SWEAT Cemetery
NW4 of 12-14N-1W, Oklahoma Co. OK
Three miles north of Hwy 66, along the Indian Meridian, then a bit over 1/2 mile west.
I canvassed this cemetery in 1996 and submitted the tombstone transcriptions to OKGenWeb. Although I knew how most of these people fit into our family tree, it had been over 40 years since my last visit and there were several whom I could not place. That posting, however, enabled others who know these families to find me. Pooled knowledge now paints a much clearer picture than mere tombstone transcriptions, so this page is demonstrates how the information taken from tombstones can be combined with that from other sources.
The topographical map shows this as the Sweat Cemetery. It's a small plot that was located on the Russell SWEAT homestead, in Deep Fork Township, Oklahoma County, OK -- but it served the extended family, not just the SWEATs.
Margaret Graham, a Sweat descendant, has the earliest burial recorded as Russell's grandmother, Rachel Crowder Nichols. She died in August of 1890. Her husband, Evan Nichols, was buried there in 1898. Tradition has it that the NICHOLS graves were located to the west of the present fence, higher on the hillside. and that after Russell moved to Arcadia he had his family moved to the Arcadia cemetery.
Russell's brother Willard married Hattie FRIEND, and because so many of the early burials were members of her family it became known the Friend family cemetery. Hattie's sister, Mellie FRIEND, married Richard Franklin ATTEBERRY. A number of ATTEBERRYs are also buried here, and because they remained in the area and were the primary caretakers of the cemetery it also came to be known as the Atteberry family cemetery.
The cemetery was fenced in the late 1960s, as a bequest of Stella Elizabeth SANDERS, who was the last person buried there.
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West Row, Stones Recorded North to South |
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| Tombstone Inscription | Comments | |
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E/F L O R ? N C/G E |
An almost illegible sandstone marker, probably Florence [maiden name unknown], the wife of Charles Mathews FRIEND. She was listed on the 1890 Territorial census, but apparently died before 1900. Charles and his children then moved away. From the position of the graves, I think she probably died before Malinda. |
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Malinda Wife of Thomas C. Friend Born Sept 22 1837 Died Aug. 8, 1897 |
Maiden name: Malinda L. Filbert. While this is the earliest marked grave, we do not believe that Malinda's was the first burial. My theory is that Charles had moved away before she died so she was buried in the place reserved for him, between Florence & Elva. T.C. moved away after she died and later remarried. After his second wife died, he returned to live in the area and was also buried in the family plot [see below]. |
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Ella/Elva |
Another sandstone marker, which we originally read as "Ella" but has since been identified by a FRIEND researcher as Elva FRIEND [1895-1896], daughter of William L. FRIEND and Sarah KEEL. |
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Father Thomas C. Friend May 18, 1833 June 10, 1920 |
Tombstone and obituary give his birth date as 1833, but pension records give it as 1834. T.C. & Malinda were parents of William and Charles FRIEND [mentioned above], Hattie [who married Willard SWEAT] and Mellie [who married Frank ATTEBERRY] as well as a number of others whose descendants are not buried in this cemetery. |
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Rosa Etta Atteberry 1862-1901 |
Sister of Richard Franklin ATTEBERRY [husband of Mellie FRIEND], and wife of Mark Lafayette SANDERS. Apparently she was buried next to an ATTEBERRY niece because she was the first of her family to die and that row had not been filled. |
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Atteberry Daughters of Frank & Mellie |
Granddaughters of Thomas C. and Malinda FRIEND. The girls' parents, Mellie FRIEND and Frank ATTEBERRY, are buried in the nearby Luther cemetery as are some of their siblings who lived to adulthood. |
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Opal Jan 30, 1905 May 10, 1905 |
Feb 20, 1898 |
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East Row, Stones Recorded North to South |
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| Tombstone Inscription | Comments |
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Stella Elizabeth 1900-1966 |
Temporary marker still in place reads Stella Elizabeth SANDERS. Daughter of Mark Lafayette SANDERS and Rosa Etta ATTEBERRY |
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Della S. Kuntz 1894-1951 |
Della SANDERS, daughter of Mark Lafayette SANDERS and Rosa Etta ATTEBERRY. |
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Mark Lafayette 1860-1940 |
Full name, Mark Lafayette SANDERS, husband of Rose Etta ATTEBERRY. |
Coming soon [I hope] cemetery photos.
Please