Slott Cemetery, Albion, Illinois

Location: Albion, Edwards County, Illinois, USA
Surnames/tags: Slott Sloat Cemetery

The "Slott or Sloat Cemetery" (for many recent years mistakenly called the "Old or Original Pleasant Hill Cemetery") is located on a 1 acre plot of land on a parcel owned at the time of use by the Reverend James Slott/Sloat (he purchased the land in 1850). There are existing old records identifying persons as buried in "the Slott Cemetery" and also other records indicating the deceased were buried in "the Sloat Cemetery". The oldest tomb stone identified to date records a burial in 1853 so it is most likely that this land was first used as a cemetery by Rev. Slott/Sloat (assumption by DESloat). It was known in the mid-1800s as the Slott or Sloat Cemetery.

(Note that there are formal records where James signed his name as "James Slott" and other records where he signed as "James Sloat". So both surnames are also used fairly interchangeably here to enable capturing burial records searched using either of these two names.)

In the late 1960s the Edwards County historical society did a survey of the already deteriorating cemetery and made a list of the gravestone inscriptions they could find and read. Somewhere between the 1800s and 1960 the Cemetery became overgrown with weeds, young trees, etc. and continued to get overgrown until the 2010s - so it was very hard to access for many years. (See the email below concerning restoration of this historical site.)

In 2016-2017 Doug Cooper took photos of this cemetery and the grave stones that were visible and accessible. The 2016 list does not include all of the 1960 list as desecration of the cemetery/stones had continued, with many of the stone being knocked over, buried, defaced, etc. (see History letter below). However there are also a few stones that were photographed in 2016 that didn't show up in the 1960 list (so recent activity must have uncovered some stones that were hidden in 1960).

The following list includes the names from both lists with links to those buried here - and it also includes links to the 2016 photos of the stones where available. The complete collection of photos is available at Slott-Sloat Cemetery Photos.

History

I (David Sloat) was so excited in 1999 when I located the farm of my GGGrandfather (James Slott/Sloat)). I located the farm using old land purchase records (see his profile) and an on-line map program and noted a burial icon on the farm

James Sloat Property with grave marker.

which I thought at the time was just where James had buried his wife, my GGGrandmother (Barbara (Decker) Sloat) at her death in 1860. A few years after my discovery I had the opportunity to pay a short visit to the farm. I was disappointed that it was so overgrown - I could only see a tree-and-brush-covered mound. (See the Primary Photo at the top of this profile.) I posted my minimal finding with a map image on my genealogy page and moved on. Then recently (Dec 2017) I was contacted by the county historian for this area (see email below). I was surprised to find that it was actually a burial site for many of the residents in that area. James was a minister, so it made perfect sense to me that he would make a cemetery for his deceased neighbors, and for the families of his "flock" - and it would be close to where he lived.

Back during the 1980s as I was looking for my ancestors I connected by mail with Rita Mason and Terry Harper who helped me find info in the county archives. But as my life got busy we ceased communicating. Imagine my surprise in 2017 when I got an email from Terry Harper, the Project Director - History of Edwards County Illinois. An excerpt from his email dated 24 Sep 2017 describing his initial efforts to identify this cemetery and the glowing final success follows:

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The reason I crossed paths with the Sloat family again is rather serendipitous, but has ended up answering some questions, renamed a cemetery, and tied some families together, for me anyway.

This past week, a lady from nearby Bellmont (Wabash County) called my office and left a message with my office helper, Rita Mason, that she would like to find the burial location of her 2nd great grandpa, David Crockett Brock. I started researching him to see what I could find. I found his 29 Jan 1878 death recorded in Death Book 1, on page 3. [1877 was the first year birth and death records were recorded in Illinois and many of them were not recorded.] In the Burial column, I couldn’t immediately determine what it said. I could tell the second word was graveyard (abbreviated “Gr’y’d”), but the first word didn’t ring a bell among the known “cemeteries” of Edwards County. I kept studying the word, enlarging it until it became too blurry to read. I kept trying to decide if the first letter is “S” or “G” as they often looked similar during that time period. I finally, mentally, stumbled upon “maybe those letters are S – L – O – T – T”. Not having worked on your family for many years, I didn’t immediately recall that Slott and Sloat were both used by the family during that time period. I checked marriage records and found that when Theopholus married Martha Bailey in 1869 he is listed as “Slott”. So, I thought “Bingo! David Crockett Brock is buried in the Slott Graveyard.”

That sent me in search of where the Slott/Sloat family lived. I first checked the census records and saw that in 1860 they lived near the Thorn, Severns, Miller, Keeling, and Baughman families, so I had a general idea where they lived. I think that was when I did a Google search for James Sloat and found your information. When I saw your maps of the location of his land, I almost let out a yell. Because the cemetery on the property he owned has been in the news this year because of encroachment by the adjoining landowner/farmer. In more recent years (at least since the 1960s), this cemetery has come to be called “Original Pleasant Hill Cemetery”; most likely because of its proximity to the Pleasant Hill Church and cemetery...and people erroneously assuming that was the “original” location of the cemetery. That is a misnomer, as the church wasn’t even organized until 1895 and the first church building was erected in 1898. The earliest burial we know of in this cemetery (based on tombstone inscription readings from the late 1960s) was in July 1853. James Slott/Sloat had purchased the ground in December 1851, so apparently “Slott Graveyard” was the first name for this burial location....and possibly some member/members of the Slott family were first buried there?

The reason for the burials of some of the families in the “Slott Graveyard” now become evident....Brock (maybe related to the one wife), Severns, Thorn....and possibly others.

I will make every effort to correct the name of this cemetery to the “Slott/Sloat Graveyard” or the “Slott/Sloat – Bond Graveyard”. There are some later burials (one in 1890) in which it is referred to as “Bond” for a nearby family....and possibly they were the ones who then owned the cemetery. However, there is also a “Bond Cemetery” over near Bone Gap where many members of the Bond family are buried, so we have avoided, in recent years, calling this the “Bond Cemetery”....although there are early death records which list this cemetery as the “Bond Cemetery”. However, I am now certain there are likely no death records which call it “Original Pleasant Hill Cemetery”....although that moniker is now attached to it on cemetery inscriptions, in our county history books, and in recent news articles earlier this year. I’m very happy to now know the correct name for the cemetery/graveyard, but I regret it having been called the “Original Pleasant Hill Cemetery” for at least the past 50 years.

There are plans to have the one-acre cemetery surveyed and the boundaries marked with steel posts set in concrete; and also to clear away the weeds, vines, and trees which have overtaken it. At that time, other grave markers may be found which have been covered over for many years. Earlier this month, a couple of people went there to find the grave of Herby Mason, infant. While there, they also found the grave marker for an infant brother to Herby, which had not been recorded on the late 1960s transcriptions. So there are likely other markers which have not yet been located. Once all of this is done, I think it would be nice to get a sign made which gives the name of the cemetery as Slott/Sloat Cemetery.

I mentioned earlier, Rita Mason, who has worked for me for many years. She is descended from Benjamin Severns and his son, Byron Scott Severns. The Brock, Severns, and Lumm families came to Illinois from Ohio. The Brock family was from Scioto County, Ohio. When we published our 1993 history, I wrote some stories on the Severns family and placed them under the name of Rita Mason. If you don’t have copies of those stories, I can email them to you, since the Severns family ties in with your Slott/Sloat family. There is also a story in the 1993 history about Granville C. Miller which ties in with your Slott/Sloat family. I can email you copies of all of these if you don’t already have them.

My great grandparents, John A. & Tennessee (Johnson) Harper, later owned (ca 1890s to 1930s) owned part of the land James Sloat owned, including the land the cemetery is located on. Ironically, John A. Harper died in 1897 and was not buried in the cemetery on his land. The weather was terrible and the roads were muddy. But he was buried at the Elder Cemetery, which is about as far southwest of Albion as the Slott/Sloat Cemetery is northwest of Albion. So it was quite a trip for the burial. The 1907 plat map shows the west 40 acres owned by the John A. Harper Heirs and the west half of the east 40 acres owned by John’s widow, Tennessee (Johnson) Harper. It seems to me that the 1907 plat map has the cemetery drawn on the wrong parcel. I think it should be on the parcel owned by Tennessee Harper....which also makes sense because it shows her as owning 19 acres. The other one acre of this 20-acre plot was “reserved” for the Slott/Sloat Cemetery. I believe this location for the cemetery would also agree with the maps you have attached to your information.

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Help Needed

As I, (David Sloat - the originator of this Cemetery page in WikiTree) live in the Seattle area and don't travel much any more, I would appreciate any help other WikiTreers can provide with photos, a sketch/map of locations of each grave, any further information about the cemetery, etc. to make this cemetery profile more complete - especially as (hopefully) the "mound of small trees and brush" is becoming a respected cemetery once again.

Grave Stone Inscriptions

• The following table lists both 1960 and 2016 records of persons known to date to be interred in this cemetery. They are sorted by last name.
• Dates that are blank indicate that either the grave stone did not have that date, or that the date was/is illegible.
• Names with "__" are as reported by the 1960s crew - some of the stones were very hard to read.
• Birth dates preceded by * were not included on the grave stones, so are calculated from death date and age where available.
• Names preceded by a colored * were not in the 1960s list but did have a photo in the 2016 photos visit.

Name on Stone	Photo	Birth Date	Death Date	Age	1960 Notes	2016 Notes
Adison Baughman			1873 ?		"Son of I & E Baughman"
Isaac Baughman	[1]	21 Jul 1851	09 Jul 1853		"Son of J & C Baughman"
Isiah Baughman	[2]	* 05 Dec 1819	09 Feb 1873	aged 53 yrs 2 mo 4 days
Josiah Baughman	[3]	02 Apr 1854	15 Apr 1854		"Joseph Baughman - son of __ & C. Baughman"	"Josiah Baughman ..."
Rosetta Baughman	[4]	* 28 Jan 1881	01 Apr 1883	aged 2 yr 3 mo 5 days	"Dau of ___ Baughman"
Infant Bond			10 Oct 1860		"Dau of D & M Bond"
* Martha Bond	[5]		16 Aug 1859	Aged 32 ys 1 mo 26 days		"Wife of D Bond"
Mary A. Bond	[6]	* 23 Dec 1850	09 Aug 1854	"aged 3 yr. 7 mo. 17 das."	"Dau. of D & M Bond"
Moses Bond	[7]	* 25 Jun 1859	2 Jul 1859	age 7 days	"Son of D & M Bond"
Mary I. Boyd	[8]	22 Feb 1853	26 Aug 1876			(no other info on stone)
* David Crockett Brock		8 Dec 1842	29 Jan 1878			(no stone found - see his profile for his link to this cemetery)
Susan Brock		* 1 Dec 1853	12 Feb 1875	aged 21 yrs 3 Mo 13 das	"Wife of H O Brock"
Pearl H. Bunting	[9]	23 Jul 1908	06 Nov 1910	aged 2 yr 3 mo 26 das	"Dau of David & Della Bunting"
Elizabeth Byford		* 12 Apr 1818	12 Apr 1873	aged 55 yrs	"Wife of D Byford"
John T. Campbell	[10]	28 Jan 1825	05 Jul 1904
Joseph Campbell		13 Mar 1855	21 Apr 1886	aged 30yr 1 mo 8 das
Nancy A. Campbell	[11]	10 Jun 1832	03 Aug 1901		"Wife of John T Campbell"
Sarah Ann Campbell	[12]	09 Jan 1847	17 Oct 1861		"Wife of Wm D Campbell"
William D. Campbell		*10 Feb 1835	16 Dec 1876	aged 41 yr 9 mo 21 das
Florence Chalcraft	[13]	15 May 1890	30 Mar 1909		"Wife of John Chalcraft"
Charles Deavander		01 Jul 1883	19 Feb 1891		"Son of James & Martha Devander"
* M. E. K	[14]					(small stone with no other info)
Naomie Keeling		* 29 Mar 1819	13 Dec 1873	aged 54 yr 8 mo 14 days	"Dau of B W Keeling"
E. E. Manifold			25 Dec 1863		"Dau of Rev H & E E Manifold"
Euphem E Manifold		* 27 Jan 1833	29 Jan 1864	aged 31 yr 2 das	"Wife of Rev H Manifold"
Alva Mason		*23 Sep 1883	05 Oct 1884	10 mo 12 das	"Son of H & M A Mason"
Herby Mason	[15]	21 Sep 1888	05 Jul 1890		"Herbert Mason - Son of Henry Mason & Mary A Jones" (found 1980)	"Herby - son of H. C. and M. A. Mason"
Charlotte Miller	[16]	04 Sep 1838	10 Apr 1892		"Wife of F G Miller"
F G Miller	[17]	03 Jun 1827	20 Sep 1880
* Delbert J Miller	[18]	* 10 Apr 1875				(Small Stone with first name and initial only)
* Delbert J Miller	[19]		28 Sep 1876	1 yr 5 m 18 ds		(Main Stone with all but child's name)
* Maria Miller	[20]	21 Dec 1838	22 XXX 1882			"Wife of G C Miller"
Benjamin Severns	[21]	* 17 Apr 1830	24 Oct 1868	38 yr 6 mo 9 da	"Husband of U Severns"
Byron S Severns	[22]	29 Oct 1850	30 Jul 1914	63 yr 9 mo 1 da
James W Severns	[23]	23 Mar 1887	03 Jun 1910	20 yr 2 mo 11 da	"So of B S & Nancy V Severns"
Nancy Virginia Severns	[24]	12 Jan 1851	25 Dec 1897		"Wife of B S Severns"
Eliza Stapleford		* 13 Jan 1798	24 Oct 1856	58 yr 9 mo 11 da	"Wife of Thomas Stapleford"
Eliza A Thompson		* 07 May 1838	14 Jul 1865	28 yr 2 mo 7 da	"Wife of W R Thompson"
B T Thorn			29 Nov XXXX	XX yr 7 mo 4 da	"son of I B & N A Thorn - 6th Ill. Ca. Vol. Com. E."
Isaac B Thorn	[25][26]	23 May 1802	28 Jan 1871
Mary A. Vandaveer		19 Mar 1837	12 Nov 1857		"Consort of T P Vandaveer"
George Wiltsey		05 Mar 1832	25 Mar 1853		"Son of J & N Wiltsey"
* A. M. (Unknown)	[27]					(Small Stone with no other info)
* (Unknown)	[28]					(Very worn stone - illegible)

(There were 36 names noted in 1960 + 28 photographed in 2016 (of which 7 were not noted in 1960). Hopefully more will be found during cemetery restoration.)

WikiTree pages that link to: Space: Slott Cemetery, Albion, Illinois