The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-03-03
OPENED SIX VAULTS
BUT NO RELICS OF GEN. NATHAN
AEL GREENE WE'RE FOUND.
WORK GOES ON TOMORROW
SEARCH WILL BE CONTINUED ON A
GENEROUS SCALE.

Their Contents Examined, Pro-
vided Permission Can lie Secured
From Representatives of the Fam
nies-COI. Gardiner Is Determined
TO Do Everything Possible for Sue
cess-What Was Found in Yester-
days Search.
Six vaults and tombs in Colonial Park
were opened yesterday in the search for
the remains of Gen. Nathaniel Greene,
| but no vestige was found. Careful and
diligent examination of each receptacle
for the dead of long ago was made, but
not a trace of that which they sought
did the members of the committee find.
Not until every colonial vault and tomb
in the cemetery, for which permission
can be obtained, has been opened will the
search be abandoned. That is the deci-
sion reached by Col. Asa Bird Gardiner,
who is directing operations. He is deter
mined to go back to the Society of the
! Cincinnati in Rhode Island, of which he
is president, with a report that will con-
vince the members that every care has
been taken and that nothing more could
possibly be done that would extend the
slightest chance for the discovery of the
| body.
With all respect and reverence, Col.
Gardiner said the search in the vaults
and tombs will be conducted. No ruthless
hand will desecrate the sacred relics they
contain, but they will be touched only to
reveal whether they may be those of the
! Revolutionary hero.
The clues given by historical informa-
| ton have been practically exhausted, and
It but remains for the committee to pros
! ecute the search upon different lines. No
great faith will be reposed in traditions
! and reports, but those that seem to offer
! the greatest reliability will, probably, be
| followed in the order in which vaults and
! tombs are opened. 1t is accepted, prac-
/ tically, as true that the remains must
! have been removed from the one of the
/ four vaults in row. in which they were
! Inferred, and il is now for the committee
4 to use every means left to it, to ascertain
/ in which of the many vaults in the old
| cemetery they may be.
The gallery that observed operations
| with such interest Friday afternoon was
| not lessened yesterday "A morbid Curl
/ osity drew a crowd to the scene. Many
| of those attracted by the prospect of a
! peep at the remains Of persons who died
! peep sufficing them, but there were 9TH
ers, with no especial interest in the work,
| who remained for hours. 1t is probable
! that Col. Gardiner will play TO a full
/ house as long as he is here.
| Upon the four vaults mentioned in his
| tory, operations were begun yesterday
morning shortly after 9 o'clock. The tomb
nearest Oglethorpe avenue was first OPEN
| ed, and it was ascertained 20 have be-
| longed to the Wylly family. In it were
! found coffin plates that bore the follow
! ing inscriptions: Martha Wylly. aged g.
| years." Sarah Ann Fulton, born, Jan.
s. 1876 died April q 1852" and Ann b.
Pitt, sied, 1889, aged So years"
Workmen of the Park and Tree Com
mission and the members of the commit
tee crawled through the narrow opening
that was made in that and other vaults,
and made their examinations of bones,
pieces of coffin and any other articles that
We're found. Lanterns were used in the
vaults. the openings did not admit
enough light to reveal their contents
clearly.
The style of construction of the vaults
was found to be uniform Transverse
rows of brick walls ran along the floor,
there being three or four of them, of a
hight possibly, of twelve inches. Upon
these were placed the collins, as was clear
from the positions in which the decayed
fragments of bodies and caskets were
found. In some Of the vaults it was evil
dent that collins had been placed one
above another
The Thiot vault was opened next, but It
was evidently not the first time that it
had been thrown bare to the light, for a
search failed to disclose any relics of the
dead. It, apparently, had been rifled of
whatever it may have held. An unknown
tomb, too, was opened, but in that no
remains were found. If there had been
any, they had crumbled away without
leaving a vestige.
The next vault in line is that of the
Jones family, but permission had not been
secured from Mr.. Wymberiey j. DeRenne
to open it, so it was not entered. 1t is
believed that search of it would be use
less. for the reason that the father of Mr..
DeRenne had all the bodies il contained
removed to the new family vault in Bona
venture many years ago.
The last vault opened was that supposed
to have been used by the Grahame fam
lily. The estates of Lieut.. Gov. Grahame
of the colony had been confiscated. Null
berry Grove, voted by Georgia to Gen.
Greene, was a part of these estates, and
it was supposed that the vault went with
Mulberry Grove as an appurtenance. 1t
was supposed, too, on this account that
ii was in the Grahame vault. afterwards
4
the Grahame family, that Gen. Greene's
body was placed. The others of the four
vaults had been practically fixed as to
Identity, and it was safe to presume that
the last had been used by the Grahames
and that Gen. Greenes body had been
placed in 1t.
Whether the body was really placed in
the vault, no man can say. but certain it
was that the most careful search failed
to disclose the slightest trace of it.
Neither name plate that had been on
the Generals coffin sword that was said
to have been inferred with him, nor but
tons or stars of his uniform could be
found II the body was ever inferred in
the vault, it is safe to say that it was
removed, whittier no one can say, though
number of traditions and theories have
been developed by the institution of the
search, and some Of them are not without
rather staunch adherents.
only one cofin-plate was found IN the
vault. 1t bore the name of Mrs. Sarah
s. Wood, who died in 1901. The stencil
from the vault was greater man in any
Of the others, and now aid again the
workmen who entered ID through the
aperture that had been made had to get
to the opening ior fresh air. Even
though century, almost. had passed
since bodies were placed IN the vault
there was enough evil odor arising from
the floor of the vault 20 sicken the men.
After thc last vault had been searched,