FLINN GRAVEYARD
Wood Co. WV

Some Pioneer Graveyards of Wood Co. by John A. House

There is glamour round the story
How they clothed themselves with glory,
Settlers on these wild frontiers,
Planted homes and laid foundation
For the building of a nation,
Those hardy backwoods pioneers.
(J. A. H.)

One clear, bright day in mid-autumn, I visited the old
Flinn graveyard, on Pond Creek.  It was the 12th of October,
and the hills aflame with the different shades of crimson,
pine and yellow of the leaves, contrasting harmoniously with
the yet vivid green of some trees or branches.

The cemetery embraces a knoll lying by the creek bank, out
in the bottom from the road, which here follows the foot of
the hill on the right side of the stream.

This is one of the oldest graveyards in the Pond Creek section.
The burial ground has been a sort of private enclosure for the
Flinns, of Middle Pond Creek, and the Cross family of Cavin
Fork.  But many others of the pioneer families, and many
"outsiders" are resting inside its fence.  The Levi Cline of my
boyhood recollection, on Jerrie's Run, is buried here, but I
failed to find anything to show where his grave was.

The surface of the cemetery is fairly level, and occupies all that
is available of the top of the small section of land on which it
is located.

The second row in the southern end is Flinn and Buckley.  The
third row is the Cross family.  I noted the following names in
the cemetery:

Solomon Flinn, died October 6th, 1878, aged twenty years.  He
was a son of John and Phoebe Flinn.
Mary, wife of John Flinn.  Born May, 1849, died in her seventy-
fifth year.  (She was probably a second wife.)
Phoebe, wife of John Flinn, was born April 20th, 1816.  Married
in 1830 (says the marriage record) and died December 21st,
1861, at the age of forty-six years.  (From date of birth given
above, this would make her only fourteen years old when married.)
Solomon Cross was her father.
John Flinn died April 25th, 1893, at the age of ninety-two years.
This was "Old Johnny" Flinn of my knowledge.
John Flinn, 1840 - 1920.
Elizabeth Flinn, 1804 - 1911.

There is, at the south end of the Flinn row, and old blackened
marble slab, some three feet high, which has become loosened,
and has been reset.  Thus obscuring date of death.  Birth
October 26th, 1809.  In seeking the date of demise, I find I
neglected to copy the name, but think it was George W. Flinn.

Cross row, beginning at the north end:
Louisa M., wife of John Cross, died August 12th, 1872, thirty
years of age.  She was a daughter of George W., who was a son
of John Flinn, Sr.
Isaac Cross, Jr., 1842 - 1927.  He was a brother of John Cross.
Anna D., wife of Isaac Cross, died November 6th, 1874, age
thirty years.
Amanda J. Allen, daughter of Isaac Cross, June 30th, 1858.
(She was the wife of Major Allen.  *30th marked out and 5th
penciled in above it.
George W. Cross, child of I. and M. Cross, June 4th, 1854 age
two years.
Solomon Cross, April 17th, 1877, aged ninety-seven years.  Born
January 7th, 1780.  An obituary notice in the Ravenswood paper
gives his age as ninety-nine years.
Lovina, wife of Solomon Cross.  Born 1774 - died September
20th, 1850, aged seventy-six years.  (She was the first wife of
Solomon, and was mother of Isaac, Sr.)
Caleb Cross, born September 28th, 1817 - died December 22nd,
1848, in his thirty-second year.  He was a son of Solomon Cross.
Isaac Cross, born February 1st, 1809 - died June 12th, 1854,
age forty-five years.  He was also a son of Solomon.  Isaac Cross
married Morfana M. Bailey, of Little Pond Creek, in 1831.
Isaac Cross, June 5th, 1858.
Corintha, child of John and Mary Cross Clemons (Clem?).
Levi T. Gandy, March 12th, 1860, aged twenty-six years.  He may
have married into the Cross family.

Then I noticed other names:
Amanda, wife of T. H. Burche, December 9th, 1856, aged sixty
years.  I wonder if she might have been the mother of Theodore
and Martin Burche, of my Jerry's Run days.
Mary C., daughter of S. T. Riel, born February 7th, 1862, died
in 1880.  Riel was raised on the south fork of Lee Creek, and
married a widow Buckley, getting, or getting the use of, a part
of John Flinn's farm.  "Tus" Riel was a local politician and office
holder.
John B. Buckley died September 8th, 1856, aged twenty-seven
years.  Probably this was the John Buckley who was married to
Charity Flinn, in 1849.  Their oldest son, Solomon Buckley, has
been named for her grandfather, Solomon Cross.
Mary, daughter of William Buffington, December, 1878.
Samuel B., son of S. and E. Smith, August 8th, 1852, age eleven
years.
Dekalb, son of S. and T. Smith, January 27th, 1866, aged twenty-
seven years.
Isaac Smith, Co. I, 11th W. Va. Inf.  Both Isaac and Dekalb were
in the Union Army.
Solomon Buffington died May 21st, 1865, age fifty-six years.
(Born December 25th, 1808)
Mary, daughter of Solomon and Matilda Buffington, December
26th, 1852, aged seventeen years.
Elizabeth Jane, wife of John Folwell, July 20th, 1874, age twenty-
five years.
Sarah Lucretia Buffington, 1874 - 1911.
Emily, wife of R. Pryor, 1902 - aged forty years.
W. Eaton, May 7th, 1877, age twenty-eight years.
Mary Catherine, wife of Franklin Eaton, and daughter of William
and C. Beckett.  February 11th, 1884.

There is a graveyard and church on top of the point back of
Lucky's house, also, it is said, a graveyard on the Braham place
somewhere up the point from the schoolhouse.  A church
building was started here, but abandoned, and built a short
distance below Lucky's.

I did not visit the cemeteries.