Lynbrook historial odds and ends: A sad end in 1859

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This is the first Old Sand Hole Church and cemetery, in the 1870s, looking much as it did in 1859, when poor Anthony Pearsall was buried there. This church building was moved away and used as a barn. Twice, the replacement church buildings burned to the ground. The now “church-less” cemetery is known as the Rockville Cemetery.
This is the first Old Sand Hole Church and cemetery, in the 1870s, looking much as it did in 1859, when poor Anthony Pearsall was buried there. This church building was moved away and used as a barn. Twice, the replacement church buildings burned to the ground. The now “church-less” cemetery is known as the Rockville Cemetery.
Courtesy Art Mattson

Editors note: Lynbrook historical odds and ends is a column that takes a look back at some interesting facts and events in the village from over the years.

 

In 1859, after a Fourth of July celebratory cannon accidentally blew him up, Anthony Pearsall’s epitaph was written on his tombstone in the Old Sand Hole Cemetery:

In memory of that eventful time

When our forefathers did the Declaration sign

I fired the cannon and thought it just

In memory of their sacred trust.

Though in this act I lost my life,

I do rejoice there’s an end to strife.

And freedom’s flag is now unfurled

And I have gained another world.

—Nassau Daily Review Star 4/8/1944

 

Mattson is the official Lynbrook village historian and the director of the Historical Society of East Rockaway and Lynbrook. Additionally, he is the author of “The History of Lynbrook,” which is available on Amazon.com and at local libraries.