Now a few years ago, in 2013, Chris Leigh-Jones was working in the garden of one of Luxury Simplified’s properties on East Bay and Hasell Street and struck gold. Well, ok, maybe it wasn’t quite gold, but it was an interesting find nonetheless. Thinking that he hit a big rock while digging, Chris continued to dig until he realized that it was a small gravestone that he had found. Once it was cleaned, the markings S.M.H 1843 became apparent and the search to find out who it belonged to began.
After hours of research in the Carolina Room of the library, a little more information was discovered. The owner of the home during the 1840s was a gentleman by the name of John H. Shreiner who was a meat and grocery merchant specializing in bacon (a good southerner for sure).
While the person for whom the gravestone belonged is still a bit of a mystery, it is believed (given research on the death records in Charleston that year) that it was for a slave who died of small pox. Despite the status of slave, this man must have been well respected by Mr. Shreiner to receive a marble gravestone noting his death. And more than likely, the body was not buried at the East Bay and Hasell Street site where the gravestone was found, but at a CBG, or City Burial Ground where slaves would have more commonly been buried. In the year 1843, Charleston’s CBG was located along the west side of the city from Spring and Cannon Streets north to Congress Street.
Just this week, Chris was interviewed by Channel 4 News on his backyard find. Have you ever wondered what was in your garden? You might be surprised!
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