An Ohio Adventure: June 11, 2013
Today was extraordinary, one that was to become one of my fondest memories. The day
would involve a visit to the Athens County (Ohio) Historical Society, then, a
serendipitous meeting with the current owner of my gr. gr. grandfather’s (Joseph
Hudnall) family farm, located near Albany.
The ride from Lancaster, my former home town, to Athens, and Ohio University, where
I had completed an undergraduate degree in social studies in 1962, was truly
beautiful. Accompanying me was my dear friend, James Hartley Smith (Jim), who had,
from the beginning of this project, been my confidant, encourager, fellow researcher, and
photographic expert.
I nostalgically noted familiar sites, e.g. the Hocking Canal. As we
approached the Athens area, I barely recognized the campus. I had been told that
the Hocking River had been relocated several years after I had graduated; but
the numerous campus “greens”or dormitory areas, revealed a landscape very new to
me. It was only when I, later in the day, strolled through the lovely over-200-years-old
campus green that I remembered the wonderful days I spent there as a student and
felt a nostalgic lump in my throat.
We set out early in the day eager to meet with Jessica Cryder, the Curator of the Athens
County Historical Society. I had previously contacted her regarding how to proceed in
donating the Hudnall family pieces that had been stored in my mother’s cedar chest for the
past 63 years: a 150+-years-old quilt of 36 squares created from the dresses and shirts of
members of the Joseph Hudnall family and their neighbors, hand-embroidered with their
names. A month earlier, I had sent the double-bed- sized quilt and 40 photographs from the
1800s of Hudnall family members to Jim, who painstakingly photographed the quilt and
scanned and restored the old photos. He then created a DVD containing the photographs of
the Hudnalls who had once lived on the Hudnall family farm in Alexander Township in Athens
Co. The photographs, some of which had been copies from tintypes, had been given to me by
my grandmother, Freta Hudnall Thompson Swartz, and are now restored by Jim Smith into lifelike photos
in beautiful sepia tones. The pictures gave heightened definition to the names embroidered
upon the quilt squares. I have always felt so blessed to have pictures of those people who signed
the quilt, but I wanted to know more; for some of the last names I did not recognize (until I saw
the 1845 plat map of Alexander Township wherein all farm owners were listed).
I was also donating my grandmother’s (Freta Hudnall Thompson Swartz) baby dress and shoes,
and my mother’s (Millicent Mae Thompson Hart) baby shoes. These treasures had
been stored in my mother’s cedar chest since the 1950s. (We) were treated to a
tour of the Historical Society and were told that it now contains over 60,000
donated artifacts from Athens County. I signed the donation forms and
transferred my treasures into history.
That day, however, I was also on another adventure, the primary purpose of which was
to locate the Joseph Hudnall family farm and family gravestones. In 1977, my
father, Raymond Hart of Lancaster, Ohio, had taken me and several members of my
family, to view several Hudnall family graves located on the farm in Alexander
Township near Albany. I remember visiting the farm, then owned by my mother’s
cousin who led us across a meadow, over an old wire fence and deep into the
thickly-forested Ohio woodlands. Foremost among the gravestones located at that
time was that of “Thomas Hudnall, Virginia Militia, Revolutionary War”. It was
notably marked with an American flag that my cousin related was placed on the
grave annually by a group of women. The second stone was that of his grandson,
Joseph Hudnall, son of William, and builder of a log cabin still standing
on the farm. Joseph’s wife Lucy (Reeves) and daughter Ruth were also named on
the gravestone. (See slideshow)
As a reference, it should be noted that in 2008, I had traveled to the area with
the intent of revisiting the stones, particularly that of Thomas Hudnall, whose
gravestone seems to be quite easily found online, and is always pictured with an
American flag beside it, but is not visible today. There were several stories written
by my gr gr aunt describing the day either Thomas or Joseph died (unclear due to
two papers). They wrote that one of them, or perhaps a neighbor, planted his riding
whip in the ground and declared that it would be Joseph’s grave location. Supposedly, the
tree grew huge and was, at one time, marked in paint with Joseph’s birth and
death statistics upon it. Later, it was said, a more permanent stone was
erected. NOTE: I will later add the picture of that tree with white painted
sign declaring that it was Joseph’s grave.
We headed out into Athens County with plat and paper maps, plus gps system; but to
our dismay, we came to a dead end. After turning around and deciding that we
were lost and unable to find our location, we saw a man sitting on a large
orange tractor, mowing the land along the gravel road. We stopped the car; he turned
off the machine; and then we told him: “We are looking for the old Hudnall farm
and the tombstones of the previous owners and family members.” What occurred
next was unbelievable to all parties involved. He told us, "I am the current
owner and there are a couple of Hudnall stones on my property," and I heard my
cousin’s last name mentioned as the seller of the property. And so it was that
we were introduced to the current owner of the 150-acre family farm who had purchased
it 17 years ago.
We met the owner back at the farm and began a walk across a newly-mowed meadow into
the deep, thickly-planted Ohio woodlands. We sited a large gravestone with the
inscription Joseph Hudnall (See slideshow). There were two other gravestones on the
ground (Wesley Hamilton and ...Hamilton and another stone whose monument had
been fronted with glass (child named Rosa Bolin, according to my Ohio cemetery records).
The glass had been long since broken and the name erased by time and weather. The photographs
we took were barely readable, as the stones were covered with dirt and dense foliage.
How beautiful it was to see the light coming in through the forest canopy creating shadows on
those gravestones; but it was sad to me that they were hidden and needed to be set upright and
repaired for historic value. How would anyone know they were there? That part of the
farm is, today, under the governance of the Alexander Township trustees...and they
may be able to furnish more information. It should be noted that there are several
graveyards within the farm properties named Hudnall and Bolin; their locations are obscure
and difficult to find. The stones may or may not be apparent.
We took a tour of the totally restored and renovated log cabin built in 1875. I walked
on giant sandstone steps, saw the out buildings for farm animals and was
mesmerized by the restored pond etc. The owner told us that he knew nothing of the
property's past. The root cellar was still intact, as was the old milking building (See slideshow).
I could not locate Thomas Hudnall, the Rev. War soldier's stone; I feel that it has been removed
and perhaps put in the West Union Cemetery, as is listed online in many sources. We did not have time
to go there to search for it. Perhaps next October when we are back in the area, we will be able to locate
it, when the leaves are off the trees and the brambles have disappeared. And the adventure continues...
Today was extraordinary, one that was to become one of my fondest memories. The day
would involve a visit to the Athens County (Ohio) Historical Society, then, a
serendipitous meeting with the current owner of my gr. gr. grandfather’s (Joseph
Hudnall) family farm, located near Albany.
The ride from Lancaster, my former home town, to Athens, and Ohio University, where
I had completed an undergraduate degree in social studies in 1962, was truly
beautiful. Accompanying me was my dear friend, James Hartley Smith (Jim), who had,
from the beginning of this project, been my confidant, encourager, fellow researcher, and
photographic expert.
I nostalgically noted familiar sites, e.g. the Hocking Canal. As we
approached the Athens area, I barely recognized the campus. I had been told that
the Hocking River had been relocated several years after I had graduated; but
the numerous campus “greens”or dormitory areas, revealed a landscape very new to
me. It was only when I, later in the day, strolled through the lovely over-200-years-old
campus green that I remembered the wonderful days I spent there as a student and
felt a nostalgic lump in my throat.
We set out early in the day eager to meet with Jessica Cryder, the Curator of the Athens
County Historical Society. I had previously contacted her regarding how to proceed in
donating the Hudnall family pieces that had been stored in my mother’s cedar chest for the
past 63 years: a 150+-years-old quilt of 36 squares created from the dresses and shirts of
members of the Joseph Hudnall family and their neighbors, hand-embroidered with their
names. A month earlier, I had sent the double-bed- sized quilt and 40 photographs from the
1800s of Hudnall family members to Jim, who painstakingly photographed the quilt and
scanned and restored the old photos. He then created a DVD containing the photographs of
the Hudnalls who had once lived on the Hudnall family farm in Alexander Township in Athens
Co. The photographs, some of which had been copies from tintypes, had been given to me by
my grandmother, Freta Hudnall Thompson Swartz, and are now restored by Jim Smith into lifelike photos
in beautiful sepia tones. The pictures gave heightened definition to the names embroidered
upon the quilt squares. I have always felt so blessed to have pictures of those people who signed
the quilt, but I wanted to know more; for some of the last names I did not recognize (until I saw
the 1845 plat map of Alexander Township wherein all farm owners were listed).
I was also donating my grandmother’s (Freta Hudnall Thompson Swartz) baby dress and shoes,
and my mother’s (Millicent Mae Thompson Hart) baby shoes. These treasures had
been stored in my mother’s cedar chest since the 1950s. (We) were treated to a
tour of the Historical Society and were told that it now contains over 60,000
donated artifacts from Athens County. I signed the donation forms and
transferred my treasures into history.
That day, however, I was also on another adventure, the primary purpose of which was
to locate the Joseph Hudnall family farm and family gravestones. In 1977, my
father, Raymond Hart of Lancaster, Ohio, had taken me and several members of my
family, to view several Hudnall family graves located on the farm in Alexander
Township near Albany. I remember visiting the farm, then owned by my mother’s
cousin who led us across a meadow, over an old wire fence and deep into the
thickly-forested Ohio woodlands. Foremost among the gravestones located at that
time was that of “Thomas Hudnall, Virginia Militia, Revolutionary War”. It was
notably marked with an American flag that my cousin related was placed on the
grave annually by a group of women. The second stone was that of his grandson,
Joseph Hudnall, son of William, and builder of a log cabin still standing
on the farm. Joseph’s wife Lucy (Reeves) and daughter Ruth were also named on
the gravestone. (See slideshow)
As a reference, it should be noted that in 2008, I had traveled to the area with
the intent of revisiting the stones, particularly that of Thomas Hudnall, whose
gravestone seems to be quite easily found online, and is always pictured with an
American flag beside it, but is not visible today. There were several stories written
by my gr gr aunt describing the day either Thomas or Joseph died (unclear due to
two papers). They wrote that one of them, or perhaps a neighbor, planted his riding
whip in the ground and declared that it would be Joseph’s grave location. Supposedly, the
tree grew huge and was, at one time, marked in paint with Joseph’s birth and
death statistics upon it. Later, it was said, a more permanent stone was
erected. NOTE: I will later add the picture of that tree with white painted
sign declaring that it was Joseph’s grave.
We headed out into Athens County with plat and paper maps, plus gps system; but to
our dismay, we came to a dead end. After turning around and deciding that we
were lost and unable to find our location, we saw a man sitting on a large
orange tractor, mowing the land along the gravel road. We stopped the car; he turned
off the machine; and then we told him: “We are looking for the old Hudnall farm
and the tombstones of the previous owners and family members.” What occurred
next was unbelievable to all parties involved. He told us, "I am the current
owner and there are a couple of Hudnall stones on my property," and I heard my
cousin’s last name mentioned as the seller of the property. And so it was that
we were introduced to the current owner of the 150-acre family farm who had purchased
it 17 years ago.
We met the owner back at the farm and began a walk across a newly-mowed meadow into
the deep, thickly-planted Ohio woodlands. We sited a large gravestone with the
inscription Joseph Hudnall (See slideshow). There were two other gravestones on the
ground (Wesley Hamilton and ...Hamilton and another stone whose monument had
been fronted with glass (child named Rosa Bolin, according to my Ohio cemetery records).
The glass had been long since broken and the name erased by time and weather. The photographs
we took were barely readable, as the stones were covered with dirt and dense foliage.
How beautiful it was to see the light coming in through the forest canopy creating shadows on
those gravestones; but it was sad to me that they were hidden and needed to be set upright and
repaired for historic value. How would anyone know they were there? That part of the
farm is, today, under the governance of the Alexander Township trustees...and they
may be able to furnish more information. It should be noted that there are several
graveyards within the farm properties named Hudnall and Bolin; their locations are obscure
and difficult to find. The stones may or may not be apparent.
We took a tour of the totally restored and renovated log cabin built in 1875. I walked
on giant sandstone steps, saw the out buildings for farm animals and was
mesmerized by the restored pond etc. The owner told us that he knew nothing of the
property's past. The root cellar was still intact, as was the old milking building (See slideshow).
I could not locate Thomas Hudnall, the Rev. War soldier's stone; I feel that it has been removed
and perhaps put in the West Union Cemetery, as is listed online in many sources. We did not have time
to go there to search for it. Perhaps next October when we are back in the area, we will be able to locate
it, when the leaves are off the trees and the brambles have disappeared. And the adventure continues...