The Importance of Geography

One of the things that I noticed in Ireland last time I visited was that tombstones frequently list the deceased’s home – much more frequently than I see on tombstones in the U.S. I posted last week about Charles Bird, late of Bective House, a local estate.

Proudstown is nearby in County Meath. From what I can tell, the racecourse that was known as Proudstown Park is actually in Navan, but Proudstown was the name of the railway stop that used to service that area. My understanding is that Proudstown might not be an official town, but it refers to a neighborhood or area. Anyone with better knowledge is welcome to help me out with this.

There is a Killeen Road about 4 kilometers away from the Hill of Tara.

What I found most interesting about the place names on Irish tombstones is that they are not just cities, but neighborhoods, regions, and even streets.

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A Grave Concern: Defending the area

We just took a brief drive around Chestnut Hill Cemetery. According the “Civil War on the West Shore” self-guided tour available from the Cumberland County Visitors Bureau, during the Gettysburg campaign, this Chestnut Hill Cemetery was mistaken for an entrenched Union position and caused the Confederates to change the direction of their advance. I never thought there were soldiers camped up there, but I can honestly say that after having driven/ridden by the eastern side of the cemetery probably well over 100 timers in my life, I also never realized there was a graveyard there. You can’t see any of what is up on the plateau from below.

Other than the cemetery sign and driveway, the only item really visible from the road to the north is this one vault built into the hillside.

These photos were taken from the road that clings tightly to the side of the hill to provide access to the cemetery.

And here is the drop-off down to the main roadway, as photographed from the passenger side of the car.

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