Finding Amanda's Grave

Hannah Amanda Pogue

Amanda  was born March 4, 1801 daughter of Robert and Jane Hopkins Pogue.  Named Hannah Amanda Pogue at birth, throughout her short life her family and friends referred to her simply as “Amanda.”   Amanda was eleven years old when her father (Lt. Col. Pogue) built his fort on the Auglaize and named it for her.  At the age of sixteen it was decided that Amanda would further her education at the Transalvania University in Lexington, Ky.  In a letter to his mother written  Nov. 7, 1817 Amanda’s brother William offers his help in helping Amanda as she prepares for school.  A section of the letter reads:

“If Amanda wishes to go to Lexington to school, I desire you, or

some of the family to inform me when she is ready to come, that

I might make arrangements with Mr. Blythe for her schooling and

also know where she will board or where she would desire to

board and find out when the next quarter will commence that she

might know when to prepare, and when she is ready, I will go down

for her when she is ready as I promised.”[1]

Searching for Amanda's Grave

Folks in Allen and Auglaize have been naming things after Fort Amanda for more than a century.  Things like:

1. Fort Amanda State Park
2. Fort Amanda Road
3. Fort Amanda Canoe Livery
4. Fort Amanda General Store
5. Fort Amanda Specialties
6. Lake Amanda
7. Amanda Township

It’s almost impossible to travel anywhere in Allen or Auglaize Counties without coming across the name “Amanda,”  yet most people have either no idea or know very little about the individual so what follows is a synopsis of what we know about her to date. 

Hannah Amanda Pogue was born on Wednesday, March 4, 1801 near Mayslick, Kentucky.  She was the 4^th child born to Robert and Jane Pogue.  Her older sibling at the time was 9 year old brother John Hopkins Pogue, 7 year old William Lindsay Pogue and 4 year old Edwin Philander Pogue.  A sister, Anzie Pogue had died the year before shortly before her 2^nd birthday.  Jane was 7 months pregnant with Amanda at the time.

When Amanda was 2 years old, the Pogue family was blessed with twins, Jane Isabella and Robert.  Three years later  Robert Cunningham Pogue was born and in 1808 Ann Eliza Pogue, the last of the Pogue children was born. In all, Robert and Jane had 9 children.

For some reason, Hannah Amanda Pogue preferred to be called Amanda rather than Hannah.  Letters from family members refer to her as “Amanda,” as does her obituary, although the inscription on her gravestone the name is: Hannah Amanda McDowell.    

Off to School

  Transylvania University's main building, (Broadway and 3^rd sts) erected in 1816, was destroyed by fire in 1829.

When Amanda turned 16, the family decided it was time for her to further her education. The school they chose was Transylvania University[1] a private school located 70 miles away in Lexington, Kentucky.   Amanda’s brother William, his wife Ann and their young family were living less than 3 miles from the university so he sent the following letter to their mother offering to help Amanda find a place to stay when she was ready to start.  The letter dated November 7, 1817 reads:   

           

“If Amanda wishes to go to Lexington to school, I desire you, or some of the family to inform me when she is ready to come, that I might make arrangements with Mr. Blythe for her schooling and also know where she will board or where she would desire to board and find out when the next quarter will commence that she might know when to prepare, and when she is ready, I will go down for her when she is ready as I promised.”[2]

The “Mr. Blythe,” William referred to in his letter was 55 year old Dr. James Blythe, an instructor at Transylvania University. Dr. Blythe taught Mathematics, Natural Philosophy, Astronomy and Geography.  He taught at the university from 1798 until 1831 when retired as chair of the Chemistry dept.   Amanda’s education probably focused on the liberal arts.

The Cost of Higher Education

In 1817 when Amanda started school at Transylvania, the tuition was approximately $125 per year and included room and board, firewood, use of the library and fire in the recitation room (study hall).  If a student wanted to live off campus, the going rate for room and board, laundry services including mendings was about $30 a year, but they had to furnish their own bedding, firewood and candles. 

Authors note:  
Room and board at Transylvania University in Lexington today is $42,000 a year ($33,000 and $9,000) 

Adult Years

In the ensuing years, Amanda met and fell in love with a young doctor 4 years her senior, named James Ephram McDowell.  Whether they met while going to school in Lexington is unknown however Translvania was renowned for its excellent medical program.

On September 9, 1822, twenty one year old Amanda Pogue and twenty five year old James  E. McDowell married in Flemingsburg, Kentucky and they set up home there.  Based on census records, it appears that Amanda and James were childless although a recent study of the 1840 census raises some questions that I will be pursuing.    

Death Visits the Pogue Family

Amanda died on New Years Day, January 1, 1827, 2 months short of her 27^th birthday.  The cause of death is unknown.  Because she died at her parents home near Mayslick. it’s possible she’d been ill for some time and they were looking after her.  Her obituary was simple:

"At the residence of her father, (Gen. Robert Pogue,) in this county, last week, Mrs. Amanda McDowell, consort of Dr. McDowell of Flemingsburg."

Death Strikes Agin

On May 21^st,  just four months after Amanda’s death, her sister, 24 year old Jane Isabella died.  Her twin brother Robert had died at 13 months in 1804.  Janes obituary in the May 23 issue of  the Mayslick Eagle read:

 In Mayslick, Mason County, Ky, on Tuesday morning last, after a long and severe illness, Mrs. Jane Mackey consort of Mr. William Mackey and daughter of Gen. Robert Pogue.

Authors note;

Janes obituary may give us a clue as to the cause of Amanda’s death.  Both young women died at a very young age and within 4 months of each other.  Jane died from Yellow fever so it is possible that was the cause of Amanda’s death as well.   Death from Yellow Fever was very common on the frontier.

In Search of Amanda’s Grave

On July 5^th 1991, my wife, our oldest son Mike (then a student at OSU) along with Mrs. Francis Rice and her husband Early went to where Francis believed the old homestead to be.   Turns out, the spot is more than a mile off the main road and in a heavily wooded area.     

On entering the woods I was mortified to see how overgrown the area actually was (see pic below).  You literally could not see the ground because of all the vegetation, branches, bushes, etc.

Using a shovel handle with a nail in the end, after I jabbed around the ground for what seemed like an eternity when finally I heard a “clink.”  I scrapped the dirt back and when I saw the name Edwin Pogue, I knew were in the right place.  Edwin was Amanda’s brother.  He was 4 years older than Amanda (1797 – 1841)

Edwin Pogues Grave
Amandas older brother

A few minutes later I heard Mike, shout out, “Hey dad, look at this.”  I walked over and could see a gravemarker tilted at an angle and sunken partially into the ground. I immediately saw that it was Amandas marker.   

Grave of Hannah Amanda McDowell  -  Namesake of Fort Amanda
1801 - 1827

 

My first impulse was to move the slab so it set level out of respect but I reminded myself that somehow that just didn’t seem right.  I swished what little water we had on it to clean it off so we could read the inscriptions more clearly.  Even that didn’t seem right somehow.

(L-R) Mike Johnson, Francis RIce, Early Rice, Me)

Immediately to the top of Amandas grave we found the grave of  Amanda’s younger sister Ann (1808-1838).  The slab covering her grave was not like anything I’d ever seen before.  It was 3 feet wide and 6 feet long and the inscription was but in handwriting script.  Again, not having much water, I couldn’t clean all of it so I could transcribe it but it was nothing short of beautiful. 

 

Notice the inscription carved in script.

Before the day was out, we found  a total of possibly 10 graves;

1.      Hannah Amanda McDowell  (1801-1827)

2.      Edwin Pogue  (1797-1841)

3.      Robert Pogue (either the twin (1803-1804) or (1806 – 1836)  

4.      Elizabeth Pogue Coale (b.? d. 1853)

5.      Minerva Kincaid

6.      Sally Lynn

7.      Eleanor Burgess

8.      Robert and Jane Hopkins Pogue (?)   

The stones shown in the picture below are believed to be the gravestones for Robert Pogue (1766 – 1833) and wife Jane. (

 

Possibly the graves of Lt.Col. Robert Pogue and his wife Jane Hopkins Pogue

Jane Hopkins Pogue, Amanda’s mother prepared her October 15^th, 1846.  She died 16 days later at the age of 79.  She had outlived her husband and 8 of their 9 children.  Their second oldest, William Lindsay Pogue outliving her by 35 years dying at the ripe old age of 87

Amanda’s mother outlived 8 of her 9 children.  Two had died before the age of 2, four before the  age of 30 and two  before the age of 45.  Only 1, William Lindsay Pogue outlived his mother, dying in 1881 at the age of 87.

Return Trip 20 Years Later

I went back to Amanda’s grave a couple years ago, no particuilar reason, I just wanted to see it again.  What I found was all traces of the gravestones were gone.  Cattle grazing in the woods over the previous the 20 years had caused the dirt and mud to settle on the stones and they were no longer visible.   It was an odd feeling.  I was very disappointed and sad but the more I thought about it I began to feel a sense of relief.    

Authors note:

Transcriptions of all markings on all the stones we found were given to the Mason County Historical Society in Maysville, Kentucky. 

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[1] The original campus located at Broadway and 3^rd in Lexington, was destroyed by fire in 1828 and the new campus moved 1 block north on Broadway ave.

[2]  The original letter is in the possession of the family.