A Resident of My
Living Village:
Jonathan Martin Dunlap
On a beautiful, late Sunday afternoon
in October 2005, I made one of my greatest genealogy breakthroughs.
And, it was a living person. We had been wandering around Stanly and
Anson counties, visiting random sites mentioned by my mother, and
other sites I had read about in brief research. Ten years is a huge
time in genealogy records evolution. Very little was digitized or
transcribed and posted online compared to today. I was scouting
cemeteries related to the Dunlap family and had some vague
directions, from a Genforum posting, to travel the main highway,
south of Norwood, NC, and turn along various county roads. This was
mostly farm land with some fencing but few structures.
I was so excited when we came around a
long, low curve and spotted the gracious old church and the cemetery
just beyond. It was getting towards dusk but I was determined to get
as much “headstone history” as I could. This was the last day
allotted for my trip so I felt pressured to make the most of it.
Armed with my new digital camera, I jumped out and began searching
for familiar names and snapping pictures before the light faded. This
was a lovely well-tended cemetery and the temperature was mild. My
husband was guiding my efforts by noting names he had heard me
mention and directing me around.
Vaguely, I noticed a well-dressed man
emerge from the church, walk around the church grounds, and then
toward the cemetery. Realizing we were the strangers here, we walked
toward this suited man, meeting in the middle of the cemetery. In a
soft Southern voice, he politely asked if he could help us, and one
of my greatest finds unfolded from there. This was Jonathan Dunlap
and this was his church; his family was buried here.
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| Jonathan Dunlap |
After identifying ourselves, and
breaking out my Dunlap binder from the back seat of our car to
support our credibility, Jonathan told me quickly how we were
related, fifth cousins. He had been preserving family history for
many years and had amazing recall for details of many generations. We
found out later he was just twenty-nine years old.
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| Hannah Pines and George Dunlap headstones in old cemetery |
Jonathan was one of the fewer than
thirty active members of Concord Methodist Church and also their
organist. He told us he liked to come back to the church on Sunday
evenings to be sure everything was in order and he frequently walked
the cemetery to assure the graves were maintained. He did a lot of
the work himself. Knowing time was short, he quickly guided me to the
grave sites he knew would be of most interest to me, telling stories
as we walked. I felt very lucky.
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| Jonathan in new section of cemetery |
A gorgeous harvest moon was rising and
there was beginning to be a soft evening light over clear, quiet
fields across the road. Jonathan told us he lived nearby in a home on
the Dunlap property, gesturing towards the south. A portion of the
original Dunlap lands had remained in the family since the early
1800s. He recited in detail the various land sales that had occurred
over many generations.
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| 1918 George B. Dunlap family reunion |
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| Key to above photo |
Then he asked would we like to come
back to his place and see some of the heirlooms and papers that he
had? What an amazing offer to strangers! We hesitated slightly, a
little nervous, but our curiosity won out. Jonathan climbed into his
truck and we followed him along county back roads for several minutes
and pulled up in front of a moderate, fifties-style ranch on a
heavily wooded lot. Jonathan asked us to wait while he turned on some
light and then led us into his charming home. He had inherited it
from a great uncle for whom he had cared in the uncle's later years.
It was quite dark with no exterior lights. We could see shadows of
outbuildings and fenced areas. As we followed him up the front walk,
we whispered to each other something along the lines of “What have
we gotten into?”
We were welcomed into a warm and
inviting home, not exactly what I would have expected of some one so
young. At first it felt a bit like a living museum. The furniture was
clean but clearly that of the elder relative. The magazines on the
end tables were twenty years old. Soon, we realized that Jonathan
had incorporated his love of history and family into his daily life.
He was planning to build a new home on some land nearby and so was
gathering those pieces that might fit in with new construction but
retain their history. He told us he just couldn't throw anything
away.
Over the next hour, he showed us
through the house indicating baskets, chests, chairs and cabinets
owned, and sometimes made, by a Dunlap. There was a closet with neatly
preserved clothes worn over a hundred years before and many framed
photographs and portraits. He shared documents, albums and stories. I
shared what little I had brought with me. We found a common
appreciation of tintypes and a desire to learn more about Hannah
Pines Dunlap.
Jonathan's mother, Phyllis, even
dropped by after she had called and heard we were there. She was a
nurse and on her way home. She instantly reminded me of my sister,
Linda, in looks and manner. She encouraged us to stay and visit,
joking about her son's “obsession” but clearly proud of him.
Not wanting to overstay a clearly
unanticipated visit, we made sounds of leaving. Jonathan suggested
that we follow him back to the church so we wouldn't get lost on the
unmarked roads. Leaving the house, we stopped at the barnyard to meet
his mule, Jack, and listened to him bray in the still night. All of
this was a little surreal. But what came next was magical.
We got to the church and Jonathan
pulled out a ponderous set of keys. He explained he was pretty much
the main caretaker and asked if we would like to see the inside of
the church, especially because our joint ancestor, George Dunlap, had
helped build and furnish it. Who would refuse! Jonathan moved his
truck so that the headlights would show us a path. Even with a full
moon, it was incredibly dark and a little eerie. He opened the large
entry door (yes, it creaked) and turned on interior lights. The old
fixtures cast a soft yellow-orange glow over white walls and
well-worn pews in a simple but elegant country church. He then asked
us if we would like to hear some music. Without preamble, Jonathan
sat down at the piano and, from memory, began to play classic old
hymns, some with complicated arrangements. We quickly discovered a
polished musician. As the huge sound of the piano filled this church
of my ancestors, I knew that this was an amazing gift. I was filled
with the melodies and the mental images of people and their services
held in this sacred place. It was a moment in time I would never
forget. This remarkable young man was an inspiration.
The unbelievable chance meeting in a
churchyard led to a connection that has continued strong, if
infrequent, over the last ten years. Jonathan built his new house
incorporating the mantle of his 3rd Great Grandfather,
Joseph Fletcher Dunlap. He remains active with the Concord church.
