An article describing the accident that caused the death of John V. Matthews was published in the Wednesday, May 27, 1857 issue of the Eastport, Maine Sentinel, Volume 39, Number 31. This article is transcribed here in its entirety:
Melancholy Accident
Mr. John V. Matthews was drowned in East Bay (Perry) on Wednesday forenoon of last week. Mr. Matthews was going up the bay when a squall of wind struck the boat, and, it is supposed, filled her with water, causing her to sink at once.
Some boys on a hill a considerable distance off saw the disaster and also observed that Mr. Matthews sank with the boat. -- They immediately gave the alarm in the neighborhood, and a boat was sent out to the spot -- as near as could be ascertained -- where the accident occurred. The ebbing of the tide revealed the top of the mast of the sunken boat, and the boat was dragged ashore. The body was found at low water, near the place where the boat sank. The deceased was twenty six years of age, and was an industrious and promising young man. He leaves a wife and one child. Greatly afflicted must be the poor wife whose present joys, and anticipation of future happiness are so suddenly blighted.
I visited the Frost Cemetery on July 13, 2010 and again on July 30, 2012.
The Frost Cemetery is listed as Location No. 31 in the book At Rest in Perry, Maine compiled by Jeanne O'Shea Wagner and Colon S. Morrison. That book states that the Frost Cemetery is located on the Willard Frost property on Route 1 in Perry, Maine. The book includes a map of Perry showing the location of the various cemeteries listed in the book.
The directions on page 65 are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. The rest of the description and the map on page iv, however, are not correct.
As indicated above, the directions on page 65 of the book are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. But the map set forth on page iv is badly misleading. The location of site No. 31 for this cemetery, as shown on the map, is wrong. Moreover, the small house and vegetable stand mentioned in that description no longer exist.
I stopped along Route 1 and knocked on the door of a home across the street from where the map indicated that Site No. 31 and the small house and vegetable stand should have been located. I asked the gentleman who answered the door about the Frost Cemetery and the Willard Frost property. He indicated no knowledge of either one but directed me to a handsome new home up on the hill about a mile down the road. He told me that the owner was a Mr. Lee Corbett who was a veteran, was something of a town historian and should be able to help me out.
Mr. Corbett was most gracious when I knocked on his door. The address indicated by the number on the mail box is 528 U.S. Rte. 1. On the date of my first visit, July 13, 2010, Mr. Corbett appeared to be in his late 60s or early 70s. He took a while to answer the door, walking slowly with a limp and with the help of a cane. His home can be seen in one of the accompanying photographs.
He invited me to sit with him at his kitchen table where I handed him a copy of the map and the Frost Cemetery description from page 65 of the book. He didn't say much, just studied the map and description, threw his hat on the table, leaned back in his chair and pondered. He then pushed back from the table to stand up and asked me if I could take a walk. I said sure. He exchanged his flip flops for sturdier shoes and led me out the door to an orange tractor that can be seen in some of the photographs that I have uploaded to some of the memorials for persons interred in this cemetery. He climbed onto the tractor and drove off with me following behind him.
Facing the property from the street, he took me along a grassy path to the right and then angling to the left up the hill. After traveling some 200 feet, he stopped the tractor and, without saying anything, stared off to our left into the woods and undergrowth. I looked where he was looking and didn't see anything except bushes and trees at first. As my eyes adjusted to the relative dark, I began to see a few grave stones. He commented that a lot of people didn't like to be in or near cemeteries.
As can be seen from the photographs that I have placed on the various memorials of persons interred in this cemetery, the cemetery was badly overgrown with trees, and the gravestones were either over-turned or completely covered by moss, leaves and bushes. I could not find some of the stones mentioned in the description of site No. 31 in the book.
Upon my return July 30, 2012, there had been a transformation. As can be seen from the accompanying photographs, the trees had been cut down, the brush cleared away and the stones both set upright and cleaned. Credit clearly is owed to Mr. Corbett.
Written by Charles Carter Morgan
Melancholy Accident
Mr. John V. Matthews was drowned in East Bay (Perry) on Wednesday forenoon of last week. Mr. Matthews was going up the bay when a squall of wind struck the boat, and, it is supposed, filled her with water, causing her to sink at once.
Some boys on a hill a considerable distance off saw the disaster and also observed that Mr. Matthews sank with the boat. -- They immediately gave the alarm in the neighborhood, and a boat was sent out to the spot -- as near as could be ascertained -- where the accident occurred. The ebbing of the tide revealed the top of the mast of the sunken boat, and the boat was dragged ashore. The body was found at low water, near the place where the boat sank. The deceased was twenty six years of age, and was an industrious and promising young man. He leaves a wife and one child. Greatly afflicted must be the poor wife whose present joys, and anticipation of future happiness are so suddenly blighted.
I visited the Frost Cemetery on July 13, 2010 and again on July 30, 2012.
The Frost Cemetery is listed as Location No. 31 in the book At Rest in Perry, Maine compiled by Jeanne O'Shea Wagner and Colon S. Morrison. That book states that the Frost Cemetery is located on the Willard Frost property on Route 1 in Perry, Maine. The book includes a map of Perry showing the location of the various cemeteries listed in the book.
The directions on page 65 are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. The rest of the description and the map on page iv, however, are not correct.
As indicated above, the directions on page 65 of the book are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. But the map set forth on page iv is badly misleading. The location of site No. 31 for this cemetery, as shown on the map, is wrong. Moreover, the small house and vegetable stand mentioned in that description no longer exist.
I stopped along Route 1 and knocked on the door of a home across the street from where the map indicated that Site No. 31 and the small house and vegetable stand should have been located. I asked the gentleman who answered the door about the Frost Cemetery and the Willard Frost property. He indicated no knowledge of either one but directed me to a handsome new home up on the hill about a mile down the road. He told me that the owner was a Mr. Lee Corbett who was a veteran, was something of a town historian and should be able to help me out.
Mr. Corbett was most gracious when I knocked on his door. The address indicated by the number on the mail box is 528 U.S. Rte. 1. On the date of my first visit, July 13, 2010, Mr. Corbett appeared to be in his late 60s or early 70s. He took a while to answer the door, walking slowly with a limp and with the help of a cane. His home can be seen in one of the accompanying photographs.
He invited me to sit with him at his kitchen table where I handed him a copy of the map and the Frost Cemetery description from page 65 of the book. He didn't say much, just studied the map and description, threw his hat on the table, leaned back in his chair and pondered. He then pushed back from the table to stand up and asked me if I could take a walk. I said sure. He exchanged his flip flops for sturdier shoes and led me out the door to an orange tractor that can be seen in some of the photographs that I have uploaded to some of the memorials for persons interred in this cemetery. He climbed onto the tractor and drove off with me following behind him.
Facing the property from the street, he took me along a grassy path to the right and then angling to the left up the hill. After traveling some 200 feet, he stopped the tractor and, without saying anything, stared off to our left into the woods and undergrowth. I looked where he was looking and didn't see anything except bushes and trees at first. As my eyes adjusted to the relative dark, I began to see a few grave stones. He commented that a lot of people didn't like to be in or near cemeteries.
As can be seen from the photographs that I have placed on the various memorials of persons interred in this cemetery, the cemetery was badly overgrown with trees, and the gravestones were either over-turned or completely covered by moss, leaves and bushes. I could not find some of the stones mentioned in the description of site No. 31 in the book.
Upon my return July 30, 2012, there had been a transformation. As can be seen from the accompanying photographs, the trees had been cut down, the brush cleared away and the stones both set upright and cleaned. Credit clearly is owed to Mr. Corbett.
Written by Charles Carter Morgan
An article describing the accident that caused the death of John V. Matthews was published in the Wednesday, May 27, 1857 issue of the Eastport, Maine Sentinel, Volume 39, Number 31. This article is transcribed here in its entirety:
Melancholy Accident
Mr. John V. Matthews was drowned in East Bay (Perry) on Wednesday forenoon of last week. Mr. Matthews was going up the bay when a squall of wind struck the boat, and, it is supposed, filled her with water, causing her to sink at once.
Some boys on a hill a considerable distance off saw the disaster and also observed that Mr. Matthews sank with the boat. -- They immediately gave the alarm in the neighborhood, and a boat was sent out to the spot -- as near as could be ascertained -- where the accident occurred. The ebbing of the tide revealed the top of the mast of the sunken boat, and the boat was dragged ashore. The body was found at low water, near the place where the boat sank. The deceased was twenty six years of age, and was an industrious and promising young man. He leaves a wife and one child. Greatly afflicted must be the poor wife whose present joys, and anticipation of future happiness are so suddenly blighted.
I visited the Frost Cemetery on July 13, 2010 and again on July 30, 2012.
The Frost Cemetery is listed as Location No. 31 in the book At Rest in Perry, Maine compiled by Jeanne O'Shea Wagner and Colon S. Morrison. That book states that the Frost Cemetery is located on the Willard Frost property on Route 1 in Perry, Maine. The book includes a map of Perry showing the location of the various cemeteries listed in the book.
The directions on page 65 are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. The rest of the description and the map on page iv, however, are not correct.
As indicated above, the directions on page 65 of the book are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. But the map set forth on page iv is badly misleading. The location of site No. 31 for this cemetery, as shown on the map, is wrong. Moreover, the small house and vegetable stand mentioned in that description no longer exist.
I stopped along Route 1 and knocked on the door of a home across the street from where the map indicated that Site No. 31 and the small house and vegetable stand should have been located. I asked the gentleman who answered the door about the Frost Cemetery and the Willard Frost property. He indicated no knowledge of either one but directed me to a handsome new home up on the hill about a mile down the road. He told me that the owner was a Mr. Lee Corbett who was a veteran, was something of a town historian and should be able to help me out.
Mr. Corbett was most gracious when I knocked on his door. The address indicated by the number on the mail box is 528 U.S. Rte. 1. On the date of my first visit, July 13, 2010, Mr. Corbett appeared to be in his late 60s or early 70s. He took a while to answer the door, walking slowly with a limp and with the help of a cane. His home can be seen in one of the accompanying photographs.
He invited me to sit with him at his kitchen table where I handed him a copy of the map and the Frost Cemetery description from page 65 of the book. He didn't say much, just studied the map and description, threw his hat on the table, leaned back in his chair and pondered. He then pushed back from the table to stand up and asked me if I could take a walk. I said sure. He exchanged his flip flops for sturdier shoes and led me out the door to an orange tractor that can be seen in some of the photographs that I have uploaded to some of the memorials for persons interred in this cemetery. He climbed onto the tractor and drove off with me following behind him.
Facing the property from the street, he took me along a grassy path to the right and then angling to the left up the hill. After traveling some 200 feet, he stopped the tractor and, without saying anything, stared off to our left into the woods and undergrowth. I looked where he was looking and didn't see anything except bushes and trees at first. As my eyes adjusted to the relative dark, I began to see a few grave stones. He commented that a lot of people didn't like to be in or near cemeteries.
As can be seen from the photographs that I have placed on the various memorials of persons interred in this cemetery, the cemetery was badly overgrown with trees, and the gravestones were either over-turned or completely covered by moss, leaves and bushes. I could not find some of the stones mentioned in the description of site No. 31 in the book.
Upon my return July 30, 2012, there had been a transformation. As can be seen from the accompanying photographs, the trees had been cut down, the brush cleared away and the stones both set upright and cleaned. Credit clearly is owed to Mr. Corbett.
Written by Charles Carter Morgan
Melancholy Accident
Mr. John V. Matthews was drowned in East Bay (Perry) on Wednesday forenoon of last week. Mr. Matthews was going up the bay when a squall of wind struck the boat, and, it is supposed, filled her with water, causing her to sink at once.
Some boys on a hill a considerable distance off saw the disaster and also observed that Mr. Matthews sank with the boat. -- They immediately gave the alarm in the neighborhood, and a boat was sent out to the spot -- as near as could be ascertained -- where the accident occurred. The ebbing of the tide revealed the top of the mast of the sunken boat, and the boat was dragged ashore. The body was found at low water, near the place where the boat sank. The deceased was twenty six years of age, and was an industrious and promising young man. He leaves a wife and one child. Greatly afflicted must be the poor wife whose present joys, and anticipation of future happiness are so suddenly blighted.
I visited the Frost Cemetery on July 13, 2010 and again on July 30, 2012.
The Frost Cemetery is listed as Location No. 31 in the book At Rest in Perry, Maine compiled by Jeanne O'Shea Wagner and Colon S. Morrison. That book states that the Frost Cemetery is located on the Willard Frost property on Route 1 in Perry, Maine. The book includes a map of Perry showing the location of the various cemeteries listed in the book.
The directions on page 65 are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. The rest of the description and the map on page iv, however, are not correct.
As indicated above, the directions on page 65 of the book are reasonably accurate in their statement that the property is 1.9 miles south of the junction of Rte. 1 and Rte. 190 on Rte. 1. But the map set forth on page iv is badly misleading. The location of site No. 31 for this cemetery, as shown on the map, is wrong. Moreover, the small house and vegetable stand mentioned in that description no longer exist.
I stopped along Route 1 and knocked on the door of a home across the street from where the map indicated that Site No. 31 and the small house and vegetable stand should have been located. I asked the gentleman who answered the door about the Frost Cemetery and the Willard Frost property. He indicated no knowledge of either one but directed me to a handsome new home up on the hill about a mile down the road. He told me that the owner was a Mr. Lee Corbett who was a veteran, was something of a town historian and should be able to help me out.
Mr. Corbett was most gracious when I knocked on his door. The address indicated by the number on the mail box is 528 U.S. Rte. 1. On the date of my first visit, July 13, 2010, Mr. Corbett appeared to be in his late 60s or early 70s. He took a while to answer the door, walking slowly with a limp and with the help of a cane. His home can be seen in one of the accompanying photographs.
He invited me to sit with him at his kitchen table where I handed him a copy of the map and the Frost Cemetery description from page 65 of the book. He didn't say much, just studied the map and description, threw his hat on the table, leaned back in his chair and pondered. He then pushed back from the table to stand up and asked me if I could take a walk. I said sure. He exchanged his flip flops for sturdier shoes and led me out the door to an orange tractor that can be seen in some of the photographs that I have uploaded to some of the memorials for persons interred in this cemetery. He climbed onto the tractor and drove off with me following behind him.
Facing the property from the street, he took me along a grassy path to the right and then angling to the left up the hill. After traveling some 200 feet, he stopped the tractor and, without saying anything, stared off to our left into the woods and undergrowth. I looked where he was looking and didn't see anything except bushes and trees at first. As my eyes adjusted to the relative dark, I began to see a few grave stones. He commented that a lot of people didn't like to be in or near cemeteries.
As can be seen from the photographs that I have placed on the various memorials of persons interred in this cemetery, the cemetery was badly overgrown with trees, and the gravestones were either over-turned or completely covered by moss, leaves and bushes. I could not find some of the stones mentioned in the description of site No. 31 in the book.
Upon my return July 30, 2012, there had been a transformation. As can be seen from the accompanying photographs, the trees had been cut down, the brush cleared away and the stones both set upright and cleaned. Credit clearly is owed to Mr. Corbett.
Written by Charles Carter Morgan
Inscription
JOHN V MATTHEWS
DIED
May 27, 1857
AEt 27 yrs.
Gravesite Details
Latitude 44.95536255 Longitude -67.09743154; Altitude 475.540 Feet.
Family Members
Advertisement
Explore more
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
