Layers of history

I recently was driving down a busy suburban road, when I spotted a sign I had never seen before tucked along the side of the road. Revolutionary War Veteran? In Wisconsin? Wisconsin didn't become a state until 1848.

I had to find a place to turn the car around to see what that was all about.

There, in the middle of suburban sprawl, tucked among some large trees, was a little cemetery from long ago. I love such places. I love the trees, the old monuments, the history. These final resting places capture my imagination. Each person represented here had his or her own history of hopes, dreams, disappointments. A lifetime of days or many, many years.

But I never knew before that here, in Brookfield, Wisconsin, was the final resting place of a Revolutionary War veteran. Nathan Hatch, born in Massachusetts in 1757, died in 1847, he moved to Wisconsin in the 1840s. What a life he must have had!

Wisconsin isn't usually thought of when we learned about the Civil War, but we have our share of veterans from that war buried here, as well as someone who fought in the War of 1812.

I had no idea. I wonder how many people flying by in their vans and SUVs notice this little gem of history.

It really is a lovely peaceful place, hidden in plain view right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of modern life. And, unusual for these times, there really are oaks in Oak Hill Cemetery. Beautiful, tall oaks, providing cooling shade the day I stopped to walk among the markers.

Here's another interesting bit of information about Brookfield, Wisconsin. Did you know that Caroline Ingalls, the mother of author Laura Ingalls Wilder (LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE), was born in Brookfield in 1839? There is even a book about the years she spent in Brookfield, called LITTLE HOUSE IN BROOKFIELD.

Here is a picture of the real Charles and Caroline Ingalls, the parents of Laura Ingalls Wilder.

They don't exactly look like the Ma and Pa Ingalls we know from the television series, do they?

I really enjoy finding the layers of history hidden in the most unlikely places, don't you?

Thanks to all my wonderful Blogland friends who commented on my last posts, I do so enjoy hearing from you and reading your kind comments! And to all my American friends - I hope you have a safe, happy 4th of July weekend!