Etowah NC Heritage
  • Home
  • SPECIAL
    • Virtual Tour of Selected Historic Places
    • History Displays in Etowah & Library Notebooks
    • Etowah Heritage Day 2019 - 130 Years
    • Etowah Treasures Exhibit, Sept/Oct 2019
  • PEOPLE & PLACES
    • Maps
    • Memorabilia
    • Places, Early Homes, Other
    • French Broad River & Valley Views
    • People - early times
    • People - later times
    • People - Gash Family descendants
    • Veterans
  • HIST. I
    • Timeline
    • Maps - 1838 Formation of Henderson County
    • Etowah History Notes - Research To Date
    • 1889 Money, then Etowah
    • Etowah - Creek/Muskogee Translation
    • How Etowah Got Its Name
    • Postmasters 1889 - 1968
    • Etowah Train Depot - 1895 >
      • Trains of Etowah
    • The Railroad - Hendersonville to Toxaway
  • HIST. II
    • 1900 U.S. Census
    • Farms of Early Etowah
    • Historic Etowah High School 1928 - 1960 >
      • 1st Annual 1938 -The Chief
      • Little Chief - Gleanings from
      • Students & Faculty EHS
      • EHS Memorabilia
      • Etowah High School - Memorial Plaque 2014 - HCEHI
    • Historic Schools 1800s - 1928 >
      • Etowah Institute 1911
    • Schools of Nearby Communities
    • Historic Churches
    • Historic Cemeteries >
      • Thomas-Fletcher Cemetery
      • Adopt-A-Cemetery: Thomas-Fletcher
  • HIST. III
    • Sheriff Robert Thomas
    • Civil War Union Monument
    • Orr Cabin Homeplace - early 1800s
    • Mountain Lily - 1881
    • Welsh Colony 1880s
    • Grist Mills
    • Shape Note Traditions
  • HIST. IV
    • Community Fairs 1938-1941, 1950s
    • Stores of Early Etowah
    • McKinna General Store
    • More Business Ads 1938 - 1960+
    • "Etowah Brick" Moland-Drysdale Corp. - 1923
    • Calx Mfg. Company - 1919
    • Camp Peep-Out - 1935
    • Etowah Grange #984 - 1937 >
      • Grange - 25th Anniversary 1937-1962
      • Grange Quilt - 1953
  • HIST. V
    • 1952 - Hatheway Floral Company
    • 1954 - Etowah Lions Club, Park & More
    • 1960s - Growing & Changing
    • 1964 - Etowah / Horse Shoe Volunteer Fire
    • 1966 - Water & Sewer System, Tower
    • 1966 - Etowah Riding Club
    • 1982 - A Library Comes to Etowah
  • Stories
    • Eade Anderson, Reverend
    • Lois Adcock Bayne
    • Emma Louise Curtis Bradley
    • Richard Brown
    • Patricia Bell Cantrell
    • Jerri Whiteside Lambeth
    • Wanda Sumner Love
    • David S. Mallett
    • Opal Dalton Parkinson
    • Jeannie Huggins Revis
    • Glenda Maxwell Simpson
    • Marylin Annette Jones Thomas
    • "The Follies" & "Matilda's Folly"
  • About



THOMAS - FLETCHER CEMETERY
Est. 1865

​
Pleasant Grove Rd, Etowah

​Burials
Picture
Adopt-A-Cemetery
Caretakers

​John & Leslie Martino, Etowah
2014 - present

Contact Leslie @ 828-772-1932
​lbmartino@aol.com

NOTE: 
​private property access only

-  New Page in development 2022  -

THOMAS
Picture
Robert Thomas (1806 - 1865) and Susan Reese Thomas (1809 - 1885)
First burial, Robert Thomas, died April 22, 1865 in the Spring of 1865, murdered on the family farm homestead by a roaming band at the end of the Civil War.

Thomas is remembered for being the first appointed Sheriff of Henderson County earlier in his life, after Henderson County was established in December 1838. 

The Thomas Family Cemetery on the farm homeplace was established with the death of Robert Thomas.

There is no known image of Thomas or his wife Susan Reese Thomas who survived him by 20 years.  According to the Family Record, Robert and Susan were married in 1828.
More about the April 1865 murder
​of Sheriff Robert Thomas

Obituary of Susan Reese Thomas, from the Thomas Family Record.  Transcribed as printed, Courtesy of Henderson County Genealogical & Historical Society
" Mrs. Susan Thomas, widow of the late Robert Thomas, was born July 25th, 1809, and departed this life July 30th, 1885, aged 86 years and 5 days.  It was the writers privilege to have a long and intimate acquaintance with the deceased, an acquaintance reaching back over half a century, yea, I may say can't remember when I did not know "Aunt Susa," (as she was familiarly known.)  And these years have brought to her many sorrows and bereavements, but thank God they have also brought them the sustaining grace of God.  In the late war her afflictions and trials were extreme.  Two sons were called into their country's service, one of which never returned to brighten the home of his childhood, and amid the gloom and sadness of the closing out of the war she was left a widow to mourn the loss of a tender and affectionate husband, but under all these afflictions the God in whom she trusted was her stay and support.  "She feared the Lord from her youth," and in early life joined the Methodist church and lived a consistent member of the same to the day of her death, having fought a good fight and kept the faith and finished her course, she is gone home to receive the crown.   One son and one daughter, Mr. James L. Thomas and Mrs. Mary Osborne, still survive her, and numerous relatives and friends cherish her memory and hope to meet her in the "sweet by and by."  The funeral services were conducted by Rev. Mr. Neuton and the writer at the old homestead and family burying ground in the presence of a large congregation.  C. M. Greer.  Brevard paper please copy. "

​​Only one of the four Thomas children is buried in this cemetery, daughter Susannah "Susan" Matilda Thomas Fletcher (1843 - 1876).  It is her marriage to W. P. Fletcher that brought the Fletcher line into the cemetery.

Daughter, Mary Solome Thomas Osborne (1845 - 1928), is  buried in Oak Grove Cemetery, Transylvania County.

Two sons served in the Confederacy:
William Robert (1837 - 1865)
James Lafayette (1842 - 1918)

James survived the war and is buried in nearby Pleasant Grove Baptist Church Cemetery.  William died while a prisoner of war.
PictureJames Lafayette Thomas (1842-1918) Photo: ​State Troops and Volunteers, Vol. 1, Greg Mast, 1995, NC D of Cultural Resources, Div of Archives & History


​Civil War era photo of Robert Thomas' son James Lafayette

Included here because perhaps there may be a measure of likeness with his father Robert Thomas.  James'
 death certificate lists occupation as farmer. 




THOMAS - FLETCHER

​
Robert and Susan Thomas' daughter Susannah Matilda married W. P. Fletcher,
bringing the Fletcher family line into the cemetery.
​
Picture
William Pinkney "W.P." Fletcher (1846 - 1906)
Picture
William Pinkney "W.P." Fletcher (1846 - 1906). Courtesy of Henderson County Genealogical & Historical Society
Picture
Susan "Susannah" Matilda Thomas Fletcher (1843 - 1876)

​​William Pinkney "W.P." Fletcher  is descended from the Fletcher line  who founded Fletcher, Henderson County.  W. P.'s  father was Joakim Fletcher and his grandfather was John Fletcher.

Three of W.P. and Susannah's four children are buried here along with their spouses and children: 
  • Robert Jackson (married Rebecca Ann Hooker)
  • Joseph Pinkney (married Maggie Orr)
  • Susan (married Judson Wilson) ​

Susannah died in 1876 soon after giving birth to daughter Susan, two weeks before her 33rd birthday.
Picture
Minerva Shepherd Fletcher (1840 - 1925)
W.P. later remarried Minerva Shepherd.  W.P. and Minerva's one month old infant William P. is buried here.

Also buried here are Minerva's father, brother, nephew.  Also, possibly a daughter, Patty (Patcy).  (See below:  Shepherd and Garren)
Picture
William P. Fletcher (12 Oct 1895 - 18 Nov 1895)

Robert "Jack" Jackson (1867 - 1952) and Rebecca Hooker Fletcher (1868 - 1958)

​Along with Jack and Rebecca, two of their seven children are buried in this cemetery: 
​
  •  Infant George William  (Jul 1892 - Oct 1892) 
  • ​John Hooker Fletcher (1899 - 1951)
Picture
Picture
Robert Jackson "Jack" Fletcher (1867 - 1952). Courtesy of Henderson County Genealogical & Historical Society
Picture
Rebecca Hooker Fletcher (1868 - 1958). Courtesy of Henderson County Genealogical & Historical Society
Picture
George William Fletcher (Jul 1892- Oct 1892)
Picture
John Hooker Fletcher (1899 - 1951)
Picture
Courtesy of Evelyn Taylor Fletcher Holcombe
Picture
Courtesy of Evelyn Taylor Fletcher Holcombe
Picture
Courtesy of Evelyn Taylor Fletcher Holcombe


​Joseph Pinkney Fletcher, son of Susannah Thomas and W.P. Fletcher, married Maggie Orr
Picture
Joseph Pinkney Fletcher (1870 -1944)
Picture
Maggie Orr Fletcher (1874 - 1951)
Picture
Jessie P. (13 Oct 1896 - 15 Jan 1897)
Picture
Flossie L. (22 May 1895 - 18 July 1900)
Picture
Lillie B. (27 Nov 1897 - 13 Jun 1898)
Picture
Walter T. (23 Feb 1903 - 24 Feb 1903)

WILSON

Susan Fletcher, daughter of Susannah Matilda Thomas and W. P. Fletcher, married "Judd" M. Wilson.
Judd's death in May of 1969 was the last burial in the cemetery.
​​

Picture
Wilson Family Plot - Judson Madison Wilson (1880 - 1969) & Susan Fletcher Wilson (1876 - 1951) Children, both infants deceased in birth year: ​William W (1905), Lizzie Minerva (1916)
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Judson Madison Wilson (1880 - 1969)  &  Susan Fletcher Wilson (1876 - 1951)
Children, both infants deceased in birth year:  ​William W (1905), Lizzie Minerva (1916)

Picture​Patty [Patcy] E. Fletcher Garren (1881 - 1909)

​GARREN


​Patty Fletcher [Garren]
​
appears in the 1900 Census as Patcy Fletcher, living with her parents, William and Neny E. Fletcher, in nearby Crab Creek.

Is "Neny" Minerva, W. P.'s second wife?

​If so, Pattty [Patcy] is their daughter.
It seems likely since the burials are near each other.

It is not known at this time what is the first name of husband S. L. Garren and where he is buried.


SHEPHERD   /   SHEPPARD​
Picture
Picture
Eli Squire Shepherd (1815 - 1896) Gravesite marked "Father" [to be documented], father of Minerva Shepherd Fletcher and Benjamin David Sheppard
Picture
"B. D." Benjamin David Sheppard (Shepherd), (1846 - 1904), son of Eli
Picture
​​"L. J." Lee James Sheppard (Shepherd), (1893 - 1904), son of Benjamin

HAWKINS
PictureAltha L. (Althea) Reese Hawkins (1887-1948)



Picture
Two Infants: the children of Ellen Ann Fletcher Hawkins (d of Robert J & Rebecca Hooker Fletcher). Ellen was married to Deward Edward Hawkins Sr (son of Altha & Nelson J Hawkins). Ellen and Deward are buried at Shepherd Memorial Park.

ADDITIONAL BURIALS  -  TO BE ADDED
  • fieldstone graves, 6  
​​​
  • sunken graves, 2 unmarked in 1995 survey; located in 2021, marked w/fieldstones

NOTE:  The cemetery was identified incorrectly
as the "Fletcher Family Cemetery" in the 1995 publication,
Henderson County North Carolina Cemeteries, pg. 272,
Henderson County Genealogical & Historical Society.  
  • Home
  • SPECIAL
    • Virtual Tour of Selected Historic Places
    • History Displays in Etowah & Library Notebooks
    • Etowah Heritage Day 2019 - 130 Years
    • Etowah Treasures Exhibit, Sept/Oct 2019
  • PEOPLE & PLACES
    • Maps
    • Memorabilia
    • Places, Early Homes, Other
    • French Broad River & Valley Views
    • People - early times
    • People - later times
    • People - Gash Family descendants
    • Veterans
  • HIST. I
    • Timeline
    • Maps - 1838 Formation of Henderson County
    • Etowah History Notes - Research To Date
    • 1889 Money, then Etowah
    • Etowah - Creek/Muskogee Translation
    • How Etowah Got Its Name
    • Postmasters 1889 - 1968
    • Etowah Train Depot - 1895 >
      • Trains of Etowah
    • The Railroad - Hendersonville to Toxaway
  • HIST. II
    • 1900 U.S. Census
    • Farms of Early Etowah
    • Historic Etowah High School 1928 - 1960 >
      • 1st Annual 1938 -The Chief
      • Little Chief - Gleanings from
      • Students & Faculty EHS
      • EHS Memorabilia
      • Etowah High School - Memorial Plaque 2014 - HCEHI
    • Historic Schools 1800s - 1928 >
      • Etowah Institute 1911
    • Schools of Nearby Communities
    • Historic Churches
    • Historic Cemeteries >
      • Thomas-Fletcher Cemetery
      • Adopt-A-Cemetery: Thomas-Fletcher
  • HIST. III
    • Sheriff Robert Thomas
    • Civil War Union Monument
    • Orr Cabin Homeplace - early 1800s
    • Mountain Lily - 1881
    • Welsh Colony 1880s
    • Grist Mills
    • Shape Note Traditions
  • HIST. IV
    • Community Fairs 1938-1941, 1950s
    • Stores of Early Etowah
    • McKinna General Store
    • More Business Ads 1938 - 1960+
    • "Etowah Brick" Moland-Drysdale Corp. - 1923
    • Calx Mfg. Company - 1919
    • Camp Peep-Out - 1935
    • Etowah Grange #984 - 1937 >
      • Grange - 25th Anniversary 1937-1962
      • Grange Quilt - 1953
  • HIST. V
    • 1952 - Hatheway Floral Company
    • 1954 - Etowah Lions Club, Park & More
    • 1960s - Growing & Changing
    • 1964 - Etowah / Horse Shoe Volunteer Fire
    • 1966 - Water & Sewer System, Tower
    • 1966 - Etowah Riding Club
    • 1982 - A Library Comes to Etowah
  • Stories
    • Eade Anderson, Reverend
    • Lois Adcock Bayne
    • Emma Louise Curtis Bradley
    • Richard Brown
    • Patricia Bell Cantrell
    • Jerri Whiteside Lambeth
    • Wanda Sumner Love
    • David S. Mallett
    • Opal Dalton Parkinson
    • Jeannie Huggins Revis
    • Glenda Maxwell Simpson
    • Marylin Annette Jones Thomas
    • "The Follies" & "Matilda's Folly"
  • About