My Family in Prairie Home Cemetery, Part III

Three generations of my Grandma's maternal line rest in the Prairie Home Cemetery north of Diller, Nebraska including her parents, Clarence and Cora Mann, and her Grandparents Charles and Henrietta Gaisford. Eight of the 11 children born to Charles and Henrietta are also buried there - Mary Ann Gaisford, Anna Fielder, Emma Carpenter, Carrie Gaisford, Cora Mann, Nellie Gaisford, William Gaisford and Gladys Amos. Son Charles is buried in Oklahoma, and daughter Gertrude Weaver lies in the Evergreen Home Cemetery in Beatrice 20 miles away. An infant daughter Ella was buried in the Old Beatrice Cemetery, the first death in the family after moving to Nebraska. Carrie and Nellie also passed on before the parents. The remains of over 30 direct descendants of Charles and Henrietta are interred in the Prairie Home Cemetery.

There is one large family stone with GAISFORD engraved on it, and then there are small stones to the side of that for each of them simply inscribed "FATHER, Charles, 1842-1920" AND "MOTHER, Henrietta, 1848-1932". 

Henrietta moved away from "home" in Worcester, Massachusetts about 1869 and likely never went back. She outlived her three sisters and one brother, the brother dying just months after his birth which took the life of their mother when Henrietta was 18. Her lineage can be traced back to early colonial days in America, even doubly related to Henry Burt who was here by 1667. Hope Cemetery in Worcester, Massachusetts is the place of burial for Henrietta's parents, but the graves are not marked. 

Charles came from England about 1856 at about 14 years of age. He died January 20, 1920. The census taker came around on February 5th and as per the instructions, Charles was listed as living there on January 1, 1920. Nine of their children were living at his death, all but one in the vicinity. Three of his brothers survived him: William of Minonk, Illinois, Gehu of Council Bluffs, Iowa and Samuel, also of Diller. Sam, and one sister Hannah Pickard, are also buried in the Prairie Home Cemetery along with other members of their families. Charles' parents rest in the Minonk Township Cemetery, Minonk, Illinois. 

At the time of Charles' death, his daughter Cora Mann was pregnant with twins, though she didn't know that at the time. My Grandma was one of those twins.