Charles Irving Thornton Tombstone
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| Charles Irving Thornton Tombstone | |
|---|---|
| (U.S. National Register of Historic Places) | |
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| Location: | Cumberland State Forest, Cumberland County, Virginia |
| Nearest city: | Cumberland, Virginia |
| Built/Founded: | 1842 |
| Added to NRHP: | June 17, 1980 (VLR); November 25, 1980 (NRHP) |
| Governing body: | Cumberland State Forest |
The Tombstone of Charles Irving Thornton is a historic grave marker located in Cumberland State Forest in Cumberland County, Virginia. One of only two gravestones in the world known to exist with an epitaph by Charles Dickens, and the only one in the United States, it was listed on both the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
[edit] History
Charles Irving Thornton was the son of Anthony and M. I. Thornton of Cumberland County. He died on March 12, 1842, at the age of 13 months and 19 days. A Dr. Deane was attending to the child, and upon his death was moved to write to Dickens to request an epitaph to be placed on the child's grave. Dickens had recently visited Virginia as part of his tour of the United States, but by mid-March had moved on to Ohio. The author's reasons for complying with the doctor's request remain unclear, especially given that he expressed extreme distaste that Virginia still relied on slavery for much of its economic base; to explain his possible motivations, some historians have attempted to establish a genealogical link between Dickens, the Thorntons, and Washington Irving.
Thornton's grave may still be visited today; it is in a difficult-to-find area of the state forest, but park rangers are willing to direct people to the site.
[edit] Epitaph
The epitaph was edited slightly from the one provided by Dickens. It reads:
of
a Little Child
whom God in his goodness
Called to a Bright Eternity
when he was very young.
Hard as it is
For Human Affection
To reconcile itself
To Death
In any shape
[and most of all, perhaps
at First
In this]
HIS PARENTS
Can even now believe (sic)
That it will be a Consolation to them
Throughout their lives
and when they shall have grown old
and grey
always to think of him
as a Child
IN HEAVEN
"And Jesus Called a little Child unto
him, and set him in the midst of them."
He was the son of ANTHONY and M.I. THORNTON
Called CHARLES IRVING.
He was born on the 20 th day of January 1841,
and he died on the 12 th day of March 1842.
