This book-shaped monument is tucked into a shady corner of Section H on the northeast edge of Oak Hill Cemetery. The inscriptions are heavily damaged but it is still possible to read the names of Mary A. Edmonds (wife of John Philip Smith, but "Edmonds" is the name on the marker), her son Thomas Edmonds and daughter Elsie (Eliza) Edmonds Anthony.
The 1870 census of Santa Cruz County, Calif., includes John P. Smith with his wife Mary Anne Smith (age 33, born in England), and Thomas E. Smith (age 15, NY).
San Jose Mercury, Nov. 12, 1879. "SMITH—In San Jose, Nov. 11, 1879, Mrs. Mary A. Smith, aged 48 years, mother of Mrs. Elisa E. Anthony and Thos. Edmonds."
On Nov. 14, 1879, the San Jose Mercury News reported that the last will and testament of Mrs. Mary Anna Smith, dated June 30, 1875, had been filed for probate. She bequeathed all of her estate to her husband, John P. Smith, and upon his death, it was to go to her two children by a former marriage. "One of these children, Eliza E. Anthony, is a well known writer of poetry, and her share is to remain free from the control of her husband."
In the 1880 census of San Jose (Santa Clara County), Thomas Edmonds (24) was living with his step-father John P. Smith (61), a widower. Their household also included Lillie Q. Anthony (age 11), identified as John P. Smith's granddaughter. Lily was the daughter of Thomas's sister Eliza (Edmonds) Anthony, who was working as a journalist in San Francisco.
A gossipy article about Eliza E. Anthony in the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Dec. 8, 1887) sheds some light on the family's troubles. "Eliza's mother also had a life of unhappiness and disappointment. She was deserted by her husband, named Edmonds, when Eliza and her brother were small children, and she married again, and the children thought until they had become grown that their stepfather, who was devoted to them, was their real father, and when Eliza learned the truth she was heart-broken."
The 1870 census of Santa Cruz County, Calif., includes John P. Smith with his wife Mary Anne Smith (age 33, born in England), and Thomas E. Smith (age 15, NY).
San Jose Mercury, Nov. 12, 1879. "SMITH—In San Jose, Nov. 11, 1879, Mrs. Mary A. Smith, aged 48 years, mother of Mrs. Elisa E. Anthony and Thos. Edmonds."
On Nov. 14, 1879, the San Jose Mercury News reported that the last will and testament of Mrs. Mary Anna Smith, dated June 30, 1875, had been filed for probate. She bequeathed all of her estate to her husband, John P. Smith, and upon his death, it was to go to her two children by a former marriage. "One of these children, Eliza E. Anthony, is a well known writer of poetry, and her share is to remain free from the control of her husband."
In the 1880 census of San Jose (Santa Clara County), Thomas Edmonds (24) was living with his step-father John P. Smith (61), a widower. Their household also included Lillie Q. Anthony (age 11), identified as John P. Smith's granddaughter. Lily was the daughter of Thomas's sister Eliza (Edmonds) Anthony, who was working as a journalist in San Francisco.
A gossipy article about Eliza E. Anthony in the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Dec. 8, 1887) sheds some light on the family's troubles. "Eliza's mother also had a life of unhappiness and disappointment. She was deserted by her husband, named Edmonds, when Eliza and her brother were small children, and she married again, and the children thought until they had become grown that their stepfather, who was devoted to them, was their real father, and when Eliza learned the truth she was heart-broken."
This book-shaped monument is tucked into a shady corner of Section H on the northeast edge of Oak Hill Cemetery. The inscriptions are heavily damaged but it is still possible to read the names of Mary A. Edmonds (wife of John Philip Smith, but "Edmonds" is the name on the marker), her son Thomas Edmonds and daughter Elsie (Eliza) Edmonds Anthony.
The 1870 census of Santa Cruz County, Calif., includes John P. Smith with his wife Mary Anne Smith (age 33, born in England), and Thomas E. Smith (age 15, NY).
San Jose Mercury, Nov. 12, 1879. "SMITH—In San Jose, Nov. 11, 1879, Mrs. Mary A. Smith, aged 48 years, mother of Mrs. Elisa E. Anthony and Thos. Edmonds."
On Nov. 14, 1879, the San Jose Mercury News reported that the last will and testament of Mrs. Mary Anna Smith, dated June 30, 1875, had been filed for probate. She bequeathed all of her estate to her husband, John P. Smith, and upon his death, it was to go to her two children by a former marriage. "One of these children, Eliza E. Anthony, is a well known writer of poetry, and her share is to remain free from the control of her husband."
In the 1880 census of San Jose (Santa Clara County), Thomas Edmonds (24) was living with his step-father John P. Smith (61), a widower. Their household also included Lillie Q. Anthony (age 11), identified as John P. Smith's granddaughter. Lily was the daughter of Thomas's sister Eliza (Edmonds) Anthony, who was working as a journalist in San Francisco.
A gossipy article about Eliza E. Anthony in the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Dec. 8, 1887) sheds some light on the family's troubles. "Eliza's mother also had a life of unhappiness and disappointment. She was deserted by her husband, named Edmonds, when Eliza and her brother were small children, and she married again, and the children thought until they had become grown that their stepfather, who was devoted to them, was their real father, and when Eliza learned the truth she was heart-broken."
The 1870 census of Santa Cruz County, Calif., includes John P. Smith with his wife Mary Anne Smith (age 33, born in England), and Thomas E. Smith (age 15, NY).
San Jose Mercury, Nov. 12, 1879. "SMITH—In San Jose, Nov. 11, 1879, Mrs. Mary A. Smith, aged 48 years, mother of Mrs. Elisa E. Anthony and Thos. Edmonds."
On Nov. 14, 1879, the San Jose Mercury News reported that the last will and testament of Mrs. Mary Anna Smith, dated June 30, 1875, had been filed for probate. She bequeathed all of her estate to her husband, John P. Smith, and upon his death, it was to go to her two children by a former marriage. "One of these children, Eliza E. Anthony, is a well known writer of poetry, and her share is to remain free from the control of her husband."
In the 1880 census of San Jose (Santa Clara County), Thomas Edmonds (24) was living with his step-father John P. Smith (61), a widower. Their household also included Lillie Q. Anthony (age 11), identified as John P. Smith's granddaughter. Lily was the daughter of Thomas's sister Eliza (Edmonds) Anthony, who was working as a journalist in San Francisco.
A gossipy article about Eliza E. Anthony in the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Dec. 8, 1887) sheds some light on the family's troubles. "Eliza's mother also had a life of unhappiness and disappointment. She was deserted by her husband, named Edmonds, when Eliza and her brother were small children, and she married again, and the children thought until they had become grown that their stepfather, who was devoted to them, was their real father, and when Eliza learned the truth she was heart-broken."
Inscription
MOTHER
MARY A. EDMONDS
Born Nov. 30, 1831
Died Nov. 11, 1879
Native of England
~~~
"Till the day break and the shadows flee away"
Gravesite Details
The monument is in the form of an open book on a pedestal. The inscription is damaged and partly illegible.
Family Members
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