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The Life of ASA Beaumont FORREST

ASA B. FORREST 1846-1920 OAKWOOD CEMETERY SUPERINTENDENT BEECHWOOD SECTION, LOT E-6 Asa B. Forrest was born November 12, 1846 in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, the oldest of four children. His wife was Betsey Jane Webster (1849-1929), also of Tioga County, where they married in 1869; he and Betsey had seven children, only one of whom, Mortimer (1886-1963), survived childhood. His family recalls “AB” as well read, with a personal collection of books, an extensive knowledge of trees, shrubs and flowers, and an interest in landscape architecture. Apparently Forrest and his wife moved to Raleigh in the early 1870s, soon after their marriage; he came south to open a nursery, having friends and, perhaps, relatives in the state, and according to the City Directory lived on North Street in the early 1880s. The Forrest property in the district incorporated three present-day lots: 517 and 519 Polk Street plus what is now (2013) the corner site of Emmanuel Pentecostal Holiness Church at 521, all overlooking the then recently chartered (1869) Oakwood Cemetery. The Forrest house, built ca 1883, still stands at 517, and his nursery was located on the adjacent lots; a contemporary account (1887) notes the “many varieties of plants, trees, shrubs, etc., which are to be found at his place….” In 1911 son Mortimer’s house was completed at 519. Mort and wife Stella Brightwell Forrest (1886-1983) lived there for the rest of their lives; both are buried in the Forrest plot in HOC. Forrest was appointed Superintendent of Oakwood Cemetery in 1874, a job he held until 1920. The story is told at the Cemetery even today, however, that Forrest's appointment was not without controversy. The new Superintendent had been a private in the Union Army, the 187th Pennsylvania Infantry, for nearly a year and a half and had been wounded in his left shoulder on 18 June 1864 at Petersburg, all of which making him ill suited, some thought, to manage the final resting place of so many Confederate dead. The issue of Forrest’s employment came to Robert Hoke himself, and when that highly regarded Confederate General approved the hire, the decision was made. It turned out to be a fortunate choice, as Forrest became celebrated, in Raleigh and beyond, for his development and beautification programs for Oakwood; the Forrest Section name honors the man and his singular contributions to the Cemetery -- the beauty of that place, it was said at the time, was “owing to his superior skill and untiring industry.” Over the years he planted many trees around Raleigh, including downtown. Forrest was active with Tabernacle Baptist Church on Moore Square, serving as a superintendent of the Sunday School and a teacher of the men’s Bible class. He died on February 8, 1920, of “influenza & pneumonia,” a victim of the pandemic then afflicting much of the world. A News & Observer headline noted (10 February 1920): "Faithful keeper of Oakwood Cemetery now sleeps there himself," and despite the cold and the epidemic, many came to his graveside service to honor the man who had so honored their deceased friends and relatives. Forrest must have chosen his own resting place (and that of his wife) not far from the foot of Polk Street. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Park and Cemetery, a Chicago publication devoted to the interests of parks, cemeteries and landscape gardening, in its issue of December (1919), featured an illustrated article about Raleigh’s (Historic) Oakwood Cemetery written by Ernest L. Leland. The article, which contains an interesting anecdote about General Hoke, was written after Leland’s visit to Raleigh and an inspection of the “City of the Dead.” The illustrations included views of the Langhorne cross (no longer at Oakwood), the cemetery office, the main entrance, Hickory Avenue, and the Beechwood and Chapel Circle Sections. The article follows: News and Observer, Sunday Morning, January 4, 1920 A VISIT TO OAKWOOD A few years following the close of the Civil War several misguided citizens of Raleigh succeeded in acquiring a few signatures to a petition protesting against the superintending of A. B. Forrest at Oakwood (Cemetery). With apprehension born of their dubious mission, these self-appointed guardians of the public presented their document to General Hoke. Now, it happened that General Hoke was not a man of small tactics, neither was he easily enticed away from that sense of right and duty so typical of the traditional southern gentleman and soldier. The General received the little band of malcontents and reading uncertainty and apprehension in their eyes, he reached for the document they falteringly tendered to him. He cast his eyes over the petition and then studied the gathering before him. For several minutes there was a tense silence. Tossing the document toward the group and with searching directness he asked, “Well, what is the matter with this man, Forrest, —what wrong has he done?” For a few minutes no one ventured a word. Then came a timid voice from the rear, “Why sir, Forrest is a Yankee, —he was even wounded at Petersburg!” The General started from his chair and locating the speaker, he exclaimed, “Well, he was a good soldier, wasn’t he?” The meeting adjourned. From that day to this, a period of forty-four years, A. B. Forrest has governed the hills and vales of Oakwood (Cemetery)in peace. Earnest and progressive in his work, he has gained the confidence and respect of the entire community. As he stood with me upon the section consecrated to the dead of the great army of the Confederacy, Mr. Forrest, with feeling, observed that for these many years he has watched over the graves of men who fought valiantly against his fellow-soldiers in the great war between the states. The evolution of the average cemetery from a neglected “burying ground” into a beautiful park-like cemetery is but a further exposition of the familiar “American Efficiency.” When Mr. Forrest assumed the duties of his office, no lots in Oakwood (Cemetery) were cared for; indeed, there were no tools with which to work. Now and then some lot-owner would give a negro old clothes by way of compensation for removing over-grown grass and brush from a plot. Dirt which was left from the excavation of graves remained in gruesome piles everywhere. These and innumerable similar conditions were enough, it would seem to discourage the most zealous enthusiast, but Mr. Forrest set quietly and seriously to work. Step by step he overcame obstacles in the face of unbelievable handicaps. Money was scarce and the improvements were necessarily achieved only by arduous physical labor voluntarily contributed after he had accomplished the routine work of the day. Truly the glories of Oakwood’s eighty-odd acres are the life-work of one man who has these many years held ever before him ideals which are in this day regarded as prerequisites of a modern cemetery. If anyone is inclined to discount the importance and possibilities of cemetery administration as a life-work and profession, let him but study for a day the transformation of this wonderful cemetery in Raleigh from a forsaken graveyard into one of the garden spots of a beautiful city in “the Land of the Sky.” Hugh granite entrance ways, substantial and well designed bridges, gutters, curbing and concrete drives, a veritable forest of trees largely grown from seedlings brought from the woods of Pennsylvania and set out in nursery rows, a beautiful chapel, a spacious receiving tomb,—these, together with a wide area now under lawn-plan, are achievements of which any man might well be proud. Topographically, the essential features of Oakwood are four hills which slope gently into ravines through which course the winding brooks. The roads and drives have been developed to follow generally an elevation half-way between the dell and the crest of the hills. There are eighty acres, of which twenty-five are in use and some two acres reserved for lawn and landscape treatment solely. Here and there the hillsides are terraced so that the lots are not unhappily located on steep and abrupt grades. The dignity and charm of the series of steps which ascend the hill as we graze across the bridge from the office suggests the decorative possibilities of this feature in landscape design, — an architectural value which we are told was early recognized by the Babylonians in their famous sunken gardens. The contour of the hills and graceful winding curves of the roadways combine charm which are enhanced by the dense canopy of tree-growth which in turn so screen the view ahead that one can never anticipate what beauties are in store a few rods apace. The trees of Oakwood abound in features interesting alike to both the schooled taxonomist and the lay-lover of things sylvan. The cemetery obviously is named for the Oaks of various types within the grounds. There is one Red Oak which measures, at a level of two feet from the ground, fifteen feet in circumference, with a spread of branches approximately ninety feet. Another grand old White Oak is thirteen feet in circumference with a spread of nearly eighty feet. Sugar, Oregon, Red, and Silver Maples; Lindens, Silver-Leafed, European and American; Elms, Poplars, Beech, Catalpa, Magnolia, Hemlock, Norway Spruce, Irish Yews, Junipers and white pine, —these and other trees are dotted here and there on crest and hillside or along the roadways. There are over 300 Magnolias in Oakwood, one specimen in particular measuring seven feet six in circumference with a spread of forty-seven feet. Mr. Forrest is particularly proud of the imposing line of White Oaks which shade the main drive from the front entrance. One section of the cemetery derives its name for the native beech which cluster there, whilst other sections bear such names as Linden and Magnolia because of the trees common to the sectors. The average cemetery in the South is not so fortunate in the character of its buildings as are the burial parks of the North and West. The long struggle toward economic stability since the destructive war of the States has retarded the construction of buildings, which unlike natural improvements, require more money than the landscape features so commonly developed by the sheer physical labors of the superintendent and his aids. The past decade has brought a new day for the South, and the pride of her people and the cemeteries is finding expression in chapels an administration buildings. Raleigh, like most capitals, is a city of substantial, if not wealthy, citizenry, and it is therefore not surprising to find, in Oakwood (Cemetery), structures which excel those of many southern cities more populous. The Administration Building, is a modest but substantial and attractive edifice. The walls are build of native granite topped with a pleasing roof tile. It is situated well back from the main entrance, and an interesting porte-cochere spans the main driveway. It was built at a cost of $5,000. The chapel is a picturesque structure, cruciform in plan and in architecture, is of the English gothic school of designed so modified in detail to come within an appropriation of $6,000. It was built of granite trimmed with native sandstone. The facade is now cloaked in a mass of ivy and as one stands before the quaint and colorful building, he is reminded of some tranquil and pacific chapel in the rural districts of old England. It was erected for the free use of all lot owners. The receiving vault is done in brownstone trimmed with granite, and was designed by the late A. G. Bauer. When Mr. Forrest assumed the superintendency there were no lots under the systematic care of the Association. One of his first measures was an appeal to lot owners for the regular and popular maintenance of lots by the Cemetery. Fifty owners responded the first year, the number being now swelled to one hundred, aside from the considerable percentage of plots under perpetual care. “Beechwood, ” the new section operating under the lawn plan, is divided into good sized lots, all sold under perpetual care. Curbing and corner posts above grade are here prohibited. With the exception of two sections, all lots hereinafter sold in Oakwood Cemetery will be perpetually maintained by the Cemetery. Annual care service charged for on the basis of one cent per foot, the minimum charge being $3. Perpetual care is offered lot holders at the rate of .25 cents per foot, plus a sum equal to the cost of the lot. The price of lots in Oakwood varies according to location, ranging from .15 cents to .40 cents. The total number of interments approximates 6,000, and the average yearly burials are about 150. Oakwood Cemetery is owned by the Raleigh Cemetery Association, founded in 1869. It is managed by a Board of Directors elected by the stockholders, who are all lot owners. The Charter of the Corporation states that all money “shall first be applied to the payment of the purchase money of the said land acquired by said Corporation, or to the payment of any other debt said Corporation may owe; and any surplus of money remaining in the treasury of said Corporation may be applied to the improvement and embellishment of the grounds of the said Cemetery, or to any other useful purpose deemed expedient by the Corporation.” The book of regulations presents rules consistent with the best ideas of modern cemetery administration. A strict supervision of monument and memorial work is exercised by the cemetery authorities, both as to practical and aesthetic details. The duplication of designs and similar abuses are discouraged and an earnest effort is made to induce the public to erect memorials in harmony with the surroundings. Courtesy, tactfulness and service are bywords in the management of all better American Cemeteries, and here in Oakwood (Cemetery) this blessed trinity of all successful public enterprises, is rigidly maintained. Schooled by the precepts of their official head, Mr. Forrest’s aides are studiously patient under the many trying experiences in the day’s work of a cemetery. Mr. Forrest is assisted, in the conduct of Oakwood, by Mr. C. H. Wallace, a young man of energy and ideals, who has the rare gift in a subordinate, of unfailing respect and regard for his superior. “This boy Wallace and I,” said Mr. Forrest, laughingly, “are like Damon and Pythias,” and it is evident that the venerable superintendent is schooling the young man to carry on the traditions so largely the work of the resourceful executive. If the visitor in Oakwood (Cemetery) is so fortunate as to chance in upon Mr. Forrest when he is for a few moments at ease and reminiscent, he has before him an absorbing half-hour. Within these grounds this man has come in contact with thousands of families among whom are numbered the celebrities of the old North State and names familiar to all students of American history. If the day’s work has not left Mr. Forrest too weary and the visitor is a good listener, he may learn how a veteran of the Federal Army came into the heart of the South soon after the war, and steadily worked his way into the hearts of a great people in this famous Southern capital. I have before me a letter which perhaps reveals in a measure the esteem in which he held: “No more favorable comment can be made upon Mr. Forrest’s amiable personal traits and lovable disposition, than the fact that coming as an ex-Federal soldier into a distinctively Southern community, he has not failed to win the sincere and lasting friendship of all who know him. A valued and useful citizen, interested in all that is for the up-building of the Capital City, a deacon of the great Tabernacle Baptist Church and for many years one of the superintendents of the largest Sunday Schools in the South, an Odd Fellow and Mason, an orator and poet, and a genial, jolly good fellow.” In closing, let me bid the visitor tarry long enough to have the conversation drift into the subject of poetry. Gifted with a remarkable sense for composition, Mr. Forrest is well known for his work in this the noblest of arts. Whether it happens apropos of some comment one may make, or as a parting word to the visitor, to hear Mr. Forrest declaim some sweet passage from the lyrical Tennyson, is to carry forever in one’s mind the impression of a gentle, loving man who fills an office fraught with opportunities to life the burden of many souls who face life without the comfort given them by one who has passed on. pill online

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