Name/Title
Spanish cemetery : ContinuationEntry/Object ID
2021.59.33Tags
Library newspapersDescription
Spanish cemetery : Continuation by Joe Pickett. Part two of a 2 part series. This article was submitted to the Public Affairs Office of Naval Station Mayport for approval and publication in the Mirror, the Naval Station newspaper, no date noted. Part one of this series was published Oct. 27, 1989. Article with some corrections.
This article discusses the history of the old Mayport cemetery (not to be confused with the East Mayport cemetery). Mr. Pickett writes that the cemetery was as large as the old cemetery behind St. Joseph's Church in Mandarin. Many local residents shared information about family burials, location of grave sites and plat maps. But contrary to previous reports, most of the cemetery isn't on Navy property. He describes a huge oak tree that once stood where the jog in the west perimeter of the Navy fence is located today. In this area graves were located. The boundaries of the cemetery are noted and most are outside the Navy boundary. The last headstone to be seen and officially reported was that of George E. Brown who died at the age of 21 on Sept. 8, 1885. Stoddard Andreu and Barbara Mann Tuten used to put flowers on his grave. Most of the people will remain unknown. Except for the names of 33 Spanish soldiers and a brief church record about a Confederate veteran, no burial records were found. However, several Mayport residents provided names of a few antecedents buried here. Some of the names included Captain John Daniels and his wife Augustus Garcia who were Carmen Andreu Church's great grandparents and Mattie Brazele, eldest sister of Lillie Brazele Thomas. The cemetery was permanently closed to burials in 1889. The shifting sand and dunes has completely covered the cemetery. The Mayport church was abandoned in 1890 as sand accumulated until access to the church became impossible. During the next 3 decades, the cemetery lay undisturbed until Joseph Daniels and Joseph Hurlburt excavated a foundation hole for construction of a house. They found wooden crosses, headstones and human bones. The cemetery was again disturbed in the early 1940s when a contractor's bulldozer leveled the dune. Eventually all the remnants were covered with sand and the ancient oak tree removed. May they rest in peace.Collection
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Mayport (Jacksonville, Fla.) -- History., Naval Station Mayport (Fla.) -- History., Cemeteries -- Florida -- Mayport., Brown, George E., 1864-1885.Publication Details
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