Anna Pottery
cemetery urn, 1893
hand-thrown and constructed stoneware, white-slip decoration, hand-applied decoration 
43 3/8 inches high by 17 1/23 inches diameter 
Illinois State Museum collection
Gift of Mrs. Margaret Kirkpatrick, Anna, Illinois 

What are some of the differences between this cemetery marker and ones commonly used today? 
How is the style different? How is the sentiment different?

What expressions of personal taste do you see when you look at grave markers in a cemetery? Does your family still have the tradition of visiting family gravesites, as many Americans did in earlier times?

In the nineteenth century, makers of cemetery markers regularly used a tree trunk theme in their designs. Stonemasons carved limestone cemetery stones in the shape of tree trunks during the War Between the States for the graves of soldiers killed in battle. This theme for grave markers was also popular in the western states among pioneers. The popular tree theme seen on cemetery markers also appeared on prints and paintings with the caption "May this tree be spared," with a place to write a loved one's name.

This two-piece pottery cemetery urn was made for Nathaniel Kirkpatrick, a brother of Cornwall Kirkpatrick and Wallace Kirkpatrick, founders and owners of the Anna Pottery. The inscription reads "Nathaniel M. Kirkpatrick died Jan. 7th 1893 Age 80 years." This fragile marker was located over Nathaniel's grave until 1965, when the donor removed it for safe-keeping.