Last week, in the initial part of this article there was a promise of more cemetery information, a schedule of activities for the Friends of Pentwater Township Cemetery (PTC) and some interesting stories from Ron Beeber’s presentation.
Beeber’s virtual tour has approximately 50 stops where he shares commentary, including the headstones for Don Lamb, who was village marshal (chief of police) for many years; Charles Nickerson, who built the famous Nickerson Inn; Willie Brillhart, who died in 1860 at age 2 and was the first burial in the original cemetery; Florence Schrumpf, who wrote a detailed history of the village from 1853 to 1942; and Peter Lagesen.
Lagesen was one of several merchants who was also an undertaker as well as a furniture maker. Beeber explained the combination was common because furniture makers had coffins on hand for when they were needed. One of Lagesen’s advertisements said, “When death claims someone near and dear, and leaves a vacant chair…No human voice, nor human art, can that great loss repair…In a dread moment such as this, I am at your command…Arrangements for the funeral, I will make with tactful hand.”
Beeber’s information was gleaned from a variety of sources, including 20 years’ worth of Pentwater Historical Society newsletters posted on its website under the “Research” heading, a book published in 1860 about businessmen in Pentwater, the Pentwater Township website and the Friends of PTC Facebook page. The following are a few more notable graves that are part of his presentation.
One might suspect that the quaint and charming Village of Pentwater has a peaceful history, free from the violence that has marked larger urban areas. But the headstones of William B. O. Sands (plot 2/43) and the Minshall Family (plot 13/93) tell a tragic tale from 1897.
William Sands was a wealthy businessman who served several years as the village president. He introduced an insurance agent, S. Minshall, to fellow merchants who then became clients of Minshall. Whether fact or fiction, Minshall suspected Sands of withholding funds from the policy sales he had helped Minshall to make. In his anger, Minshall followed Sands to his home after work one evening and shot him on his front steps, leaving him for dead. In fact, Sands survived the night but died the following day. Not wanting his family to suffer the fallout of his murderous deed, Minshall went home and took the lives of his wife, Eva, and their three children, Ruby (16), George (3) and Frank (2), before taking his own. Some surmise he is buried in the plot with his family, but his name is not included on the headstone.
Not far from the Minshall family plot is a headstone for Ralph Sandy (plot 13/125), a local hero who died at the early age of 29 in 1987. He spotted a 79-year-old man struggling to stay afloat in the frigid (36 degrees) Lake Michigan water and rowed out half a mile to pull the man to safety. After Sandy missed work for two days, his father went to check on him and found he had died. His death was attributed to exhaustion from his rescue efforts on top of an existing heart issue.
The Pentwater Historical Museum has a display of delicate and whimsical glass figurines made by resident Henry Carter Johnson. Johnson fashioned them from heated glass rods in the back of Bailey’s Hardware Store (now Craze). He is buried in plot 17/22.
And then there is Clyde Cross, another true hero, buried in plot 18/29. When the freighter Novadoc was destroyed in a storm near Juniper Beach, the Coast Guard declared conditions were too severe to assist. But Cross and two companions fought their way out and strung “a zip-line” from the shoreline, where onlookers watched, to the sinking ship and were able to rescue all but two of the crew members.
If this brief sampling of stories from Pentwater’s history captures your interest, there are opportunities to dig deeper into the history at the cemetery. The Friends of PTC are sponsoring a cemetery stroll on Friday, July 24, at 10 a.m., and the Pentwater Township Library has invited Beeber to share his slide presentation, “A Virtual Stroll Through the Pentwater Township Cemetery,” twice during Homecoming. Those presentations are scheduled for Aug. 11 at 1:30 p.m. and Aug. 12 at 10:30 a.m. at the library.
Steve and Sue Thomas, members of the Friends of PTC, shared some of the group’s scheduled upcoming events. “America 250 Pentwater: From Revolution to Community” is the theme for the fall tours scheduled on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and Sunday, Sept. 27 at 1 p.m.; dedication of the Native American Marker is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 10; flag placement on veterans’ graves occurs on Sunday, Nov. 8 at 1 p.m.; and Wreaths Across America Day is Dec. 19 with a ceremony at noon at the cemetery. The Friends of the PTC make sure each of the 376 veterans buried in the cemetery are honored with a wreath.
The Friends of the PTC work in concert with the Dunes Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Pentwater Township Office, both of which contribute funds needed for the cemetery. The township is responsible for maintaining the cemetery property, selling and keeping records of all the cemetery plots and scheduling internments. Township Clerk Maureen Murphy handles sales and records. Prices and a map of the cemetery are on the township's website, organized by sections and lots. She reports, “We average 25 internments a year. We currently have 144 columbarium niches, and three of our 25 blocks are reserved for cremains only since nearly 95% of internments are cremains as opposed to traditional burials.”
The cemetery sexton is responsible for groundskeeping and opening and closing gravesites. The current sexton is Chris Bailey. He shares, “My father (Roger Bailey) began serving as sexton in 1992 or 1993, after retiring from the DNR and moving to Pentwater in 1990. He held the position until the end of the 2000 season. He was 65 when he left the job…I took over the role in 2008.”
Bailey said he does his best to keep the grounds in beautiful condition. With scattered benches for resting and reflecting, it is a lovely place to stroll.
Following up on information in Part 1, Larson wished to clarify that Pentwater Township, not the Friends of PTC as was reported, purchases the veterans’ metal flag holders, and markers for the veterans of the War of 1812 were installed last year by the Stephen Preston Chapter, National Society Daughters of 1812. Larson also wanted to credit Murphy and Supervisor Lynne Cavazos for their role in working with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to obtain the headstone for Civil War veteran Justus Koon.
To locate gravesites, please contact Maureen Murphy at 231-869-6231 ext. 227. To participate in or financially support projects of the Friends of the PTC, contact Shannon Larson at friendsofpentwatertwpcemetery@gmail.com.
