There's lots of reasons for visiting cemeteries. Some people visit the graves of loved ones to honour their memories. Others find hallowed ground a source of comfort, visiting for spiritual contemplation and prayer. Genealogists look for information about deceased relatives.
Some of us just like cemeteries.
Whether it's the silence and tranquility, the interesting grave inscriptions, or the feeling of closeness to those who walked the Earth before us, there's something emotional about older graveyards. And you can learn a lot about a community from reading the monuments raised to its founders.
Take Denfield Cemetery. It's located on the west side of Denfield Road, just south of the hamlet of Denfield in the former London Township (now part of Middlesex Centre). Without knowing anything about the history of the area, a visitor quickly deduces that many of the early Denfield settlers were Welsh, the Matthews and Rosser families being among the most prominent. Small wonder that, when a memorial service was held on site in 1934, local historian Dr. Fred Rosser was chosen to deliver the historical lecture.
But I should start at the beginning, 200 years ago in 1821. That was the year three Welsh families arrived in the district - the Matthews, the Morgans, and the Rossers - three couples with no fewer than 25 children among them. Typical for those days, the first burial was one of the little people. William Matthews, aged seven, was the first interment, in 1826.
It was David Morgan who donated the land for the cemetery, on the northwest corner of the 15th Concession and Denfield Road. A frame Baptist church was built at the cemetery in 1841, replaced in 1854 by a brick building after a storm blew off the first structure's roof. Not surprisingly, early services were conducted in Welsh. And until a baptistery was built in the church in 1870, chilly baptisms took place in nearby Denfield Creek.
Another church building was built closer to Denfield's main intersection in 1890, presumably for convenience. If you're thinking the original building was hardly worlds away from Denfield, you're right, but the distance between concessions in horse-and-buggy days seemed farther than now. And a row of newer houses now fills the gap between the 16th and 15th concessions, so what constitutes "Denfield" has widened. The 1890 church is still standing, empty and unused.
The young Lombardo brothers are said to have played a charity concert at the church during the temperance era. Apparently Carmen Lombardo sang a song entitled "Nobody's Going to Get the Key to My Cellar" which didn't go over well with the stricter locals - until they counted the money brought in by the collection. Then all was well.*
By the twentieth century, the old cemetery was looking a little rough. In 1925, the plot owners set up an endowment fund for upkeep and that same spring the grounds were tidied and trees planted. The current fence and gate were added in 1933. Then came the the 1934 memorial service, held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Baptist congregation, founded before their actual church was built. Historian Frederick Thomas Rosser, author of The Welsh Settlement in Upper Canada and London Township Pioneers, gave a talk that day. I wouldn't be surprised if the London Free Press sent a reporter to the event but, not knowing the exact date, I haven't found a record of it yet. Hence, I can't tell you what he said. Maybe one day.
In May 1953 the legendary tornado of that year damaged many of the older stones. The cemetery was restored as much as feasible but it was noted that many of the early monuments were deteriorating anyway. Hence, the addition of this memorial stone which commemorates little Willy Matthews as well as other pioneers, both old and young:
*A story recorded in London Township: A Rich Heritage 1796-1997 Volume I. Another source of information about this church and cemetery is "Highlights in the History of Denfield Cemetery" by W. D. E. Matthews, in Western Ontario Historical Notes, Vol. XX, No. 1, March 1964.
