An unusual double stone

Susan, Daughter of A. & S. Thompson died Sept 12, 1814. Aged 5 years.
an infant son died Oct. ?

I’ve written about double stones before, where the stone looks like two tombstones with the same outline are mashed together to form one that is symmetrical. Usually, the writing on the stone is also done in this symmetrical pattern: if we could somehow magically slice the tombstones apart, each side would look like a perfectly normal single stone. This one is different, with the inscriptions for both Susan and her unnamed brother carved across the entire width of the stone.

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Double stones

Double stones signify one of two things. What I mean by double stones is a grave marker that gives the impression of being two markers smashed very close together – if the marker was paper instead of stone, you could fold it right down the middle and have the outline of one tombstone. I’m not sure I’m explaining myself clearly, so let me post an example.

As I was saying, double stones signify one of two things – or really, relationships. The double stone we might think of immediately is a stone for a married couple. But in the 19th and early 20th centuries, a double stone was often used to signify siblings.

Now of course a married couple could die tragically young, but a double stone almost always signifies very early death. If a child had reached adulthood, he or she would likely be married and buried with a spouse. Not only that, but a double stone indicates that a family lost two children very young.

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