A Tale Of Two Gracies

"The stars shall fade away, the sun himself grow dim with age, and nature sink in years; but thou shalt flourish in immortal youth…”

– Joseph Addison

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Among the most well-known residents of Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah, GA, is a young girl named Gracie Watson.

Her parents, W.J. and Frances, moved to Savannah from Boston after W.J. was appointed to manage the prestigious Pulaski Hotel.

Gracie, their only child, was born in 1883.

The Pulaski Hotel was Gracie’s entire world, where she lived and played, charming the hotel's guests who found her to be a delightful child.

In April 1889, just before Easter, Gracie fell ill with pneumonia and did not recover. She was buried in the Watson family plot at Bonaventure.

The next year, Savannah sculptor John Walz used a photograph provided by Gracie's father to create the iconic white marble statue that now marks her grave. The statue depicts a young girl with her hand resting on a tree stump, symbolizing a life cut short.

Walz gained fame for his memorial sculptures, and Bonaventure showcases many of his exquisite creations. It is also his final resting place. A street named Walz Way honors him. He also created the sculptures of Phidias, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, and Raphael that stand in front of The Telfair Academy in downtown Savannah.

The Watsons, devastated by their daughter's passing, eventually departed from Savannah, leaving Gracie behind. However, the little girl continues to enchant both the city and its visitors, who frequently visit her grave to pay their respects.

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A few years ago, I had the chance to visit Forest Hills Cemetery near Boston. It epitomizes 19th-century Victorian landscape design, featuring rolling green lawns, a leafy canopy of trees, and stunning statues and architecture.

As I drove through Forest Hills, keenly observing for anything unique and unusual, I noticed a glass container housing a statue.

The statue depicted a young girl in Victorian attire. The name "Gracie" was inscribed on the front of the pedestal.

Gracie Sherwood Allen was born in 1876, seven years before Gracie Watson. She passed away from whooping cough shortly before her fifth birthday in 1880.

Her parents, William H. and Emily J. Allen, commissioned a life-size statue of their daughter, sculpted by Sydney H. Morse. Morse was not only a sculptor but also a poet, writer, and friend of Walt Whitman, whose sculpture by Morse is housed in the National Portrait Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution.

This Gracie is crafted from white marble and features a Victorian style in her hair and clothing, down to the buttons on her boots. In her right hand, she holds flowers with petals beginning to fall, symbolizing a life cut short. She is laid to rest in the Allen family plot, alongside her mother and father.

Although Gracie from Boston does not share the renown of Gracie from Savannah, she remains a child whose life ended too soon.

Two young girls, separated by a thousand miles, connected by the name Gracie and white marble statues that preserve their memory eternally.

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Christine Shephard is a photographer, writer, and avid taphophile. She makes her home in Central New York.

Images captured by Christine Shephard Photographic Design and the written content cannot be utilized in any other format or publication without explicit permission.