Capt. William Lynch

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/50765024/william-lynch

Birth: 1742 Pittsylvania County Virginia, USA Death: Jul. 15, 1820 Pickens County South Carolina, USA

Soldier, American Revolution _____________________________ Greenville News, March 24, 2004. Metro Section, page 1, con'd page 7 By Anna Simon, asimon@@greenvillenews.com

Development Threatens to Unearth Buried Past

Pickens - Descendants of American Revolutionary soldier Capt. William Lynch want their ancestor's grave defended as development mushrooms in the Upstate.

Lynch was born in Virginia and lived the later part of his 78 years near Table Rock. He was buried in 1820 near his home in northern Pickens County, where an upscale golf community, The Rock at Jocassee, is today.

"This is a patriot who fought for our freedom," said Karen Patterson of Travelers Rest, who's husband is a direct descendant of the captain and wants the grave, which is on a undeveloped residential lot, protected from development.

A low wall of fieldstones surrounds it. A slender 20 foot oak tree grows from the grave, and the headstone lies to the side, knock over accidentally by a heavy equipment operator.

Stan Brown, one of the developers said the grave will be preserved, cleaned up and repaired, fenced, marked with an informative sign, and accessible to the public.

It will be part of a planned historical walking tour on the property, along with the graves of two Lewis family members buried in 1846 and 1848 near the 18th hole on the golf course.

It will be an asset to the development, which also contains the remains of an old mill, part of an old toll road that went through the mountains to North Carolina, lore from moonshine days and other artifacts, Brown said.

Small cemeteries and isolated gravesites dot the foothills and mountains of the Upstate.

"For Southerners in particular, these old cemeteries and gravesites give us a sense of Place, said Dennis Chastain, whose family has deep roots in northern Pickens County, "These are our ancestors and they are physically there, To lose that is a pretty big sense of loss.

Even when people don't go back to visit these places, they "still have a tender spot to know their people are buried there," said Luther Johnson, Jr. director of the S.C. Franks Chapel of Remembrance in Liberty.

"Black churches that one existed in the northern part of Pickens County - members died or moved away. Children never go back, but they now somebody's buried there, Johnson said.

One such cemetery is in Waterford Farms, a gated Crescent community near Lake Keowee where the New Foundation Baptist Church once stood.

It burned down decades ago, and members moved to another church. The cemetery, too, will be preserved maintained and open to visitors, said Scott Munday, director of development for Crescent Communities on Lake Keowee.

After a story about the New Foundation cemetery ran in The Greenville News last fall, a pastor called to say some elderly widows in his congregation who are from there were relieved to know the cemetery still existed.

Paul Kankula, a Seneca retiree, is compiling an online date base of cemeteries in Pickens, Oconee, and Anderson counties for genealogical research as part of a national project called GenWeb. He has mapped and photographed about 1,000 cemeteries and still has about 300 to go.

He worries that unconcerned landowners will neglect them and that they will disappear.

"There are cemeteries that farmers have just picked up the fieldstone and planted crops on top of the graves. There are no remains if you're talking about a grave from the early 1800's. All there is are some teeth and discolored soil," Kankula said.

"It's just something that comes with the land when the bought it. They're not relative of those people."

State law prohibits damage or destruction of human remains. It is a felony, and conviction carries a maximum file of $5,000 and 10 years in prison.

There are cases where people have gotten caught and convicted, but, "catching you, that's the trick," said Kankula said.

Most people today are buried in established cemeteries, but some aren't.

A Pickens County widow recently had Johnson bury her husband on their property. As a courtesy, Johnson filed paperwork at the courthouse to attach to the deed so future owners of the land will know that the grave is there.

Johnson said it should be mandatory to attach records of graves to deeds.

Johnson also strongly suggests that landowners who find burial sites research property records at the courthouse to find any living descendants and talk with them about moving remains to an established, maintained cemetery.

"It doesn't cost all that much," Johnson said. The issue is one of growing concern and the area develops and there are varying opinions.

Linda Skelton, of St. George, who's husband is a Lynch descendant, doesn't want the captains grave moved.

:That is sacred ground", she said of the Lynch grave. "Once one is buried under God's law, it is never to be disturbed because we are from God."

State Sen. Larry Martin, R-Pickens, introduced a bill I January to ensure that the public has access but burial sites that are landlocked by developments.

It would give relatives and descendants an easement to visit the cemetery "at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner."

In the case of an abandoned cemetery or one not kept up, the bill would give relative and descendants the right to maintain the cemetery if the owner doesn't.

The bill was referred to a judiciary committee that Martin heads, and he said it would be taken up soon.

Family links:

Spouse:

 Anne Moon Lynch (1754 - 1842)*

Children:

 Ann P. Lynch Cochran (1788 - 1878)*

 Nathaniel Lynch (1790 - 1861)*

• Calculated relationship

Burial: William Lynch Burial Site Pickens Pickens County South Carolina, USA

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Created by: Kelly Jane O Record added: Apr 07, 2010 Find A Grave Memorial# 50765024 http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=lynch&GSfn=wi...

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William Lynch was born in 1742 in Virginia. He was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. He married Elizabeth and they had six children together. He then married a widow, Anne Moon Stone, and they moved to Greenville, S.C. They had eight children together. William died on July 15, 1820, in South Carolina, having lived a long life of 78 years. He left a will which confirms that Jeter Lynch was his son.

His death notice in the Pendleton Messenger read: "Died on the 15th ult., Capt. Wm. Lynch, aged 78. He was an old Revolutionary soldier, and a friend to widow and orphan, and a good farmer. He died in possession of Christianity and the good will of all honest people who knew him. " .