Weeping trees on grave-stones

[wilcoxon]

FATAL ACCIDENTS AT BANGOR
North Wales Chronicle (Bangor, Wales), Saturday, May 20, 1876

John Jones , stone and marble mason of Menai Bridge was killed while adjusting a pulley at his employers Messrs J Thomas & Son`s slate and enamel works Bangor.
He was ` caught by the machinery and whirled round the shafting once, and when his fellow workmen ran to his assistance he was held fast to the shafting and was quite dead ` It took ten minutes to get the body down.
Poor man 
 I wonder if J Thomas & Sons did any of the gravestones we are looking at.

[midmum]

Hi,

The website is  www.rhiw.com and it contains lots of information on local people and their chapels.

Another thought about the emblem being the masons " mark". In the Vale of Belvior, Leics, there is a Belvoir Angel on some stones and it is thought that it is the work of only two stone masons. It is apparently only found within this area so it may be that willows are only common to this area.

One of the headstones I pictured with the Willow was from 1915 so it has been used for a relatively long period.

[Plummiegirl]

The tradition of planting Weeping Willows in trees go back to I believe medieval times.  I know that the best Bows were made of Yew, but I think Willow was also used.

At this time every capable man & boy was expected to practice his archery in case of war (which was not unusual).  I think the poorer people used Willow & the rich Yew.  You will find both in Churchyards, where they do not take up valuable farming/grazing land.

[Ll20021]

Hi! I've just finished looking through a graveyard in Delta, Pennsylvania (US) which also has many beautiful slate headstones with the weeping willow motif and inscriptions in Welsh. Many came from Wales to work the slate here. I googled it to see if it was a predominantly Welsh thing and discovered this site!  Wish I knew how to upload a couple photos of the stonework.

[Lydart]

Welcome to RootsChat from Wales !    Bora da !!

We are a friendly lot; you can upload photos to this site BUT they mustn't be too big.   Search and you will find how to do it !

[wilcoxon]

Welcome, I found this interesting site with some photos.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/peach-bottom-slate-region

[PeteRae]

Hi Lydart,
realise this is a very old thread, but, as a memorial mason, I'd like to put my tuppence worth in...
The Palm trees are a Christian symbol...Palm Sunday...
On your third photo at the start of the thread there is a figure, normally The Good Shepherd (Jesus) kneeling under the Palm Trees in front of a broken column. This is broken which indicates the death of a young person ie one who did not reach 3 score years and 10. Each Stonemason would have a section of designs which they favoured, all variations on a theme.
As far as Masons marks, it would be extremely unusual for one to be anywhere on a family memorial. A building or public monument yes, and even then only near the bottom.
As an aside, I've swam in the water under the Britannia bridge when doing a Rescue Boat course with the Scottish Fire & Rescue Service....great fun!

[mhac]

https://www.funeralhelpcenter.com/cemetery-headstone-symbols-weeping-willow-tree/#:~:text=For%20these%20reasons%20and%20more,resurrection%20of%20the%20soul%2C%20etc

[Viktoria]

The tradition of planting Weeping Willows in trees go back to I believe medieval times.  I know that the best Bows were made of Yew, but I think Willow was also used.

At this time every capable man & boy was expected to practice his archery in case of war (which was not unusual).  I think the poorer people used Willow & the rich Yew.  You will find both in Churchyards, where they do not take up valuable farming/grazing land.


Yew is poisonous to animals, before the enclosures act land was not fenced into fields,so animals could eat Yew and would die,
The only place in a village that was enclosed was the Churchyard ,so Yews were planted there away from livestock .
Each peasant had a strip of the various kinds of land, heavy ,light,clay, wet dry etc.
iIt was an attempt to be fair and people moved to other strips every year so in time every family had some bad strips and some good ones, on a rota system.
Viktoria.