The Burning Candle of Forest Park

Simmons-Eason Family Plot

Forest Park East Cemetery

Shreveport, Louisiana

This is a unique idea for a monument and it's placement within the plot. It's centered between two families plots, Simmons on one side and the Easons on the other. The monument itself is beautifully made: red granite flame, white marble candle/holder and a rough cut black granite base. The detail is amazing: a flowery vine twines around the candle and there is even a wax drip sculpted down the side. This is located right by the huge viaduct that runs through the older section (turn left as you enter the main gait and it's in front of the duct on the right).

Anything goes at Hasley Cemetery

Random Family Plots (and I ain't namin' names)

Hasley Cemetery

West Monroe, Louisiana

Hasley Cemetery is located in West Monroe, Louisiana on Arkansas Road. It's the cemetery where my dad is buried along with several other relatives, friends, and neighbors. The funny thing is the city of West Monroe seemingly has no zoning ordinances at all. You may see a great little neighborhood with charming houses, then a mobile home, a used car lot...or car junk yard. The same goes for Hasley Cemetery apparently. Several family plots have the addition of aluminum carport covers over them. I am not sure of the reason, I suppose it provides relief from inclement weather and protection of the grave itself. On the other hand I hate the cookie cutter style of cemetery where the flowers MUST be in a regulation style vase and no tchockes allowed. Personally I feel if you buy that real estate, it is yours to decorate however you please. But the covers, I dunno...it just looks like a "you might be a redneck if..." punchline to me.

A strange thing happened at the Strange Cemetery

Mathews Babies
Strange Methodist Cemetery
Strange, Louisiana


It's funny how you can live all of your life and think you know all about your family who belongs in it, but then you don't. My mom, sister and my youngest went what we call "cemetery hoppin'" early in the summer. My mom is the lone survivor of the Riddle family, the last one left behind, now the keeper of the family stories. My Aunt Grace, the most glamorous and an absolute clean-freak Riddle girl, had had two babies not make it much past their hour of birth. I had no idea until we were headed down the logging trails of the Jackson/Bienville/Natchitoches parishes and my mom said, "Let's go to the Strange Cemetery where Grace's and John's babies are buried." I had little cousins I never knew about! Well after zipping down this road and that, we finally found the way to the little Strange Methodist Church tucked away in a haze of driven over dusty roads and little hills and many trees. The old section is across the street from the church with a horse gate as point of entry. I was determined to get into this section even if it meant squeezing between barbed wire or scaling over the huge gate. I had to meet my cousin/babies! My mom could not remember where the little boys were buried, but I was grateful for the shady section in 100 plus degree Louisiana heat so I could roam the rows. Okay, too much about all the suffering I endure while grave walking, I did find the babies and I absolutely was enthralled at their tiny little homemade sandstone markers. I'd never seen markers like those and from what I remember about sandstone in geology 101, it will eventually erode away. When I took the shot of Billy G. Mathews and moved over to take the other baby's, my camera went a little nuts and kept taking photos with my finger off the shutter button. Okay, weird, never happened before or since...then I load the pics on my computer and guess what? The computer shut down not once, but twice. I then go to their Find-A-Grave memorial (someone had already done their page, but I added the photo), and my computer froze. To the left is one of the shots my camera took by itself. Here's the inscriptions from the graves:

Billy G. Mathews Infant of
Son of John John and Grace
and Grace Mathews Mathews
Born 1933
Aug 4 1935
Died
Aug 20 1935

Sometimes history repeats itself...

Svarvo Family Tomb

Forest Park Cemetery

Shreveport, Louisiana

My oldest daughter and I had gone to check in on my in-laws graves at Forest Park Cemetery in Shreveport, Louisiana. Heavy rains have made several of the cemetery's winding roads impassable in a low profile vehicle, so I was forced to take a different road out. My daughter yelled, "It's John-John!" Well, no, it's actually Carl Svarva, Jr. Carl's little salute was immortalized in marble forty three years before the beloved John F. Kennedy, Jr.'s salute toward his father's casket broke a nation's heart. Carl Jr. is buried between his parents, Carl (who changed his given name spelling from Karl to Carl) and Elizabeth Green Svarva. Here's the stats I could find on the Svarva family: Carl Sr. was born 15 November 1870 in Namsos Norway. He passed away 23 January 1918 (a possible Spanish influenze death, as I think anyone who died in 1918 did since I had two great grandparents meet that end). Carl's wife was Elizabeth M. Green Svarva and she was born in Georgia to a French father and German mother, and yes, this is the right date: 7 November 1846 making her fourteen years older than her husband. Carl (Karl) and Elizabeth married in 1895. The 1900 census has them listed together, as husband and wife, just as their tombs do. Carl has his occupation listed as a storekeeper and their address was 1929 Texas Road in Ward 4 of Shreveport. Carl is also listed in a Louisiana Supreme Court case Banahan Vs. Svarva (property dispute) which was heard two years after his death. Carl Jr. was born on 4 August 1915 and passed away in Calcasieu Parish on 4 June 1920. I will assume he was adopted since Elizabeth would have been 67 years old at his time of birth. Carl Jr. was no doubt loved and adored since it is his likeness featured on the family tomb. The engraved arch above his statue states: "Pappa's little man and Mama's baby." There is no record of the Svarva family in 1910. After the deaths of her husband and son, Elizabeth at age 73 alone is listed in the 1920 census as a boarder with a Morris family on Allen Avenue. She passed away on 8 November 1922.

UPDATE: An ancestor named Shannon commented below with corrections and additional information:

Shannon said...
Carl Svarva was the nephew of John Johnson who arrived first in this country from Norway. He was a green grocer. John Johnson was my ggg grandfather. As the family story goes, the little boy died of yellow fever and was much beloved by his adopted parents. The statue was ordered from Europe with the boys exact measurements and possibly even a death mask. It was supposed to be an exact likeness. He is wearing a WWI uniform, which is why he is saluting. Elizabeth Green was the sister of Ella Green, who married Carl's uncle, John Johnson. Carl Svarva got off the boat in NY with a postcard attached to his chest as to where he was to be sent. He arrived safely in Louisiana and began to make a life for himself. To provide even a little more history. Elizabeth Svarva was not a boarder with the Morris Family in the 1920 census. The Morris Family was living in Elizabeth Svarva's house. Mr. Morris was the butler and chauffeur for the Svarva family. When Elizabeth passed she was supposed to leave her wealth to a younger relative by the name of John Edward. To everyone's surprise, the Morris Family inherited everything. Elizabeth's family called on a lawyer to determine if anything could be done and apparently it could not so the matter was dropped legally. The Morris Family boarded with Elizabeth and the house on Allen Avenue was hers.