I met a new friend named Mike Dean the other day. He told me about his strong connection to Owen County and about a cemetery named Surber that was close to his house. What is special abour Surber Cemetery is that it is the final resting place of at least 3 Revolutionary War Soldiers. So I met Mike at his house and we headed off to Surber Cemetery. Surber Cemetery is spread out over approximatly 50 yards in a very wooded area. Thre are 22 known burials there. Mike gave me the grand tour as I mentally calculated each headstone's needs for restoration. One of the 22 headstones belongs to John Snoddy. Mike told me that John was Revolutionary War Soldier.When I returned home I decided that I would see what information there was on John Snoddy and was surprised to see that his military files contained quite a bit. John Snoddy was born February 23, 1758 in Rowan County, North Carolina. He enlisted in January 1775 and served three months as a private under Capt James Purvines. between 1778 & 1782, he served a total of two years as a private and served under Capt Moses Goss, William Stuart, Major Joseph Dixon, Colonel Clevland, & Colonels Isaacs and was involved in many skirmishes. In 1782, John moved to Kentucky and lived 41 years before moving to Owen County, Indiana. His file contained many letters written by those who knew him, one saying "that he supports the character of a very honest man". There is a very long and hard to read document written by John himself telling of his experience in the war but the one that got my attention was written by Pauline Snoddy Crow which says that John was a Special Messenger for General Washington! There are many other letters in the file, even one written by Owen County's own Thomas C Johnson. In March of 1843, John Snoddy passed away, and his final resting place lies in Surber Cemetery in the middle of a woods in central Sweet Owen.
3 Comments
carla
8/30/2013 11:03:28 am
I love the stories that go with the graves. love you son, you are doing a great job
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tracy crowe tinsley
8/31/2013 09:24:45 am
My maiden name is Crowe. However, up until two generations ago it was spelled, "Crow." My great-grandma added the "e" because she said, "it took the feathers out!" I would love to find out more about Pauline Snoddy Crow. This was a great read. Thank you for sharing and thank you for your time and dedication.
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James leslie surber8
7/22/2019 07:44:53 pm
I had an uncle in Santa andrews fla named George Washington surber
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AuthorMy name is John Maxwell and I am a Co-Founder of Headstone Healers of Indiana and a Find-A-Grave Volunteer who enjoys working with old headstones. Many tell a story of days past and the people who lived then. Archives
May 2014
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