Upcoming August 2018 Cemetery Events and Activities

History Saturday in the Cemetery, August 11, 10:00-11:30am—This month we present, “The History of Orchards and Vineyards in Southern Oregon,” presented by Gail Nicholson and Pam Smith. The lecture will be followed by a short walking tour of gravesites related to the topic.

Tuesday Evening Cemetery Stroll, August 14, 6:30-8:00pm—Our stroll will focus on “Love Stories and Courtship,” featuring some of the residents resting in the cemetery and is presented by Vivienne Grant and Pam Smith. Donations are accepted as they help support our work in the cemetery and the educational programs that we offer.

All programs are free with no advance reservations required—meet your docents at the top of the Cemetery Road where parking is plentiful. Please wear comfortable walking shoes, a hat, sunscreen and insect repellent. Donations are always appreciated and help support the work of the Friends of Jacksonville’s Historic Cemetery in restoring and preserving the cemetery for future generations.

Please note: these are the final History Saturday and Tuesday Evening Strolls offered this year.

Marker Cleaning Workshop, Saturday, August 18, 9:00am-12noon—Join us in our efforts to help preserve these beautiful works of art for future Jacksonville residents and visitors to enjoy by removing dirt, lichen, moss and plant growth from these gravemarkers and other cemetery fixtures. All the necessary tools and supplies and instructions will be provided along with our gratitude and appreciation. We meet at the Sexton’s Tool House at the top of the Cemetery Road. Please bring a hat, sunscreen and remember to dress appropriately since you may get a little wet. You may want to bring a stool to sit on.

This photo taken during our June 2, 2018 workshop shows Ken Reynar, up on the ladder, and his wife Dee, cleaning the rather large and elaborate family monument for the Crain and Cox families. Also shown is John McGlothlin who helped clean the individual grave covers.

At the time the monument was being cleaned, we knew very little of the Crain or Cox family, but thanks to John McGlothlin, we now know much more. Joseph Allen Crain was born in 1831 and was an Oregon Trail Pioneer who arrived in Portland in 1851 and came to Jackson County in 1852. He came from Ohio and was accompanied by the John R. Tice, Andrew A. Davison and William Wright families from the same area of Ohio and Indiana. Joseph served in Company D of the 2nd Regiment of the Oregon Mounted Volunteers in the Indian Wars in 1856. He also ran a mule pack train between Crescent City and Jacksonville before he started to engage in cattle ranching. In 1861 Joseph married Susannah Wright, daughter of William Wright, one of the gentlemen who he crossed the plains with. In 1863 he was among prominent Southern Oregonians who paid a subscription (i.e. a stock option of sorts) to fund surveys for plotting a route for a railroad to connect California to Portland. In 1876, Joseph was elected for one term in the Oregon Legislature, representing Jackson County.

Joseph owned some 1800 acres of land both to the east and southwest of current-day Medford. He ran beef cattle and supplied milk to the new town of Medford. He also raised wheat. Max Muller, a Jacksonville merchant, operated a sawmill on Joseph’s property for a time. Joseph also operated a flour bin in Mendocino County, California.

When Joseph died in 1896 his estate was worth $512,000 in today’s dollars.

His son-in-law, John W. Cox, came to Oregon in 1881 and was in the cattle business with his father and also dealt in real estate in the newly-developing city of Medford. He married Elmira May Crain, daughter of Joseph and Susannah Crain, in 1892. She attended and graduated from the Ashland Normal School in 1883 and was a school teacher in Medford. In 1910, Joseph sold off his land and he and Elmira retired to Oakland, California with a reported estate valued at over $3 million dollars. There, they traveled extensively, especially to Alaska and Hawaii. We are pretty confident that John Cox honored his in-laws and his family with the beautiful monument and fixtures that adorn their block in the “City Section” of the cemetery.

We thank all our volunteers who faithfully show up each month and help clean these wonderful monuments to those who came before us.

Featured image: Crain and Cox Family Monument. Ken Reynar is on the ladder with his wife Dee Reynar and John McGlothlin below.
Photo by Mary Siedlecki.