Unusual Surprises

Sometimes you receive a copy of a requested record and are presented with a unusual bit of information.  This was the case when requesting interment records from Catholic Cemeteries of the Joliet Diocese. 

In the course of documenting the burial places of our family I request the lot and interment information from the appropriate cemetery office.   One of my first requests was of John and Ellen Chidsey who where interred in Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Joliet, Illinois.  Buried with them are their daughter, three grandchildren, and a great-grandchild.  As well as what was identified as John Chidsey (Left Limb).  I was puzzled.  A left limb? Why was just a limb buried?  My grandmother would then explain to me it was once tradition to bury an amputated body part.  Usually in the grave the person would be buried in.  However, John and his wife, Ella would be buried in a different part of the cemetery.

Later we would discover that the amputation was due to frost bite.  His granddaughter, Joan would later remember the surgery and tell us about it.  After the operation the doctor came out of the operating room and asked Ella which mortuary to call.  Not thinking he was referring to the limb he had just amputated she thought her husband had died during the surgery.  I'm sure she was assured that the operation would go well.  However, we sometimes tend to expect the worst.  Imagine her relief when she found out he had just meant for the limb.