I spent a most enjoyable day playing historic sleuth and running all over southern Ohio with Curator Jessica looking for (and finding) something I’ll write about when I don’t have white-line fever. I got a late start (what’s new?) and only made it just west of Covington, Ky.
I’ll tease you a bit with a quote: “I knew my grandfather about as well as any of his grandkids: I knew where he hid his whiskey.” When somebody tells you that over the phone, you HAVE to track him down.
One side trip was to the Athens Cemetery on West Union Street. Jessica challenged one of my ancient photos as not having been taken there. I, of course, had to prove I was right.
Erin and Jamie
While there, she took me to one of her favorite grave markers: one for two sisters, Erin Michelle and Jamie Leigh Downard. Erin was born in 1982 and died in April 1989. Her sister was born in 1984 and died in January 1989.
How did they die?
You have to wonder why two young sisters would be taken so close to each other. Was it a car accident? An illness? I guess that’s another one of those things I’ll have to look up the next time I get to Athens.
A sense of whimsy
This marker is unique, but not as heart-rending as the Downard sculpture. I’d love to hear the story behind the license tag etched on Kay Anne Blackburn’s stone.