I am not doing too well on completing my monuments and posting articles. Life has somehow managed to interfere with all my plans. Although it is not an excuse, I took on a really large project which has become quite the undertaking to complete. With that being said, life happens but I am excited to keep working.
I became interested in this monument when I was working on the Angel for Robert Payne. It actually caught my eye because I did not realize there was anything other than two overgrown trees: certainly not a huge obelisk of one of Senatobia’s most notable families. Hidden behind the thick brush was the French Family plot and family obelisk.
First order of business was to remove these trees. I waited until the fall and somehow talked my coworker, Pat into helping me cut them down.
Pat was able to use the chainsaw to cut the unsightly trees down which unveil this impressive monument.
Now, time for the D2 Biological Solution and cleaning. There are 12 monuments surrounding the family obelisk and unfortunately, two are broken. The obelisk lists all the names of the family that may or may not be buried in this plot. Needless to say, I have a good deal of work to restore the French Family Plot.
The first order of business was to clean the obelisk. It was rather difficult since I am a petite middle age woman, but I think I have done all I can do at this point.
See what you think of the progress so far:
I have been working on cleaning the surrounding monuments and plan to try to restore the coping around the lot. (Coping is the “stone wall” that surrounds the lot.) Interestingly enough, I did make a rather remarkable discovery during one of my cleaning visits that I cannot wait to share in future articles. In the meantime, I am sure you are wondering why I chose this project that has literally taken so much time and will continue to be a challenge. I guess it all started with when I discovered the obelisk hidden behind the trees. Once I realized it belonged to the French family, I had to do it. The French family was one of the first families to settle in Desoto and Tate Counties from Laurens County, South Carolina around 1856.
The French family that made the journey were as follows:
George and Mary “Polly” Ann Arnold French and their only son, William A. French along with William’s two children, William Arnold Raiford French and Mary T. French.
I will try to give you more information about each person that is buried in this Family Lot as I work on each monument. I hope you enjoy this introduction to the French Family Project and stay tuned for more transformations. As always, thank you for reading and subscribing to our website.
WOW! That monument has been transformed. It looks so good now since you have put your magic to work on it. I really enjoyed reading the introduction to the French Family Project.
I’m so impressed! I have some free time now that I’m retired and am also needing a good excuse to get in some exercise. Should you ever need an extra set of hands, give me a shout! I’d love to help! I’m a huge history buff and my ancestors settled into the Love community around that same time!
I love the history that you literally uncover!
That was an interesting read even though I’m not originally from Tate county. Thanks for investing your time to protect our historic monuments and stories. Rosemary Tindle