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Eloise Cemetery

January 01, 1970

Eloise Cemetery was the name applied to cemeteries used by the Eloise hospital complex located in what was then Nankin Township in western Wayne County, Michigan, and is now Westland, Michigan. The patients buried in the cemetery were from the Infirmary Division, the William P. Seymour General Hospital, the T.B. Sanitarium and the Eloise Hospital (Psychiatric Division). The majority of burials were from the Infirmary Division which was the largest of the three divisions, housing up to 7,000 patients at a time. Most burials were of adult males, but there are women and a few infants and children.

Eloise Cemetery
Details
Established1892 (1892)
Location
Nankin Township, Michigan

History edit

The first notation made of an institutional cemetery was in 1892 when the Hospital arranged with Catholic Bishop John Samuel Foley to move bodies which had been buried northwest of the County House to an island in the middle of the reservoir.[1] This move was made to enable the first paving of Michigan Avenue which occurred in 1910. Part of the artificial lake at that time had to be filled in.[2] There were actually two other cemeteries that were used to bury Eloise patients after the turn of the century. The first was on the northeast corner of farmland south of Michigan Avenue and one further south on the farm site facing Henry Ruff Road.[3] The second cemetery is surrounded by pine trees and is the one used from 1910 to 1948.

In effect, this was operated as a "Potter's Field", that is a publicly run place to bury the poor unclaimed dead at the public expense.[4]

In the early days patients were buried by inmates or employees of the institution. In 1937 the contract was given to Charles C. Diggs, Sr., who founded "The House of Diggs" (reputed to be Michigan's largest funeral home at one time) and a politician,[5] to handle burials in the cemetery and transfers to Wayne State University School of Medicine as state law mandated that these functions be handled or supervised by a licensed mortician. Charles Diggs, Jr., then 15 years old, would drive his mother from Detroit to the morgue which was a red brick building at Eloise called the round house because of its shape and they would prepare the body for burial. White sheets were used to line the wooden coffins and, unless the patient had clothing, they were covered in another white sheet. If family or friends were present there would be an interment service; if not the deceased would just be buried by inmates.[6]

About 7,100 people were buried in the Eloise cemetery between 1910 and 1948. These were patients who died at the institution and had no known relatives or relatives who were unwilling or unable to bury them. Only numbered blocks identify the graves. After 1948 all unclaimed bodies were sent to the Wayne State University College of Medicine and no further burials were made there.[7] Burial records in the late 1920s and 1930s were especially problematical or nonexistent. For example, "There were only four extant death records for 1934."[8] The names of over 4,000 of the 7,100 people buried in the cemetery[9] were added to Find A Grave.[A]

Patricia Ibbotson worked as a nurse at Eloise before it was closed. She is also the author of the book, Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum and Hospital 1839–1984. She raised money for the historic marker.[9][13][14] She also wrote Detroit's Hospitals, Healers and Helpers which has an entire chapter of captioned photos of Eloise.[15]

From the 19th century, the cemetery was a source of cadavers, after body snatching, which were used by medical students at the University of Michigan.[1] From 1948, the laws were changed so that the hospital became a ready source and bodies were sent to Detroit Medical College.[12]

Present situation edit

The cemetery is owned and maintained by Wayne County. It is fenced and there are "No Trespassing" signs posted. The graves are marked by numbered markers and the names of most of the people buried there have been lost to history. However, presently 6,158 of the burials are now on FindAGrave.

The field lay forgotten and neglected, especially since the last burial (in one of the three plots) was in 1948; it now stands in the way of other uses, and is seen as a responsibility by Wayne County commissioners who are perplexed over use of the Eloise site.[citation needed] The presence of over 7,000 marked but unnamed graves — and the absence of many supporting records — is potentially an insuperable obstacle to any future development.[citation needed]

Similar situations exist.[4] In 1989, former, Detroit Mayor Coleman A. Young abandoned a plan to expand Detroit City Airport's runway because the adjoining Gethsemane Cemetery blocked the way, and outraged relatives protested. As a result, a few years later Southwest Airlines ended its operations there, citing the city's inability to keep its promises and the need for longer runways to accommodate larger jet aircraft.[16][17][18] Likewise, in the 1980s, the Hamtramck, Michigan Poletown plant was built around Beth Olem, a/k/a The Smith Street Cemetery, a small Jewish cemetery.[19] According to Frank Rembisz, former Hamtramck city council president, to move the cemetery, they needed to get surviving relatives's permission, and would have had to retain "Talmudic scholars from Israel to sift through the earth to make sure there were no remains left." General Motors decided the expense exceeded the benefit, and left it in place.[4][B]

Notes edit

  1. ^ The names were obtained by going through the death certificates on Seeking Michigan website and going through original death certificates in the Burton Historical Collection of the Detroit Public Library. In addition there were ledgers kept by the hospital on deaths of patients used to record names of some burials.[10][11][12]
  2. ^ Under Michigan law, disturbing a grave site or cemetery is a felony. There are substantial procedures concerning moving or abandoning a cemetery. Cemeteries are protected by Michigan law, and disinterment is prohibited and re-interment is strictly regulated, with requirements for notice and an opportunity to be heard, and for just compensation if there is an objection.[20][21]

References edit

  1. ^ a b Keenan, Stanislas M. (1913). History of Eloise. Detroit: Thos. Smith Press. pp. 70, 73, 125, 267, 375. from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  2. ^ Clark, Alvin C. (1982). A History of the Wayne County Infirmary, Psychiatric, and General Hospital Complex at Eloise Michigan. Wayne County General Hospital.
  3. ^ Clark, Alvin C. (1982). A History of the Wayne County Infirmary, Psychiatric, and General Hospital Complex at Eloise, Michigan. p. 114.
  4. ^ a b c "Forgotten cemetery blocks development: County perplexed over use of Eloise site". The Detroit News. Roots web. November 1, 1998. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  5. ^ Pearson, Richard (August 26, 1998). "Charles Diggs Dies at 75". The Washington Post. p. B06. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 3, 2014.
  6. ^ Latzman, Elaine (1994). Untold Tales, Unsung Heroes, An Oral History of Detroit's African American Community 1918–1967. Detroit, Michigan: Wayne State University Press. pp. 53–54. ISBN 0814324657.
  7. ^ Ibbotson, Patricia (June 2, 2002). Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum and Hospital 1839–1984 (Paperback). Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 94. ISBN 978-0738519548. from the original on April 29, 2024. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
  8. ^ Ibbotson, Patricia (May 5, 2014). "Eloise Cemetery". dsgr.org. Detroit Society for Genealogical Research. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  9. ^ a b "Eloise". michmarkers.com. October 15, 2007. Michigan Historical Markers Registered Site S0699. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  10. ^ "Eloise Cemetery". Detroit Society for Genealogical Research. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014. See Jasia (October 2, 2006). "Records for Eloise (Wayne County, Michigan)". from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  11. ^ "Eloise Cemetery". Find a Grave. Ancestry.com LLC. May 5, 2014. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  12. ^ a b Ibbotson, Patricia; Friends of Eloise (2011). Burials in the Eloise Cemetery, and Removals to Medical Schools, Westland, Wayne County, Michigan, 1935–1943. P. Ibbotson. OCLC 753956594. from the original on April 29, 2024. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  13. ^ Clem 2007 Observer
  14. ^ Ibbotson, Patricia (2002). Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum and Hospital 1839–1984 (Paperback). Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 128. ISBN 978-0738519548.
  15. ^ Ibbotson, Patricia (2004). Detroit's Hospitals, Healers and Helpers (Softcover). Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 128. ISBN 978-0738532233.
  16. ^ Wilkerson, Isabel (March 30, 1988). "Detroit Journal; Must Cemetery Yield to Airport?". The New York Times. Photo Credits: NYT/Peter Yates. New York. Special to The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
  17. ^ "Detroit Will Spare Cemetery In an Airport Expansion Plan". The New York Times. New York. Reuters. April 1, 1988. ISSN 0362-4331. OCLC 1645522. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2014.
  18. ^ McConnell, Darci; McWhirter, Cameron; Smith, Joel J. (March 20, 2002). . The Detroit News. Archived from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 8, 2014.
  19. ^ Marwil, Milton (Winter 1992). Cantor, Judith Levin (ed.). (PDF). Michigan Jewish History. 33. Jewish Historical Society of Michigan: 30. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  20. ^ "Michigan Annotations – Burial Law Project". wcl.american.edu. American University Washington College of Law. May 7, 2014. from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 7, 2014.
  21. ^ "Cemetery Law & Rules: Cemetery Regulation Act: Act 251 of 1968" (PDF). dleg.state.mi.us. Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs State of Michigan. November 4, 2002 [1968]. (PDF) from the original on May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2014.

Sources edit

  • Baldassarro, R. Wolf (2010). A Ghost Hunter's Field Guide (Paperback). lulu.com. p. 154. ISBN 978-0557050949. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  • Clark, Alvin C. (1982). A History of the Wayne County Infirmary, Psychiatric, and General Hospital Complex at Eloise Michigan. Wayne County General Hospital.
  • Ibbotson, Patricia; Friends of Eloise (2011). Burials in the Eloise Cemetery, and Removals to Medical Schools, Westland, Wayne County, Michigan, 1935–1943. P. Ibbotson. OCLC 753956594. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  • Ibbotson, Patricia (January 11, 2004). Detroit's Hospitals, Healers and Helpers (Softcover). Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 128. ISBN 978-0738532233.
  • Ibbotson, Patricia (2002). Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum and Hospital 1839–1984 (Paperback). Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0738519548.
  • Keenan, Stanislas M. (1913). History of Eloise. Detroit: Thos. Smith Press. pp. 70, 73, 125, 267, 375. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
  • Latzman, Elaine (March 1994). Untold Tales, Unsung Heroes, An Oral History of Detroit's African American Community 1918–1967. Detroit, Michigan: Wayne State University Press. pp. 53–54. ISBN 0814324657.

Further reading edit

  • Wayne Co., Mich. Board of County Auditors. Research Bureau (2011) [1933]. Report on analysis and survey of Eloise Hospital and Infirmary: prepared and issued by the County Research Bureau Division of Board of Wayne County Auditors. University of Chicago. Retrieved May 6, 2014.

External links edit

  • Caring for the County's Poor: a character repository of Eloise
  • "Eloise Cemetery". Detroit Society for Genealogical Research. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  • Eloise Cemetery at Find a Grave  
  • Jasia (October 2, 2006). "Records for Eloise (Wayne County, Michigan)". Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  • "Eloise Asylum". Asylum Projects. Retrieved May 7, 2014. (According to this source, there were three cemeteries.)

42°16′52″N 83°20′21″W / 42.28117°N 83.33918°W / 42.28117; -83.33918

January 01, 1970
eloise, cemetery, name, applied, cemeteries, used, eloise, hospital, complex, located, what, then, nankin, township, western, wayne, county, michigan, westland, michigan, patients, buried, cemetery, were, from, infirmary, division, william, seymour, general, h. Eloise Cemetery was the name applied to cemeteries used by the Eloise hospital complex located in what was then Nankin Township in western Wayne County Michigan and is now Westland Michigan The patients buried in the cemetery were from the Infirmary Division the William P Seymour General Hospital the T B Sanitarium and the Eloise Hospital Psychiatric Division The majority of burials were from the Infirmary Division which was the largest of the three divisions housing up to 7 000 patients at a time Most burials were of adult males but there are women and a few infants and children Eloise CemeteryDetailsEstablished1892 1892 LocationNankin Township Michigan Contents 1 History 2 Present situation 3 Notes 4 References 4 1 Sources 5 Further reading 6 External linksHistory editThe first notation made of an institutional cemetery was in 1892 when the Hospital arranged with Catholic Bishop John Samuel Foley to move bodies which had been buried northwest of the County House to an island in the middle of the reservoir 1 This move was made to enable the first paving of Michigan Avenue which occurred in 1910 Part of the artificial lake at that time had to be filled in 2 There were actually two other cemeteries that were used to bury Eloise patients after the turn of the century The first was on the northeast corner of farmland south of Michigan Avenue and one further south on the farm site facing Henry Ruff Road 3 The second cemetery is surrounded by pine trees and is the one used from 1910 to 1948 In effect this was operated as a Potter s Field that is a publicly run place to bury the poor unclaimed dead at the public expense 4 In the early days patients were buried by inmates or employees of the institution In 1937 the contract was given to Charles C Diggs Sr who founded The House of Diggs reputed to be Michigan s largest funeral home at one time and a politician 5 to handle burials in the cemetery and transfers to Wayne State University School of Medicine as state law mandated that these functions be handled or supervised by a licensed mortician Charles Diggs Jr then 15 years old would drive his mother from Detroit to the morgue which was a red brick building at Eloise called the round house because of its shape and they would prepare the body for burial White sheets were used to line the wooden coffins and unless the patient had clothing they were covered in another white sheet If family or friends were present there would be an interment service if not the deceased would just be buried by inmates 6 About 7 100 people were buried in the Eloise cemetery between 1910 and 1948 These were patients who died at the institution and had no known relatives or relatives who were unwilling or unable to bury them Only numbered blocks identify the graves After 1948 all unclaimed bodies were sent to the Wayne State University College of Medicine and no further burials were made there 7 Burial records in the late 1920s and 1930s were especially problematical or nonexistent For example There were only four extant death records for 1934 8 The names of over 4 000 of the 7 100 people buried in the cemetery 9 were added to Find A Grave A Patricia Ibbotson worked as a nurse at Eloise before it was closed She is also the author of the book Eloise Poorhouse Farm Asylum and Hospital 1839 1984 She raised money for the historic marker 9 13 14 She also wrote Detroit s Hospitals Healers and Helpers which has an entire chapter of captioned photos of Eloise 15 From the 19th century the cemetery was a source of cadavers after body snatching which were used by medical students at the University of Michigan 1 From 1948 the laws were changed so that the hospital became a ready source and bodies were sent to Detroit Medical College 12 Present situation editThe cemetery is owned and maintained by Wayne County It is fenced and there are No Trespassing signs posted The graves are marked by numbered markers and the names of most of the people buried there have been lost to history However presently 6 158 of the burials are now on FindAGrave The field lay forgotten and neglected especially since the last burial in one of the three plots was in 1948 it now stands in the way of other uses and is seen as a responsibility by Wayne County commissioners who are perplexed over use of the Eloise site citation needed The presence of over 7 000 marked but unnamed graves and the absence of many supporting records is potentially an insuperable obstacle to any future development citation needed Similar situations exist 4 In 1989 former Detroit Mayor Coleman A Young abandoned a plan to expand Detroit City Airport s runway because the adjoining Gethsemane Cemetery blocked the way and outraged relatives protested As a result a few years later Southwest Airlines ended its operations there citing the city s inability to keep its promises and the need for longer runways to accommodate larger jet aircraft 16 17 18 Likewise in the 1980s the Hamtramck Michigan Poletown plant was built around Beth Olem a k a The Smith Street Cemetery a small Jewish cemetery 19 According to Frank Rembisz former Hamtramck city council president to move the cemetery they needed to get surviving relatives s permission and would have had to retain Talmudic scholars from Israel to sift through the earth to make sure there were no remains left General Motors decided the expense exceeded the benefit and left it in place 4 B Notes edit The names were obtained by going through the death certificates on Seeking Michigan website and going through original death certificates in the Burton Historical Collection of the Detroit Public Library In addition there were ledgers kept by the hospital on deaths of patients used to record names of some burials 10 11 12 Under Michigan law disturbing a grave site or cemetery is a felony There are substantial procedures concerning moving or abandoning a cemetery Cemeteries are protected by Michigan law and disinterment is prohibited and re interment is strictly regulated with requirements for notice and an opportunity to be heard and for just compensation if there is an objection 20 21 References edit a b Keenan Stanislas M 1913 History of Eloise Detroit Thos Smith Press pp 70 73 125 267 375 Archived from the original on May 12 2014 Retrieved May 10 2014 Clark Alvin C 1982 A History of the Wayne County Infirmary Psychiatric and General Hospital Complex at Eloise Michigan Wayne County General Hospital Clark Alvin C 1982 A History of the Wayne County Infirmary Psychiatric and General Hospital Complex at Eloise Michigan p 114 a b c Forgotten cemetery blocks development County perplexed over use of Eloise site The Detroit News Roots web November 1 1998 Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 5 2014 Pearson Richard August 26 1998 Charles Diggs Dies at 75 The Washington Post p B06 Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 3 2014 Latzman Elaine 1994 Untold Tales Unsung Heroes An Oral History of Detroit s African American Community 1918 1967 Detroit Michigan Wayne State University Press pp 53 54 ISBN 0814324657 Ibbotson Patricia June 2 2002 Eloise Poorhouse Farm Asylum and Hospital 1839 1984 Paperback Charleston SC Arcadia Publishing p 94 ISBN 978 0738519548 Archived from the original on April 29 2024 Retrieved October 24 2020 Ibbotson Patricia May 5 2014 Eloise Cemetery dsgr org Detroit Society for Genealogical Research Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 5 2014 a b Eloise michmarkers com October 15 2007 Michigan Historical Markers Registered Site S0699 Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 4 2014 Eloise Cemetery Detroit Society for Genealogical Research Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 5 2014 See Jasia October 2 2006 Records for Eloise Wayne County Michigan Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 5 2014 Eloise Cemetery Find a Grave Ancestry com LLC May 5 2014 Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 5 2014 a b Ibbotson Patricia Friends of Eloise 2011 Burials in the Eloise Cemetery and Removals to Medical Schools Westland Wayne County Michigan 1935 1943 P Ibbotson OCLC 753956594 Archived from the original on April 29 2024 Retrieved May 5 2014 Clem 2007 Observer Ibbotson Patricia 2002 Eloise Poorhouse Farm Asylum and Hospital 1839 1984 Paperback Charleston SC Arcadia Publishing p 128 ISBN 978 0738519548 Ibbotson Patricia 2004 Detroit s Hospitals Healers and Helpers Softcover Charleston SC Arcadia Publishing p 128 ISBN 978 0738532233 Wilkerson Isabel March 30 1988 Detroit Journal Must Cemetery Yield to Airport The New York Times Photo Credits NYT Peter Yates New York Special to The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 OCLC 1645522 Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 6 2014 Detroit Will Spare Cemetery In an Airport Expansion Plan The New York Times New York Reuters April 1 1988 ISSN 0362 4331 OCLC 1645522 Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 7 2014 McConnell Darci McWhirter Cameron Smith Joel J March 20 2002 Mayor Fix or shut Detroit City Airport Kilpatrick wants 400 million for runway terminal The Detroit News Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 8 2014 Marwil Milton Winter 1992 Cantor Judith Levin ed The True Story of the Cemetery in the General Motors Parking Lot PDF Michigan Jewish History 33 Jewish Historical Society of Michigan 30 Archived from the original PDF on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 9 2014 Michigan Annotations Burial Law Project wcl american edu American University Washington College of Law May 7 2014 Archived from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 7 2014 Cemetery Law amp Rules Cemetery Regulation Act Act 251 of 1968 PDF dleg state mi us Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs State of Michigan November 4 2002 1968 Archived PDF from the original on May 9 2014 Retrieved May 9 2014 Sources edit Baldassarro R Wolf 2010 A Ghost Hunter s Field Guide Paperback lulu com p 154 ISBN 978 0557050949 Retrieved May 5 2014 Clark Alvin C 1982 A History of the Wayne County Infirmary Psychiatric and General Hospital Complex at Eloise Michigan Wayne County General Hospital Ibbotson Patricia Friends of Eloise 2011 Burials in the Eloise Cemetery and Removals to Medical Schools Westland Wayne County Michigan 1935 1943 P Ibbotson OCLC 753956594 Retrieved May 5 2014 Ibbotson Patricia January 11 2004 Detroit s Hospitals Healers and Helpers Softcover Charleston SC Arcadia Publishing p 128 ISBN 978 0738532233 Ibbotson Patricia 2002 Eloise Poorhouse Farm Asylum and Hospital 1839 1984 Paperback Charleston SC Arcadia Publishing ISBN 978 0738519548 Keenan Stanislas M 1913 History of Eloise Detroit Thos Smith Press pp 70 73 125 267 375 Retrieved May 10 2014 Latzman Elaine March 1994 Untold Tales Unsung Heroes An Oral History of Detroit s African American Community 1918 1967 Detroit Michigan Wayne State University Press pp 53 54 ISBN 0814324657 Further reading editWayne Co Mich Board of County Auditors Research Bureau 2011 1933 Report on analysis and survey of Eloise Hospital and Infirmary prepared and issued by the County Research Bureau Division of Board of Wayne County Auditors University of Chicago Retrieved May 6 2014 External links editCaring for the County s Poor a character repository of Eloise Eloise Cemetery Detroit Society for Genealogical Research Retrieved May 5 2014 Eloise Cemetery at Find a Grave nbsp Jasia October 2 2006 Records for Eloise Wayne County Michigan Retrieved May 5 2014 Eloise Asylum Asylum Projects Retrieved May 7 2014 According to this source there were three cemeteries 42 16 52 N 83 20 21 W 42 28117 N 83 33918 W 42 28117 83 33918 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Eloise Cemetery amp oldid 1221409648, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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