporting physical evidence. There are, however,
many other veterans' graves, including those of men from
Kent County who fought in the War Between the States.
Interested visitors will find two Confederate and three
Union soldiers buried in the churchyard, including 1st
Lieutenant Samuel Beck, Assistant Surgeon on the staff
of General John H. Winder, the Provost-Marshal of Confederate
Prisons. One modern grave that has occasionally excited
interest is that of Tallulah Bankhead, located near the
northeast corner of the "New Cemetery". A frequent
visitor during her lifetime to the nearby home of her
sister, Eugenia, she was buried at St. Paul's in 1968.
Enquiries about the churchyard or the cemetery may be
directed to the Parish Secretary during the week at 410-778-1540.
Cemetery lot sales are handled by Mr. Pete Dillingham,
who can be reached at 410-639-2695, or through the Parish
Office.
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