Rainy Visit to Magnolia Cemetery

 

It had been a while since I’d been to Charleston’s Magnolia Cemetery. I had the itch to go after seeing recent bird photos posted on the Facebook site, “Magnolia Cemetery Photographers Group.”

The forecast looked wet but we decided to go anyway. When it began to pour I took several pictures through the open car window. This is the iconic Smith Pyramid, an ancient Egyptian-influenced mausoleum erected for wealthy banker William Burrough Smith after his death in 1894. 

Another favorite site here is that of Annie Kerr Aiken (1853-1856). Her ornate box tomb is among more than two dozen graves in the large partially fenced Aiken-Martin plot near the back pond. 

“Little Annie” was a month shy of 3 when she passed in 1856 of the throat disease diphtheria. The child depicted in the sculpture isn’t necessarily a likeness of her, though it could be. 

Ever since I’ve been coming to Magnolia Cemetery (15 years now) there have been small items placed here by her fans, people like me who also admire this beautiful and poignant bit of artistry commissioned no doubt by her loving parents. 

Note the yellow ducks at her feet. Someone even put a tiara on Annie’s head. What a thoughtful gesture! 

In this rain, she could use a blanket, but Little Annie has slept through worse, including countless hurricanes and tropical storms. 

Her parents, Joseph and Ellen Aiken, are buried in this plot near their precious daughter. 

Author to Author

 

What a pleasure to recently meet fellow author (and tennis enthusiast!) Angela Williams, who in 2014 published her excellent and enlightening memoir “Hush Now, Baby.” (Amazon sale site here)

We connected during the summer and decided to meet in person. At a Mt. Pleasant Starbucks, we had a long chat and exchanged and signed our books for each other. (link here to my latest)

Angela is a longtime educator and retired English professor and writing lab director at The Citadel. She grew up in Berkeley County where three generations of her family founded and owned Williams Farm Supply in Moncks Corner. 

From her birth to her wedding day, Angela had a very close, supportive and loving relationship with her family’s live-in nanny/housekeeper/cook Eva Aiken. 

When we met I told Angela her book reminded me of the popular 2011 film, “The Help” which depicts the lives of Black women working at White family homes in Mississippi in the 1950s-1960s. 

Angela told me that the movie triggered her to write “Hush Now, Baby” because the film was nothing like her own experience. 

I recently completed this fine book. Angela provides such interesting details about her life in the Lowcountry from the early 1940s to the mid-1960s. 

In my book, her book is a five star read! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️