Knowles Plot
Well the plot thickens. (sorry couldn’t resist the pun). I took my newfound information about John Knowles and called the Fortuna Cemetery District. They oversee several cemeteries in Fortuna. I told them I was looking for a John Knowles who was buried in 1911. The nice lady found the information very quickly and his grave is at the Sunrise Cemetery.
So this afternoon I went over there and she led me down the hill to where the Knowles plot is. Yep that’s right, we have a whole plot in the cemetery. The weird thing is, is that the plot was paid for by a J.K. Knowles but he’s not buried there. The plot holds six, but only two people are buried there. In slot #1 is Cornelia V. Smith, who passed away in 1903. I’m guessing she (I say she, because in one register she is listed as Nellie) must be related to Frances M. Smith who was John’s wife.
She has a pretty substantial marker for the headstone and also has a footstone which I had never heard of before.
John Knowles is buried in slot #3, but the only other marker in the whole plot was a small one marked “C. S.”. Which seems like it would be Cornelia Smith again. The lady at the cemetery mentioned that since it is a family plot, if we can prove to them that we are related to J.K. Knowles, then we would be able to be buried there since it is paid for. I never considered burial before, but I did leave thinking it would be pretty cool to end up next to my great-grandfather.
I also did some research on Charles Knowles who I thought might be our great-great-grandfather, but given the name on John’s death certificate, I don’t think that is the case. However I did find the date of death for Charles Knowles and his wife Elvira, so I plan to research those dates in old newspaper obituaries. There is also a Robert Knowles listed in the 1890 census who was also from Maine, so he is probably related somehow. An 1884 directory listed a Galusha G. Knowles from New York. I’m not sure there are many people named Cornelius, Galusha, or Eleyel anymore.