Esther Hattie Miller Smith

Esther Hattie Miller Smith.  Born 12 Dec 1839 probably Middle Smithfield Township. Her parents were Daniel (1812-1885) and Dinah/Dian (1815-aft1860) her dad Daniel, was born in N.J. and was a blacksmith all his life. Some researcher name her mother as Lena Carver, I can’t find any info on that and I don’t believe it.  Monroe Co., Death Records 2005(Kim Pryse Kimler) names her as Tina. Easy to see T versa D. I also loved the fact that I found my relative John Everett 21 living with Hattie and her family in 1850.  They live near each other on and off the rest of their lives. It becomes even harder to track Esther when you find she uses the name Hattie, Hettie & Hester most of her life, Even on her children’s death certificate. She gets married at age 15 in about 1854 to Jeffery W Smith (1834-1906). Jeffery’s makes his living as a farmer but also enlisted in Pa 18^th Reg. and is captured in 1863, he is released in Dec. 1863. They move and live in Porter Township, Pike co., Pa. on the border of Monroe and raise a family. John, Mary, George, Savannah, Jeffery, Dinah, Daniel, Harvey, Elysabeth, Loranzo Eilenberger. She died 6 March 1904 at Daniel Haltermans (Savannah husband) of dropsy. 

Hmmmm what is that? Dropsy is more commonly known today as edema. An accumulation of large amounts of excess fluid below the surface of the skin or in some cavity of the body. Inflammation is often one of the underlying causes of this condition and can occur just about anywhere in the body. She is buried on 9 March 1904 at the Moses Smith Burial Ground, Porter Township, Pike Co., Pa. on the Monroe Co border. 

A few things about the cemetery. There are many graves marked with plain field stones. Moses Smith property and cemetery eventually gets sold to Girard College. The cemetery name can be found called Girard cemetery. Check here for the history of Stephen Girard and the college https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girard_College#History. 

Fast forward to my generation the cemetery was on the grounds of Camp William Penn, off Snow Hill Road. The camp began as the Philadelphia-based Girard College Camp in 1929. Philadelphia purchased the property in 1952 and for many years operated a resident summer camp for children from low-income homes. The camp about 72 acres and contains 114 buildings, some dating back to the late 1920’s was acquired by the DCNR in 2010 and became part of Delaware State Forest.  The DCNR has done an amazing job at preserving this cemetery. The grounds and lakes are great for any outdoor activity. http://www.poconorecord.com/article/20140817/NEWS/408170305

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/41777209/esther-smith