Maria T. McHugh BLOG!!

Public Library card for
Maria T. McHugh

Grave of Maria T. McHugH

Pictured above is the gravestone of Maria T. McHugh. Her headstone is quite eye-catching with the flowered cross on top. On the side of her grave is a verse from the Bible: "I have loved, O Lord, the beauty of thy house and the place where thy glory dwelleth." Ps. 25-8. I have decided to research Maria T. McHugh who died May 29th, 1880 and was born on June 5th, 1812. I have decided to research her because her grave marker sticks out and shows that the people who buried her and designed this marker had a beautiful vision and much love and appreciation for her.

Miss Maria T. McHugh was born on June 5th, 1812 and died May 29th, 1880. She aged 68 years and died from old age. In 1861 there was a City of Charleston census prepared by Frederick A. Ford where he found that the total population in 1861 was 48,409. He gave a list of the different types of houses found in Charleston as well as the population of whites, slaves, and freed persons of color along with genders and ages. In this census, Maria T. McHugh is mentioned on page 37 of the census as living in a house on #77 Beaufain Street. Maria T. 

HcHugh was also mentioned on page of The Catholic Church in the United States of America where it says that "The church again fell into serious financial difficulties, and was extricated only by bequest of $4,000 made by Miss Maria T. McHugh." This quote from this book is saying that St. Marys Church had serious financial problems in 1869 and Maria T. McHugh helped the church out by giving them $4,000.

Unfortunately, there is not much information on Maria T. McHugh other than on the City of Charleston census, the Catholic Church in the United States of America, and the Yearbook of 1897 of Charleston. Unfortunately, I could not access the 1897 Charleston Yearbook online, although it did give me a sneak peak about her donation to the St. Marys Roman Catholic Church to get them out of their financial struggle.  

Research Proposal

I have decided to research Maria T. McHugh who died May 29th, 1880 and was born on June 5th, 1812. I have decided to research her because her grave marker sticks out and shows that the people who buried her and designed this marker had a beautiful vision and much love and appreciation for her.

B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L. Magnolia Cemetery

When I first walked into Magnolia Cemetery, I saw a family of geese just strolling on the path. The cemetery goes back as far as the eye can see, covering about 150 acres of land with around 35,000 people buried here. Magnolia Cemetery is a popular destination for tourists to go exploring, you can find more information on Charlestons popular Bulldog tours website. 

The cemetery has many curly roads covered in gravel, the trees are covered in Spanish moss giving the cemetery a very old look... probably because it is just that old! The cemetery has a park like design and about 2 ponds, which is why the geese were waddling around! 

click here for more
information 

This Mausoleum is quite fascinating and different from the other grave markers and mausoleums I saw throughout the graveyard. At first glance it looks like a small church, this mausoleum is a great example of 19th century Victorian necropolis. Patricia & Jack Lipinski wanted to make sure this was built so that their daughter had less to do in the event of their death, so they hired Jason Craft to build this massive work of art. From the stain glass windows on every side of the walls to the beautiful architectural features, this mausoleum has truly captured the eyes of many, including daughter Tara Lipinski (AKA gold medalist 1998).

Rev.I.E.H Seymoui was a pastor at a baptist church in Unionville, SC    and died January 17, 1861. His grave marker stuck out to me because of its height and unique top sculpture. A woman on her knees praying up towards heaven and over a reef of flowers,  and there is also a symbol of angel wings on his grave as well. The discoloration on this side of the stone was interesting, the fact that it was lighter in the one middle spot... easy for visitors to read the name. Usually the grave markers from this time period are hard to read, however this one was quite easy to see.

The Grave marker for the Jones family in Magnolia Cemetery was quite beautiful and

honestly breathtaking. On each side was a tribute to the family members, the mother, father and son, with a different detailed sculpture on the top part of the grave marker. Each woman on the sides tells a different story, they are faced different directions with different hand gestures and different quotes underneath them. They seem to be quoting a bible verse: Rev. 14:13 (son's quote), 1 Corinthians 15:52 (mother's quote) and Job 14:1. 

Overall, Magnolia Cemetery was a beautiful place with so many untold stories and unfound mysteries that lie far and wide. The layout of the grounds itself is quite beautiful and honestly very peaceful, being right on the march and having a couple bodies of water, the rich vegetation with old trees... man if those trees could talk! So much of Charleston history lies within this "plot", so many stories and more to come. The cool thing about graveyards is the fact that everyone in them all come from different backgrounds, and each person that lies in there is important in their own way. Each person here was very clearly loved and the families and friends of the deceased had different ways of showing their appreciation and love for their lost loved one. Magnolia Cemetery was an amazing sight to see because I was able to see and imagine the type of love and appreciation others had for their lost ones, which was pretty amazing.