The Harding Point Cemetery
Great Cranberry Island, Maine

Watercolor with pastel touches, copyright © Wini Smart

    1.  click on a stone to see the inscription
    2.  click your browser's "Back" button to return here to the artwork

The Harding Point Cemetery is situated in a quiet secluded spot, close to the shore on Harding Point, the northeastern corner of the island.  Starting from the Town Dock, go about 0.25 miles down the main road to the first paved road on the left, just past the tennis court, which is Harding Point Road -- although there's no sign to indicate it.  Then go about 0.3 miles down that winding road until you come to telephone pole #22, just before the end of the asphalt paving.  There you will see a dirt road that bears off to the right.  Go down that road until you come to the second dirt driveway leading off to the left, which is just by telephone pole #2 1/2.  Enter the driveway, and the cemetery is about 100 yards in, on the left -- before you come to the associated house.

Grave Site Layout

LEGEND:
= wooden post marking boundary of cemetery
= stone with name(s) and dates
= minor stone or footstone – all lie to the east of corresponding

The Harding Point Cemetery is rectangular in shape, 57 feet long and 39 feet wide.  It is not surrounded by a fence.  Instead, there are turned wooden posts, painted white, at each corner, with three additional similar posts along each side (16 posts in all) to give a sense of enclosure.

Within the cemetery, one memorial stone is mounted on a unique raised plot, consisting of a 12-foot square fieldstone walled enclosure about 1.5 feet high, filled with earth.

Inscriptions

All stones face west.

A
A-1
LYLE
Son of
Mr. & Mrs. Frank L.
Stanley
1902 - 1911

LS   [footstone]

A-2
LESTER   [top]
Son of
Mr. & Mrs. Frank L.
Stanley
June 1 - Sept. 13
1911

A-3
<F-L-T in three chain links>
IN MEMORY
OF
GILBERT MOORE STANLEY
1868 - 1933

I am the resurrection and the life.

A-4
BERTHA E.
Wife of
Gilbert M. Stanley
Died
June 2, 1899
AE. 20 yrs. 7mos.

[on base]
One precious to our hearts has gone
The voice we loved is stilled
The place made vacant in our home
Shall never more be filled.

BES   [footstone]

A-5
[American Legion medal and 2 flags]
BERTIE MOORE STANLEY
May 23, 1899
Dec. 18, 1918

He gave his life for his country.

B
B-1
CAPT.
THOS. MANCHESTER
DIED
Jan 26, 1861
AE. 92 yrs. 3 mos.
HANNAH
His Wife
DIED
Nov. 13, 1861
AE. 87 yrs. 5 mos.

TM & HM   [footstone]

Apparently Capt. Manchester's stone (above) is a replacement to the original stone, which broke.  The original broken stone was found while the Wadsworths were building their nearby house, and was built flat to the ground into the the path leading to the house.  It carries the same information as the duplicate stone, but also has an inscription, as follows:

The day is past and gone,
The evening shades appear,
Oh may we all remember well,
The night of death draws near.

B-3
GILMAN J.
Son of Jonathan R. &
Irene Stanley,
Drowned in the
Straits of Belleisle,
June 18, 1861
AE. 16 yrs. 8 mos. 28 d's

Break not the turf for me, dear friend,
Nor part the dewy sod.
My body rests beneath the surf,
My spirit with its God.

B-4
<flower>
MARGARET S.
WIFE
OF
Saml. S. Fernald
DIED
Aug. 30, 1867
AE. 27 ys. 2 m. 22 d.

One we loved has left our number
For the dark and silent tomb.
Closed her eyes in deathless slumber
Faded in her early bloom.

B-5
HILDA A. SPURLING   [flat stone]
1902 - 1987

B-6
Infant Son of
E.A. & H.A.
Spurling
DIED
Jan. 3, 1925

B-10
<2 horizontal ferns>
FRANK L.
1865 - 1945
HIS WIFE
MAGGIE M.
1871 - 1954
STANLEY

C
C-1
[The Harding stone is mounted on top of the perimeter of a 12-foot by 12-foot stone enclosure, similar to a small fence, 1.5 feet tall.  The enclosure is filled with earth.  There is a flag poked into the earth behind the stone.]

<F-L-T in three chain links>
RICHARD J. HARDING
Born March 22, 1851.
Died Feb. 21, 1910.

DELLIE A. HIS WIFE
Born June 1, 1852.
Died Dec. 9, 1941.

HARDING   [on base]

C-3
IRENE
wife of
JNO. R. STANLEY
DIED
Aug. 12, 1889
AE. 82 ys, 5 ms
GONE HOME

C-4
FATHER   [top]
Capt.   [fallen over]
JNO. R. STANLEY
DIED
Apr. 27, 1895
AE. 91 yrs. 6 mos.
At rest.

JRS   [footstone]

C-6
<F-L-T in three chain links>   [fallen over]
WILFRED S.
1869 - 1911
SADIE A. HIS WIFE
1879 -

TRUSSELL   [on base]

C-7
OSCAR S. BULGER
OCT. 28, 1872
JUNE 20, 1943

C-8
PAUL A. PHIPPEN   [flat stone, 2 flags]
1926 - 1985

C-9
LESLIE R. PHIPPEN   [flat stone, 2 flags]
1899 - 1986

D
D-7
MOTHER
MILLIE A.
BULGER
1882 - 1976

+ end of inscriptions +

NOTES:
On the east side of the cemetery, loosely scattered on the ground, are the following items:

• footstone "E. M. S." very clearly carved.
  But no headstone bears a name matching these initials; this is a mystery.

• footstone "S. S. F." apparently of Samuel S. Fernald.
  Although there is apparently no stone for him, he is mentioned on B-4, the stone of his wife, Margaret S. Fernald.  He probably died after his wife and was buried near or next to her without his own stone.

• footstone "G. J. S." apparently of Gilman J. Stanley, B-3.
  The middle initial is not very clear, it just looks like a straight vertical line; the hook of the "J" is not too pronounced, but it is probably a "J".

Table of Names in Alphabetical Order

Please be aware that a person may be mentioned on more than one inscription.  They may have their own stone, as well as being mentioned on another stone as "son of ..." or "father of ..." for example.  However, the table has only one link to an inscription.  It may not be the only reference.  So study the inscriptions carefully for multiple references.

Stones with "dau. of ..." are especially useful as they reveal a woman's maiden name.  Where possible, I've listed women under both their maiden and married names.

Family members were often buried close to each other.  Note but don't click on the grave coordinate immediately to the left of the given name.  Then click on the cemetery name just to the left of that, to go to the grave site layout, and click on nearby stones to see their inscriptions.

CEM_LOC	GIVEN	FAMILY	BORN	DIED	AGE	NOTES
		*	0	0	-1	Harding Point Cemetery database last updated 15 July 1999
Harding D-7	Millie A.	Bulger	1882	1976	94	wife of Oscar S. Bulger, mother of Margery Phippen
Harding C-7	Oscar S.	Bulger	10-28-1872	6-20-1943	70	husb. of Millie A. Bulger, father of Margery Phippen
Harding B-4	Margaret S.	Fernald	1840	8-30-1867	27y 2m 22d	wife of Saml. S. Fernald
Harding B-4	Samuel S.	Fernald				cited as husb. of Margaret S. Fernald
Harding C-1	Dellie A.	Harding	6-1-1852	12-9-1941	89	wife of Richard J. Harding
Harding C-1	Richard J.	Harding	3-22-1851	2-21-1910	58	husb. of Dellie A. Harding
Harding B-1	Capt. Thomas	Manchester	1768	1-26-1861	92y 3m	husb. of Hannah Manchester
Harding B-1	Hannah	Manchester	1774	1861	87y 5m	wife of Capt. Thos. Manchester
Harding C-9	Leslie R.	Phippen	1899	1986	87
Harding C-8	Paul A.	Phippen	1926	1985	59
Harding B-5	Hilda A.	Spurling	1902	1987	85
Harding B-6	infant	Spurling		1-3-1925	0	son of E.A. & H.A. Spurling
Harding A-4	Bertha E.	Stanley	1878	6-2-1899	20y 7m	wife of Gilbert Moore Stanley
Harding A-5	Bertie Moore	Stanley	5-23-1899	12-18-1918	19	veteran; prob. son of Gilbert M. & Bertha E. Stanley
Harding C-4	Capt. Jonathan R.	Stanley	1803	4-27-1895	91y 6m	husb. of Irene Stanley
Harding B-10	Frank L.	Stanley	1865	1945	80	husb. of Maggie M. Stanley
Harding A-3	Gilbert Moore	Stanley	1868	1933	65	husb. of Bertha E. Stanley
Harding B-3	Gilman J.	Stanley	1844	6-18-1861	16y 8m 28d	son of Jonathan R. & Irene Stanley
Harding C-3	Irene	Stanley	1807	8-12-1889	82y 5m	wife of Capt. Jonathan R. Stanley
Harding A-2	Lester	Stanley	6-1-1911	9-13-1911	0	infant son of Mr. & Mrs. Frank L. Stanley
Harding A-1	Lyle	Stanley	1902	1911	9	son of Mr. & Mrs. Frank L. Stanley
Harding B-10	Maggie M.	Stanley	1871	1954	83	wife of Frank L. Stanley
Harding C-6	Sadie A.	Trussell	1879			wife of Wilfred S. Trussell; probably died after 1911
Harding C-6	Wilfred S.	Trussell	1869	1911	42	husb. of Sadie A. Trussell

Variations of Names Mentioned on the Stones

Return to GCI Cemeteries
Return to Great Cranberry Island
Return home___

Lyle Stanley, L. Stanley
Frank L. Stanley, Frank Stanley, F.L. Stanley, F. L. Stanley, F. Stanley
Lester Stanley, L. Stanley
Gilbert Moore Stanley, Gilbert M. Stanley, Gilbert Stanley, G.M. Stanley, G. M. Stanley, G. Stanley
Bertha E. Stanley, Bertha Stanley, B.E. Stanley, B. E. Stanley, B. Stanley
Bertie Moore Stanley, Bertie M. Stanley, Bertie Stanley, B.M. Stanley, B. M. Stanley, Bert Moore Stanley, Bert M. Stanley, Bert Stanley
Thomas Manchester, T. Manchester, Thom. Manchester, Tom Manchester
Hannah Manchester, H. Manchester
Gilman J. Stanley, Gilman Stanley, G.J. Stanley, G. J. Stanley
Jonathan R. Stanley, Jonathan Stanley, J.R. Stanley, J. R. Stanley, J. Stanley, Jon. R. Stanley, Jon. Stanley
Irene Stanley, I. Stanley
Margaret S. Fernald, Margaret Fernald, M.S. Fernald, M. S. Fernald, M. Fernald
Samuel S. Fernald, Samuel Fernald, S.S. Fernald, S. S. Fernald
Hilda A. Spurling, Hilda Spurling, H.A. Spurling, H. A. Spurling, H. Spurling
Maggie M. Stanley, Maggie Stanley, M.M. Stanley, M. M. Stanley
Richard J. Harding, Richard Harding, R.J. Harding, R. J. Harding, R. Harding, Dick Harding
Dellie A. Harding, Dellie Harding, D.A. Harding, D. A. Harding, D. Harding
Wilfred S. Trussell, Wilfred Trussell, W.S. Trussell, W. S. Trussell, W. Trussell
Sadie A. Trussell, Sadie Trussell, S.A. Trussell, S. A. Trussell, S. Trussell
Oscar S. Bulger, Oscar Bulger, O.S. Bulger, O. S. Bulger, O. Bulger
Paul A. Phippen, Paul Phippen, P.A. Phippen, P. A. Phippen, P. Phippen
Leslie R. Phippen, Leslie Phippen, L.R. Phippen, L. R. Phippen, L. Phippen
Millie A. Bulger, Millie Bulger, M.A. Bulger, M. A. Bulger, M. Bulger

Return to GCI Cemeteries
Return to Great Cranberry Island
Return home___