The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1875-10-05
RAISED FROM THE GRAVE.

Edgar Allen P0e's Remains Removed IRON
Their Old Resting Plaee-Appearsnce Of thu
| Bones.
A late number of the Baltimore Even.
ing News gives the following account oi
the removal of the remains OF the great
poet, few days ago, preparatory to
erecting the monument to hia memory:
The work of preparing o foundation for
the Poe monument was commenced In
the Westminster Church burying-ground,
corner OF Green and Fayette streets, and
in order to build it OF sufficient strength
to hold the immense marble base, II. was
found necessary to remove the remains
OF the poet to the grave 81 Mrs. Clemm,
his mother-in-law, Tnich is situated a
feet few south of the old spot.
The gruVe before the work Of removal
! Commenced, presented most neglected
appearance. Situated in the south
west of the churchyard with the grass
growing free all around. few would i'm
agine that that simple green-clad-mound
covered all that was mortal Of one OF the
brightest writers Of the 10th century.
Nearly all the graves in the immediate
vicinity had costly monuments or head
stones with loving inscriptions to tell OF
who "lay buried there" that of the im-
mortal Poe alone being without even a
a simple slab to mark the mound. All
will be changed however, and shaft
will be reared ere long TO tell the CON-
ing ages that though long neglecttul
Baltimore did not altogether forget the
sou who shed q lustre on her name, and
indeed, over that Of the nation at large.
Mr.. George w. Spence, the sexton of the
Westminster grounds, has the work OF
preparing for the monument in hand,
and when it became evident that the
position of the cotlin would have to be
altered, he entrusted the removal to MIR.
w. l.. Tuder. a professional coffin litter,
who has in his time raised over two
thousand from their original resting
places.
He set about this task early in the af-
ternoOn, and the sun was just setting be-
hind the western horizon when his spade
sounded on the coffin lid Of the poet.
1t lay about five feet from the surface,
and at first sight appeared as sound as
when first put into the earth. On care
fully raising it to the brink Of the grave
Mr.. Tudor discovered that it was par
TALLY broken in at the sides, and the lid
near the head was SO much decayed that
it iell in pieces on the ground. On look
ing through the aperture thus created
Messrs. Spence, Tudor, their assistants,
and the News man beneld the skeleton of
Poe. The flesh and funeral robes of
course had crumbled into dust and
there was nothing left but the bare bones
and a few clumps oil hair attached to the
skull, to tell that body had once been
there.
The skeleton was in perfect condition,
the arms lying as they were arranged in
death, and the back and leg-Dones in a
natural position. The ribs had fallen
out. but lay in order on each side OF the
coffin, and the skull had not moved the
least from its proper place. The teeth
of the upper jaw must have been shaken
out in the lifting of the coffin, for they
lay scattered about the skull; but those
OF the lower jaw, which had fallen down
from the rest of the "iace," were perfect,
not one being missed from either side.
The teeth looked pearly white, and were
in excellent preservation. Without loss
OF time, Mr.. Spence had the cof1u placed
within wooden case and lowered to
the grave prepared for 1t, and before the
darkness set in the clay was dashed for
the second time on the hollow-sounding
casket, and the remains of Poe were cov-
cred up, never, it ID TO be hoped, to be
again.