April A to Z Challenge 2020: It’s that time of year! Every April, bloggers around the world make posts for each letter of the alphabet. It’s a lot of fun and a great way to make friends online. Here’s my post for today:
[The following is an adapted excerpt from my travel guide to haunted places, a book called Paranormal Texas. I hope you enjoy it! Also, full disclosure: that’s an Amazon affiliate link. If you buy stuff after clicking it, I make a few pennies at no additional cost to you.]
What is a tumulus?
A tumulus is a special kind of burial mound. In ancient times, a tumulus was used to bury either a group of soldiers or perhaps to honor one specific great warrior. After the bodies are covered with a pile of rocks, dirt is heaped up on it to create a rounded hill.
Modern Tumulus
When you see a tumulus in modern American cemeteries, they are usually associated with a fraternal organization or military society. Instead of a pile of rocks, the tumulus in a modern burial is created by heaping dirt over a mausoleum.
Fraternal or Military
I saw this tumulus in New Orleans’ Greenwood Cemetery. It’s a burial site for members of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks (BPOE.) And I must confess, I really hoped to see someone mow that well-kept grass on it while I was there! (No luck.)
Why is the Elks’ clock set for 11?
The Elks’ emblem features an elk superimposed over the face of a clock with a single star at the top and the letters BPOE around the edge. The antlers symbolize protection, and the star stands for fidelity. On the Elks Club emblem, the hands of the clock are always set at 11:00, because at this time of night, members drink a special toast to members who have passed away.
Symbols for Secret Societies & Fraternal Orders
One of my upcoming guide book projects is all about cemetery symbols for secret societies and fraternal orders. I think it’s fascinating! Are there any symbols for clubs or fraternal orders in the burial grounds near you?
READ MY BOOK: If you enjoy historic cemeteries and want to learn more, check out my book: Understanding Cemetery Symbols. It’s available on Amazon in paperback and ebook form.
Learn more at my Historic Cemetery Podcast & YouTube Channel:
Do you have questions about headstone symbols? Drop by my YouTube channel and let me take you one some virtual cemetery tours! You can also tune in to my 30-minute historic cemetery podcast on the first Tuesday of each month: Tombstone Tuesday with Tui Snider.
READ MY BOOK: If you enjoy historic cemeteries and want to learn more, check out my book: Understanding Cemetery Symbols. It’s available on Amazon in paperback and ebook form.
Grab a FREE copy of my book:
Tui Snider is an author, speaker, and photographer who specializes in North Texas travel, cemetery symbols, and haunted lore. As she puts it, “I used to write fiction – but then, I moved to Texas!”
Snider’s best-selling books include Paranormal Texas , Understanding Cemetery Symbols, and 100 Things to Do in Dallas - Fort Worth Before You Die.
Snider has several more books in progress, and enjoys connecting with writers and readers all over the globe through social media, her newsletter and her website: TuiSnider.com.
That’s a very handsome elk sculpture.
Black and White (Words and Pictures)
Where we live there are graveyards all over the place, sometimes in the strangest places. We have a small one around which they built a shopping center many years ago. Most of it is vacant and has gone to seed, but because there’s a graveyard there, they have to figure out whether to move it or built around it again. Anyway, you occasionally see the calipers and square of the Masons on the gravestones.