The woman at the cemetery office was very nice and, having everything on computer, was able to provide all the information we wanted for the people on our list. Then we went out to see and photograph the tombstones.
Near the family plots, we found this:
Paul and Ethel were not on our list, but JB remembered that her grandmother had a sister, one Ethel Miller who, according to the grandmother’s obituary we had just read, had married a Tussing – and here they were. JB was sorry to see that her great-aunt’s dates were not complete, showing just “1899 – 19 .” Ethel must have been the last one in the ground and there was nobody to arrange for her year of death to be added.
JB felt so bad about it, in fact, that we went back to the cemetery office to ask when Ethel died (1959) and to see what it would involve and what it would cost to have the date added to the marker.
We were directed to the nearest monument dealer, which was more or less across the street. There we talked to a fellow named Dave who appeared a little bemused by the idea, since the woman had already been dead 45 years, but he talked to his stone carver, and they decided that for $92.00 plus tax, we could have “59” added to the “19” on Ethel’s tombstone. We would have paid up front, but Dave said it might be a few weeks before they got around to it; they'd send us a bill.
The next day we went back to the library to do more searching, and JB unearthed the obituary of Ethel I. Tussing of Findlay, Ohio, widow of Paul E., which gave her parents’ names (including the mother’s maiden name), and armed with that information, JB was able to determine with complete certainty that this woman was absolutely no relation to her whatsoever. I dug around a little more and found that her real great-aunt Ethel was married to William Tussing and was buried in Toledo.
When we got home the next day, I called Dave at the monument company and cancelled our order. Dave laughed when I told him why.
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