Bethel Burying Ground Project

Sixty-three-year-old John Dunsmore died this date, 24th, in 1848 of sunstroke and was buried at Bethel Burying Ground.  Mr. Dunsmore worked the Washington Avenue docks as a carter or freight handler, pushing heavily loaded wagons. He lived in the two hundred block of Carpenter Street located between Christian and Washington Streets very close to the Delaware River wharfs. 

He died at Blockley Hospital located in what is now 34th and University Avenue on the University of Pennsylvania campus. The hospital was for the indigent and stood alongside a poor house (almshouse), an orphanage and an “insane asylum.” For more on the history of the hospital, you can go to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockley_Almshouse.

Thirty-six-year-old Samuel Brown drowned in the Delaware River off the Market Street wharf on this date, July 9th, in 1852 and was buried at Bethel Burying Ground. He was a native of Philadelphia and was occupied as a laborer likely on the city’s docks. He is reported to have lived on “Carpenter.” I am unable to find a specific address for Mr. Brown. Close by the Market Street waterfront was “Carpenter Alley” and “Carpenter Court.” It was not unusual for men to bath and/or go swimming in the Delaware River during this era. In addition, work accidents on the docks or aboard ships would knock men in the water who could not swim or were unconscious. 

African American dock worker and son in New Orleans in the 1940s.

One-month-old William Braddock died this date, July 6th, in 1848 of Bronchitis and was buried at Bethel Burying Ground. The infant’s father, William, Sr., was a shoemaker and his mother (name unknown) was a seamstress. William, Sr. earned $4.00 a week as a “market worker” type of shoemaker. That would be someone working out of their home and then shopping their finished work to shop owners. The family lived in the rear of an upholstery shop in the 300 block of Walnut Street in the shadow of Indepence Hall. It would have been primitive living quarters for which they paid $24 a year for a 10′ x 10′ shed-like structure according to the 1847 African American census.

Baby William was seen by Dr. William Knight who was a physician at the Southern Dispensary several blocks away on Fifth Street. 

Two and a half-year-old James Pitts died this date, June 28th, in 1848 of Cholera and was buried at Bethel Burying Ground. James lived with his parents Mark (44) and Ann (33). He had a nine-year-old brother William H. Pitts. Ann took in washing to supplement the family’s income and Mark had a used clothing business at 108 N. 2nd Street. His business would grow and in several years he moved his business to 1138 South Street. The used clothing business was traditionally a business dominated by Blacks. This started to change after the Civil War when it shifted to the Jewish community. (Early History of Negroes in Business in Philadelphia, p. 19.) In 1847 there were 52 used clothing businesses owned by Black Philadelphians according to the African American census.

According to the 1850 Federal Census, Mark was born enslaved in Virginia in 1805. Ann, born in Pennsylvania, was never enslaved and was born in Pennsylvania while William was born in Philadelphia. 

The Pitts family lived in a tenement room located near the corner of 17th and Market Streets (“Schuylkill 6th”) for which they paid about $9.00 a month. The living conditions of this environment likely contributed to the death of young James. 

Nine-month-old James Tate died this date, June 20th, in 1848 of Cancrum Oris*and was buried at Bethel Burying Ground. The child’s parents were Arthur (41 y/o), and Margaret (30 y/o). Both were born in Maryland and one was formerly enslaved according to the 1847 Philadelphia African American Census. The rest of the family included Rachel (8 y/o), Daniel (7 y/o), John (6 y/o) and Samuel (5 y/o). All the children were born in Pennsylvania. Ms. Tate would give birth to another son, Frances, in December of 1849 according to the 1850 U.S. Census. 

In 1847 Ms. Tate reported her occupation as a day worker. Mr. Tate reported his occupation as “porter.” By 1850 he was employed as the sexton of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church. His duties included the management of Bethel Burying Ground where he buried his baby son three years before. Mr. Tate was a valuable member of the African Methodist Episcopal community in Philadelphia.

From “Bethel Gleanings” by Rev. Joseph S. Thompson, 1881, p. 23.

The family paid 1.75 a month for their room on Lombard Street near 8th Street. The 1847 Census reports the Tates lived in a three-story brick building with three other families. 

*The disease that caused the child’s death is a very devastating bacterial infection of the mouth that erodes away all the tissue. Massive ulcers caused by bacterial infections infected the baby. Predisposing factors for the disease included malnutrition, dehydration, and unsafe drinking water. There was no treatment available at that time that would have saved the baby’s life. 

Fifty-nine-year-old Charles Davis died this date, June 15th, in 1854 of “Congestion of the Liver,” which is commonly associated with Congestive Heart Failure. Born in Frederica, Delaware he worked as a porter in Philadelphia for most of his adult life. He lived with his spouse, Rachael Molezton Davis, at 237 South 7th Street directly across from Washington Square. It is highly likely that Ms. Davis was a live-in domestic to the family that lived at such a prestigious address. The Davis family would have had a room in the basement for their living space. 

Remarkably the names of Mr. Davis’ parents were also recorded. They were Mark and Necy Carpenter Davis. Also uncommon was the documentation of the women’s maiden names. Out of the thousands of death records, I have inspected associated with Bethel Burying Ground this is the only one that contains such information. 

The Davis family resided at 237 S. 7th Street on the south side of Washington Square.

This is a photo of the south side of Washington Square taken in 1859, five years after Mr. Davis’ death. The red “X” in the background indicates where the Davis family resided.

According to Mr. Davis’ obituary, his funeral was held at this residence and then proceeded to Bethel Burying Ground. (Public Ledger, 14 June 1854)

Seventy-three-year-old Philip Nelson died this date, May 31st, in 1850 of Tuberculosis and was buried at Bethel Burying Ground. He lived with his wife and several adult children on south 8th Street between Catharine and Queen Streets in the Southwark section of the city. The Nelson family residence was one room where four adults lived. The rent was $7.50 a month and was four blocks away from BBG. 

In the 1847 African American Census, Mr. Nelson reported his occupation as “Gentlemen’s Nurse.” It is unknown if he was employed at the time of his death. His obituary in the June 3, 1850, edition of the Public Ledger stated that he bore his illness “towards the last with Christian patience and resignation.”

Interestingly, the obituary also stated that Mr. Nelson was a member of the Dr. Henry Claggett family of Leesburg, Virginia, a white man and enslaver according to Federal Census records.  Mr. Nelson, his spouse, and children were all born in Virginia.